by P. H. Newby
First published 1993
Townrow arrives in Port Said in 1956, summoned by the widow of his dead friend Elie Khoury. The widow believes her husband was murdered when he was found dead in the street. Nobody else shares her conviction. Townrow finds himself caught between conflicting versions of events. There is Leah Strauss, who was Khoury's mistress. There are the British paratroopers who have invaded the city. Townrow assumes the British forces conducted themselves properly, but this certainty begins to crack. The world around him becomes strange and disorienting. Nothing fits the patterns he expected. As he digs deeper into his friend's death, Townrow must question the fundamental beliefs that have guided his life. He discovers that he too bears responsibility for actions he never fully examined.
Genres: fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
Setting: Port Said
Period: 1956
285 pages · Paperback · Palm Books