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    The Snake Stone: A Novel
    The Snake Stone: A Novel
    The Snake Stone: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Snake Stone: A Novel

    Written by Jason Goodwin

    Narrated by Stephen Hoye

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Istanbul, 1838. In his palace on the Bosphorus, Sultan Mahmud II is dying, and the city swirls with rumors and alarms. The unexpected arrival of a French archaeologist determined to track down lost Byzantine treasures throws the Greek community into confusion. Yashim Togalu is once again enlisted to investigate. But when the archaeologist's mutilated body is discovered outside the French embassy, it turns out there is only one suspect: Yashim himself. As the body count starts to rise, Yashim must uncover the startling truth behind a shadowy society dedicated to the revival of the Byzantine Empire, encountering along the way such vibrant characters as Lord Byron's doctor and the Sultan's West Indies–born mother, the Valide. With striking wit and irresistible flair, Jason Goodwin takes us into a world where the stakes are high, betrayal is death-and the pleasure to the listener is immense.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMar 30, 2009
    ISBN9781400180110
    Author

    Jason Goodwin

    JASON GOODWIN is the Edgar Award–winning author of the Investigator Yashim series. The first five books—The Janissary Tree, The Snake Stone, The Bellini Card, An Evil Eye, and The Baklava Club—have been published to international acclaim, alongside Yashim Cooks Istanbul, a cookbook of Ottoman Turkish recipes inspired by the series. Goodwin studied Byzantine history at Cambridge and is the author of Lords of the Horizons: A History of the Ottoman Empire, among other award-winning nonfiction. He lives with his wife and children in England.

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    Reviews for The Snake Stone

    4/5

    18 ratings14 reviews

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    • 4/5
      The Sultan is dying; Yashim's friend & vegetable vendor, George, is beaten senseless; the newest Water Guild Member has disappeared; antiquities collectors disappear & appear to be murdered; the Greek bookseller is found dead; the Old Jewish moneylender is found murdered as well, and then there is the questions of the collectors' wives. Everyone blames the Greek Hetira (secret society)....

      There is shady dealings involving most everyone and Yashim is caught in the middle trying to sort it all out.

      Again I enjoyed the richness of the Ottomans, Yashim's penchant for cooking, and the ease with which the story flowed.....
    • 4/5
      Like most historical crime novels, the build-up is always more interesting than the actual climax. I think that these books by Goodwin are excellent in describing the Istanbul of the time - I never knew about the Albanians responsible for the city's water supply. The 'whodunnit' almost becomes secondary at times - maybe that's the intention.
    • 4/5
      Tried a couple of times with the first in this series, and couldn't get far. I think Goodwin was perhaps not entirely comfortable with how we'd receive his eunuch main character. Here he seems to be satisfied we can handle that bit. And he seems to be a lot more comfortable handling all the larger elements here: the Ottoman Empire, the city itself, Yashim's cooking and his particular situation all seem to enrich the tapestry here where they seemed a bit self-conscious and imposed in Book 1.I'd recommend this as a starting point.
    • 5/5
      Goodwin's first novel, The Janissary Tree (2006), won the Edgar for Best Novel (2007). He followed up that up with this outing, The Snake Stone. The series is set in 1830s Istanbul and features Yashim, an eunuch engaged by the Ottoman rulers to investigate unusual deaths. In this outing, Yahim is enlisted to find out who and why a French archaeologist is murdered after asking one too many questions about antiquities. Goodwin has chosen as his detective a character as unique as his setting, nineteenth century Istanbul. He brings both the character and the setting alive with his powers of description. When Yashim goes shopping, you can almost smell the aromas of the food bazaars. This is a wonderful series that deserves to be widely read. If you are a reader looking for something to read that is unusual and well written, Goodwin's books are for you.
    • 5/5
      As the subtitle says, 'Investigator Yashim Returns' to solve another mystery in the Istanbul of the 1830's. Historian-turned-novelist Jason Goodwin concocts another intriguing tale based on the sound footing he established last year in The Janissary Tree: A Novel. Yashim Togalu, the eunuch detective, is forced into the investigation of the brutal murder of a French archaeologist when suspicion turns on Yashim, the last person known to have seen the man Lefevre alive. As he did in The Janissary Tree, Goodwin again entwines his story around the history of the era. But Goodwin's strongest suit may be his ability to surround the reader with sensory experiences of the streets of Istanbul; the sights, the sounds, the smells and tastes. The varied peoples and their styles come alive. And not only on the streets, but also under the streets - the meticulously maintained and ancient waterworks of Istanbul (and their Albanian maintainers) play a large part in this story. Moreover, the mystery that Goodwin unravels for the reader is quite appropriately byzantine with several dead alleys and an ending that...well, I go too far. Another enjoyable and slightly offbeat treat. Highly recommended.
    • 3/5
      As the title suggests this is the second in the series of historical mysteries featuring Yashim the Eunuch which again takes place in 1830's Istanbul. Yashim has remarkable social skills which allow him to glide easily through all the various levels of Istanbul society. The incumbent Sultan is on his death bed so Yashim's authority is a little diminished yet he is still able to mix freely with members of the Royal household, ambassadors and the local market stall holders equally. When a visiting French archaeologist, who had until recently been a guest of Yashim's, is apparently found brutally murdered, the shadow of suspicion falls onto Yashim. He fears that this suspicion alone will damage his influence still further so he sets out to catch the killer.“The Snake Stone” of the title appears to refer to a bronze column that had been captured from the Greeks at Delphi before being transported to Constantinople, where its serpent-adorned head disappeared. Although this artefact no doubt has great historical importance it is not really central to this novel, rather the ability of snakes to shed their skins become a sort of metaphor of how people are able to shed their previous identities and reinvent themselves. Thus the author is able to create a variety of interesting characters as well as treating the reader to a wide ranging history level that includes the Vikings and Lord Byron to name but a couple as well as give a very atmospheric impression on life in the cultural and ethnic melting-pot that must have been 1830's Istanbul as the Ottoman Empire begins to slowly crumble.This historical background raises this series above the humdrum of standard murder mysteries and Yashim is no ordinary sleuth. However, the author must tread warily the tightrope between lecturing and entertaining the reader. On the whole I feel that he does this remarkably well although some of the details can appear to overcomplicate the overall plot. In this particular case I feel that the murders themselves have very little influence on the overall plot which rather lets the novel down slightly. Instead the book's strength is its human intrigue. Goodwin has managed to develop a large and varied cast of characters the vast percentage of them appear to be schemers of one sort or another trying to outflank one another. Questions of national identity figure prominently. Yet Yashim seems able to sail serenely above it all, his essential humanity shines out like a beacon. He is a man of many talents whether cooking, chatting or questioning suspects, he is a detective with a difference making this series a generally appealing read.
    • 3/5
      I was rather disappointed with this mystery, the third by this author and the second set in 19th century Istanbul. Jason Goodwin's knowledge of the city throughout its long history is evident and that is interesting but there needed to be more momentum and I forced myself to read to the end.
    • 4/5
      This is the second in Goodwin's series set in 19th century Istanbul. A visiting French archaeologist reveals that he thinks he knows the location of long-lost Byzantine treasures...the cup and plate being used at Mass when the Ottoman Turks entered Aya Sofia in the 15th century. In the confusion, the priest and the relics, rumored to be those used at the Last Supper, disappeared. Suddenly, people start turning up dead, and the archaeologist appears at our man Yashim's door, terrified, begging for help to leave the city at once. Yashim books passage for Dr. LeFevre on an Italian ship bound for Palermo, and sees him to the shuttle craft that will ferry him out to the ship. After the ship has sailed, however, a mutilated body identified as Dr. LeFevre, turns up, and Yashim is noted to have been the last person to see him alive. Long attached to the royal household, Yashim knows he can look for no help from that quarter; Sultan Mahmut lies dying, and the future is uncertain at best. Yashim realizes he must find out for himself what happened to LeFevre, before the official report of the investigation into his death leads to his own arrest. Yashim's inquiries take him to many parts of the city, across the Golden Horn into Greek and Jewish neighborhoods, and even underground into the maze of ancient tunnels and cisterns providing water to Topkapi palace and the surrounding area. These books are great escapes...an intriguing main character caught up in a nifty story, wrapped in painless history lessons about an endlessly fascinating time and place.
    • 4/5
      I just love this series. The characters and the setting are wonderful. There is great detail and description, but it is never dumped on you. The plot meanders along with bits and pieces, and is a subtle part of the story. While it drives everything, there is no sense that they story only exists for the mystery. It might be off-putting to those who prefer the mystery to be the star of the story. A shady French archaeologist comes to Istanbul, and latches onto the Polish Ambassador. He turns him over to Yashim. The ambassador is afraid he will discover parts of the stolen monument being hidden in the embassy. Yashim has also been asked by a rich Greek merchant's wife to look into the meeting of her husband and the archaeologist. The archaeologist has stirred people up in only a short time in the city.Various people begin to die horribly: a bookseller, a money lender, a new member of the Waterman's guild. The archaeologist leaves Yashim's hospitality to return home, in great fear. He is sent to the ship to take him home. The next night after the ship has sailed, his dead body is found outside an embassy. Yashim is the last person known to be with him. Yashim fears just the suggestion of his involvement in the death will spook his patrons in the palace. The power structure is in flux. The Sultan is dying, and the Valide is very old, and will be replaced when her grandson assumes power. Yashim fears if he can't solve the death, he will lose his protection and relationship with the palace.The French wife of the dead man turns up and she is also searching for information about her husband. Seems he was looking for some relics.Preen the transvestite also make a reappearance, but she has only minor stage time. The book looks at the layers of history and the different cultures and religions that make up the history of the city. Yashim cooks. Its just a wonderful visit, and I can't wait for the next one The Bellini Card. It is out, but in hardcover, and I wait for the tradepaper version before buying.
    • 4/5
      I listened to this book which I downloaded from my library's electronic media site. It takes place in 1838 just as Sultan Mahmoud II is dying in his new palace. It is the second in the series of historical mysteries starring the eunuch Yashim.Yashim, a trusted advisor to the Ottoman court, is rather at loose ends due to the Sultan's fatal condition. He spends time in the markets and with his old friend, the Polish Ambassador, and he cooks. When he learns that the Polish Ambassador is bringing a French archaeologist to his place for dinner he is delighted to be able to make use of a French cookbook he found in the market. The archaeologist, Dr. Lefevre, eats the food but does not seem to realize how good it is. Yashim is not sorry to see him leave. However, several nights later Lefevre shows up at Yashim's door claiming that someone is trying to kill him and asks for Yashim's help to get him out of the country. Yashim arranges passage on a boat leaving the next day and escorts him late at night to the wharf where he can board the ship. He thinks that is the end of it but the next day he is called to examine a body found near the French embassy. It has been ravaged by stray dogs but Lefevre's case is found nearby and it is believed that Lefevre decided to seek the embassy's help instead of leaving. Someone found him before he could get there and killed him. Yashim is under suspicion since he admitted he had seen Lefevre the night before. Before he can clear his name Lefevre's beautiful wife shows up at Yashim's door wanting Yashim to solve her husband's murder. As Yashim dives into Lefevre's life he discovers that a Greek independence movement might be involved as Lefevre is actually a Swiss doctor who was with Byron and others at the siege of Missalonghi. It's an intricate plot that takes Yashim from the tunnels under Istanbul to Hagia Sophia to Topkapi Palace and many places in between.The history in the book was as fascinating as the murder investigation itself. I learned much about the Greek Independence movement and the siege of Missalonghi. I may have to read some more about that.
    • 4/5
      This is the second of Goodwin's books featuring Yashim Togalu, a eunuch in early-19th century Istanbul, as he investigates a suspicious death. I enjoyed this one more than the first (The Janissary Tree). It continues to provide that same perspective into the city, making the life of Turkey in that era seem vibrant and real. It also has a better mystery than the last one. Though there are enough clues that I found myself guessing the shape of the final solution toward the end of the book, there are also enough little twists to keep it interesting.I'm looking forward to trying the third book, The Bellini Card.
    • 4/5
      This is the second in the mystery series featuring Yashim the Eunuch, fixer to the Ottoman court and all around friend to all. This episode features a grasping French archaeologist, several European ex-patriots who served the cause of Greek independence, and an underground brotherhood of watermen who are protecting a secret. Several people end up dead with Yashim possibly being blamed. Risking his life to sort it out, Yashim manages to cook many a delicious dinner while pondering the situation and fall in love with a French widow despite his (ahem) shortcomings. The star of the book is the City of Istanbul, which Goodwin brings to life with all the sights and smells. Let's go visit Topkapi Palace and have tea with the Valide. Great fun.
    • 3/5
      This one is actually the second book in a series, but by accident I read the next ("The Bellini card") before this.Jason Goodwin is very good at describing Constantinople around 1850, and the main character (Yashim the Eunuch detective) is fascinating. Most of the time.What he is not so good at: plotting. In the last 30 or so pages everything is discovered, but not everything makes a lot of sense. I am unable to decide if this is because the author somehow rushes this part, or if he is trying to go fast enough that the reader won't see the small but noticeable plot holes.If you like to dream about distant lands and times, it's still enjoyable. But far from perfect, even in the whole Historical Mistery subgenre.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this episode in the Yashim the Eunuch series. I enjoy this author the more I read his work. His writing depicts life during the peak of the Ottoman Empire beautifully. I particularly love the descriptions of food and cooking styles. I will say that his writing style does not clearly wrap up the murder for you with neat bows. There is no "Miss Scarlet killed Mr. Body in the ballroom with the knife" type wrap up. You get a synopsis of what happened and you are expected to put two and two together for yourself. But, I kinda like that. I might have added this mystery up to get 5, but 5 is a nice number, too.