It is Istanbul, 1838, and Lefèvre, a French archaeologist, has arrived in Istanbul determined to uncover a lost Byzantine treasure. Yashim is hired to investigate him, but when the man turns up dead, there is only one suspect: Yashim himself. Once again, the investigator finds himself in a race against time to uncover the startling truth behind a shadowy secret society dedicated to the revival of the Byzantine Empire, caught in a deadly game deep beneath the city streets, a place where the stakes are high - and betrayal is death.

When you read a historical mystery by Jason Goodwin, you take a magic carpet ride to the most exotic place on earth. --Marilyn Stasio, The new York Times Book Review Wonderfully entertaining . . . [Goodwin] uses short, punchy chapters and vibrant, atmospheric prose to bring the glory days of the Ottoman capital to life. --Adam Woog, The Seattle Times A sinuous novel . . . Mr. Goodwin uses rich historical detail to elevate the books in this series far above the realm of everyday sleuthing. . . . Yashim moves charmingly across the book's complicated landscape. Whether he is stopping to cook, chat, cogitate, interrogate, or renew old acquaintances at the harem, he is a detective with a difference . . . a warmly appealing character. --Janet Maslin, The New York Times The real pleasure of The Snake Stone lies in its powerful evocation of the cultural melting pot that was nineteenth-century Istanbul. . . . Goodwin's sharp eye combines with a poetic style to br

Jason Goodwin studied Byzantine history at Cambridge University and is the author of Lords of the Horizons: A History of the Ottoman Empire, among other books of cultural history and travel. He lives in Sussex, England, is married with four children, speaks French and German and once walked to Istanbul from Poland. This is the second of a series of novels featuring Yashim; the first was the highly acclaimed and successful The Janissary Tree.