FEBRUARY 2019 - AudioFile
Narrator Peter Ganim dramatizes the ethnic and religious tensions at the heart of this crime novel set in Quebec. In a baritone voice, he recounts the danger and dilemmas facing the police after an attack at a local mosque. He portrays both male and female characters equally well as the story moves between detectives Rachel Getty and Esa Khattak. Ganim credibly delivers the French words scattered throughout the novel and produces believable French-accented English for the many minor characters. His narration moves the story between dialogue, action, and long passages from online commentators who debate the issues at the heart of the novel on social media. M.R. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
★ 12/24/2018
Issues of religion, culture, and racism take center stage in Khan’s outstanding fifth novel featuring Insp. Esa Khattak, the Toronto-based head of Canada’s Community Policing Section (after 2018’s A Dangerous Crossing). Esa and his partner, Sgt. Rachel Getty, travel to the small Quebec town of Saint-Isidore-du-Lac, where eight people have been shot dead in a mosque in an apparent hate crime. The local police, led by racist Insp. Christian Lemaire of the Sûreté du Quebec, quickly arrest Amadou Duchon, a young Muslim man who was at the scene helping the wounded. The Quebec police also conduct a superficial interview with priest Étienne Roy, who was holding the murder weapon, before releasing him. The priest denies having fired it. In the course of their investigation, Esa and Rachel find a town divided by cultural differences, egged on by a right-wing radio host, and panicked by immigrants and the small Muslim community whose religion is compromised by Quebec’s controversial Codes of Conduct, which favor Catholics. Khan perceptively explores how fear can quickly erupt into violence. Agent: Danielle Burby, Hannigan Salky Getzler. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
“Outstanding...Khan perceptively explores who fear can quickly erupt into violence.”—Publishers Weekly (Starred and Boxed)
“Khan masterfully weavers story-driving character development and pitch-perfect investigation with timely social commentary on the impact of cultural tensions.”—Booklist
“Khan peoples her police procedural with believably nuanced characters to highlight the consequences of hate. The tension never lets down.”—Kirkus
“Ausma Zehanat Khan's procedurals have redefined the landscape of Canadian crime writing. This is a must-read for any who believe in crime fiction as a space to both process trauma and sound the call for action.”—Crime Reads, "Best Crime Books of 2019"
“Khan has established herself as one of the genre's most thoughtful practitioners. With great intelligence and sensitivity, Khan portrays the ease of online radicalization and the ways in which ideological divides cement into far more violent ones. It's a piece of fiction that manages to tell a truth even non-fiction has had trouble communicating.”—Globe and Mail (Toronto)
“A Deadly Divide feels like a homecoming, but to a home that’s no longer a safe space. I can’t recommend this timely and urgent read enough.”—LitHub
“In a fast-paced and expertly plotted mystery, Khan explores the depths of human complexity and the very human costs of hate.”—Shelf Awareness
“One of my favorite procedural series….This was my favorite so far. Khan is an excellent writer who explores all the nuances in communities and social issues without creating caricatures or stereotypes.”—BookRiot
“A terrific suspense novel, beautifully set up and resolved.”—Shawangunk Journal and Sullivan County Democrat
“Absorbing. It's tempting to turn to mysteries, where justice is generally served and conflict is brought to a resolution, when the world seems overwhelming. Ausma Zehanat Khan uses the conventions of the genre to explore the world we live in, one that badly needs more justice.”—Reviewing the Evidence
Praise for A Dangerous Crossing:
“Excellent . . . Khan demonstrates a superior ability to inject moving portrayals of the individual faces of an ongoing humanitarian crisis into a suspenseful story line.”—Publishers Weekly (starred)
“A complex global thriller lifted to bar-raising heights by Khan’s thoughtful (and timely) exploration of the tragedies and dangers that refugees face”—Booklist (starred)
“Khan’s doctorate and research in international human relations law give credence to her portrayal of a timely situation . . . This is a series well worth investigating.”—Library Journal
“An exciting read . . . With gripping situations, vivid characters and intense conflicts, Khan creates a thrilling mystery.”—RT BookReviews
“Khan’s latest leads us on a suspenseful hunt for a missing woman and through a perilous and uncertain landscape.”—LitHub
"Khan skillfully sheds light on the very human side of the war in Syria—and the rest of the world's failure to grasp that humanity. A Dangerous Crossing does an excellent job of portraying the situation in Syria in a way that will help readers recognize hard truths. Moreover, it does so while drawing them into the type of carefully woven, multi-layered mystery that has become characteristic of Khan's expert novels."—Shelf Awareness
“Khan is super talented at creating smart and thoughtful detective procedurals that also incorporate important current politics and social issues.”—Book Riot
"A timely novel...This one is a superior topical nail-biter."—The Globe and Mail
"Zehanat Khan's characters are principled and compassionate, driven to serve the lost, the broken, the betrayed, and her plots explore current global issues with keen insight. The novel presents a highly personal and heartbreakingly profound view of the Syrian refugee crisis."—Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
"This Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty series gets richer every time out."—Sullivan County Democrat
“A Dangerous Crossing is driven by mystery, but it’s also poignant and complex . . . Khan does not shy from intricate global politics. A Dangerous Crossing is another gripping Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty Mystery."—Don’t Need a Diagram
Praise for the Khattak and Getty series:
“An outstanding debut.” New York Times
“Impressive . . . A many-faceted gem.” The Washington Post
“With its thought-provoking, intelligent plot, The Language of Secrets even surpasses Khan’s superb debut, The Unquiet Dead.” Associated Press
“Beautiful and powerful.” Publishers Weekly (starred)
“An involving mystery in a vividly portrayed setting . . . In Khan’s hands, mysteries carry powerful messages.” Booklist
FEBRUARY 2019 - AudioFile
Narrator Peter Ganim dramatizes the ethnic and religious tensions at the heart of this crime novel set in Quebec. In a baritone voice, he recounts the danger and dilemmas facing the police after an attack at a local mosque. He portrays both male and female characters equally well as the story moves between detectives Rachel Getty and Esa Khattak. Ganim credibly delivers the French words scattered throughout the novel and produces believable French-accented English for the many minor characters. His narration moves the story between dialogue, action, and long passages from online commentators who debate the issues at the heart of the novel on social media. M.R. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2018-12-11
A sadly relevant look at the consequences of racism and bigotry.
Esa Khattak and his partner, Sgt. Rachel Getty, are the mainstays of Canada's Community Policing Department, which deals with hate crimes and terrorism. Their latest case takes them from their Toronto base to a small Quebecois town where someone has just massacred members of the local mosque. Both Rachel and Esa, who is a second-generation Canadian Muslim, are deeply disturbed when they receive a hostile reception from Christian Lemaire, the officer in charge. Prejudice is clearly at work when local priest Father Roy, who was found at the scene with a rifle in his hands, is escorted away, while Amadou Duchon, a young black member of the mosque, is arrested. Scores of reporters, community activists, and the premier's press liaison descend on the town with their very different agendas. The crimes seem almost to have been committed by two different people. The women were all calmly shot with a handgun in the basement; a violent rage upstairs apparently fueled the deaths and woundings of dozens of men with an assault rifle. Esa, who always gets intensely invested in his cases, becomes even more so because of the involvement of university student Alizah Siddiqui, whose sister's murder he investigated (A Dangerous Crossing, 2018). Alizah has a campus radio talk show that constantly battles another station intent on stirring up hatred in an area where Francophile sentiment already runs deep. The neo-Nazi Wolf Allegiance is run by Maxime Thibault, an arrogant preppy who has a love-hate relationship with Alizah. Rachel is both attracted to Lemaire and deeply distrustful of him and other police officers she suspects of bigotry. Khan peoples her police procedural with believably nuanced characters to highlight the consequences of hate.
The tension never lets down in this horrifying look at mass murder and the often mundane factors that inspire it.
