January 23, 2023
Set in 1926, Agatha winner Neubauer’s diverting fourth Jane Wunderly mystery (after 2022’s Danger on the Atlantic) takes Jane home to Boston. There she learns that her father—“a professor of history, with a specialized interest in the Ottoman Empire”—to whom she was planning to introduce her fiancé, Redvers, has taken out a large bank loan and fled to Istanbul in search of an ancient artifact, the heart of Sultan Sulieman the Magnificent. Jane and Redvers embark on a voyage to Istanbul, where she hopes to locate her father and ensure that he returns the money to the bank, but their task proves far from simple. In Istanbul, instead of her father, the pair encounter a host of unsavory characters. When her father’s translator and confidant is killed in an elevator in their hotel, Jane realizes she could be in grave danger. The action builds to a satisfying resolution as Jane and Redvers follow clues that lead them to Budapest, Hungary. Suspenseful twists and turns more than compensate for a culprit astute readers may pinpoint early on. This fast-paced, adventure-filled mystery should win Neubauer new fans. Agent: Ann Collette, Rees Literary.