Batya GurA Literary MurderChristina says:
This review is based upon the German translation by Mirjam Pressler. On a trip with his son police inspector Michael Ochajon of the Jerusalem criminal investigation department witnesses Ido Duda'i, professor of literature, dying in a diving accident. On the same weekend Scha'ul Tirosch, who is both a celebrated poet and the star of the department of literature, and Duda'i's thesis supervisor, is brutally killed in his office. Ochajon takes on the case and soon discovers a link to the accident which of course wasn't an accident at all. After reading the second instalment of Batya Gur's Ochajon series I can confirm one thing: it takes some practice to become a master. In A Literary Murder she managed to keep the good elements of her first novel, The Saturday Morning Murder, and was able to eliminate some of its weaknesses. This time Michael Ochajon doesn't make any embarrassing mistakes. Gur's second mystery is better paced without being a frantic thriller, and it is easier to get into the story. On the downside it is much too easy to see through the motives of the crime. The closed community in which this mystery is set is the department of literature. The motive behind the crime only works in this very special circle, but it is still believable. The group of suspects consists of ambiguous characters who are keeping the reader interested. Gur's explanations about Israeli poetry give the book an intellectual touch without distracting from the story. It is clear that Gur is writing for an audience familiar with her settings, even though you get a better feeling for the scene this time. Maybe the fact that the German translator mostly refrained from translating the names of places contributed to this feeling. Like in the first book, Ochajon's team doesn't get enough screen time; for some odd reason, Gur seems to succeed better in bringing to life those characters we won't meet again. For all that this is a worthwhile series and a good read. |
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Last changes: 09-05-04 Copyright 2004 Books & Movies |
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