Scan barcode
A review by joyfilledwander
Wife of the Gods by Kwei Quartey
3.0
This book was read for my 2016 Reading Challenge Around the World in 80 Books
Detective Inspector Darko Dawson is a good detective. He’s a good family man. He’s a hard worker. But when he’s called on to investigate the mysterious death of an aspiring young woman, Detective Inspector Darko Dawson begins to spiral out of control. This case will push Dawson to his limits as a father, as a son, as a nephew, as a detective, and as a man. As a detective from the capital city of Ghana, Dawson is working a case out of his element in a rural small village. Clashing with cultural norms and age-old religious customs, it’s a recipe for disaster.
This book surprised me. I had moderate expectations. As much as I like serial criminal stories [not like serial killers, but a series of crime novels following a main character], I know they are an overdone genre. After reading & loving the Swedish Wallander and the American Harry Bosch, I don’t know how another curmudgeonly detective can work his way into my heart. But Darko Dawson is an interesting character. And this is an interesting book. It’s has some of the typical African stereotypes [witchcraft, lack of education of HIV/AIDS, traditional healers], but it works. And that surprised me. I read this alongside of Lyn Hamilton’s [b:The Moche Warrior|795474|The Moche Warrior (Lara McClintoch Archeological Mystery, #3)|Lyn Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1373652210s/795474.jpg|781452], another multicultural mystery, and I had the opposite reaction to this book. Darko Dawson is a lead detective worth following. I hope to meet him again sometime soon.
Detective Inspector Darko Dawson is a good detective. He’s a good family man. He’s a hard worker. But when he’s called on to investigate the mysterious death of an aspiring young woman, Detective Inspector Darko Dawson begins to spiral out of control. This case will push Dawson to his limits as a father, as a son, as a nephew, as a detective, and as a man. As a detective from the capital city of Ghana, Dawson is working a case out of his element in a rural small village. Clashing with cultural norms and age-old religious customs, it’s a recipe for disaster.
This book surprised me. I had moderate expectations. As much as I like serial criminal stories [not like serial killers, but a series of crime novels following a main character], I know they are an overdone genre. After reading & loving the Swedish Wallander and the American Harry Bosch, I don’t know how another curmudgeonly detective can work his way into my heart. But Darko Dawson is an interesting character. And this is an interesting book. It’s has some of the typical African stereotypes [witchcraft, lack of education of HIV/AIDS, traditional healers], but it works. And that surprised me. I read this alongside of Lyn Hamilton’s [b:The Moche Warrior|795474|The Moche Warrior (Lara McClintoch Archeological Mystery, #3)|Lyn Hamilton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1373652210s/795474.jpg|781452], another multicultural mystery, and I had the opposite reaction to this book. Darko Dawson is a lead detective worth following. I hope to meet him again sometime soon.