A Crime In The Land Of 7000 Islands by Zephaniah Sole

 

Well, this was certainly different. A police procedural that sees FBI special agent Ikigai Johnson heading out from their Portland office to The Philippines with the aim of bringing justice to the children abused by an American but told in a way that also feels like a fantastical fable. Told from several different points of view (hence the different styles of storytelling) this novel worked so much better than I expected.

The fantastical element comes because Ikigai is trying to explain to her child (Ikigai Jr) why she has to be away and what she has to do - and you can't just come straight out and tell a young child mummy's going off to catch an evil paedophile. Sole surprised me by filling a good portion of this book, which deals with a lot of nasty subjects, with some really evocative and gorgeous imagery.

A Crime In The Land Of 7000 Islands is a book I will be recommending to all, a true feast of a novel despite the subject matter. I can safely say I have never read anything quite like this.

5*

Thanks to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for inviting me onto this tour and for supplying the review copy (all thoughts, comments and opinions are my own).

Please check out the reviews by the other bloggers on the tour (below).