"Khan delivers an action-packed police procedural complemented by strong characters with believable motives.”—Associated Press
“Exceptionally fine…A heartfelt novel for lovers of crime fiction and anyone interested in the complexities of living as a Muslim in the West today.”—Library Journal (starred review)
“Sophisticated…The characters are well-drawn and pleasingly varied: Khattak is a compelling protagonist, a cerebral, reserved Muslim comfortable with his faith but not ruled by it, and the buoyant, hockey-loving Getty is an endearing foil. The cell members are afforded fully dimensional personalities and varied passions, ideals, and justifications for their actions; everyone has their reasons, Khan understands, and her nuanced exploration of those reasons elevates her second novel above the general run of detective fiction. A smart, measured, immersive dive into a poorly understood, terrifyingly relevant subculture of violent extremism.”—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for The Unquiet Dead:
“Impressive…Throughout Getty and Khattak’s solid and comprehensive investigation, Khan’s talents are evident. This first in what may become a series is a many-faceted gem. It’s a sound police procedural, a somber study of loss and redemption and, most of all, a grim effort to make sure that crimes against humanity are not forgotten.” —The Washington Post
“The Unquiet Dead blazes what one hopes will be a new path guided by the author's keen understanding of the intersection of faith and core Muslim values, complex human nature and evil done by seemingly ordinary people. It is these qualities that make this a debut to remember and one that even those who eschew the genre will devour in one breathtaking sitting.” —The LA Times
“Ausma Zehanat Khan's gripping first novel tackles questions of identity, culture, revenge and war horrors in a strong police procedural…Khan illustrates her powerful storytelling through her well-sculpted characters…An intelligent plot and graceful writing make The Unquiet Dead an outstanding debut that is not easily forgotten.” —The New York Times
“This is Canadian-born Khan’s first novel and what a debut it is!...Khan knows her subject, knows her hometown, and knows how to keep the suspense building. This is a writer to watch.” —The Globe and Mail
11/30/2015
Loosely based on a terrorist plot foiled by Canadian law enforcement in 2006, Khan’s engaging sequel to 2014’s The Unquiet Dead finds Esa Khattak, the head of Toronto’s Community Policing Section, investigating the murder of an estranged friend, Mohsin Dar, who, unbeknownst to him, infiltrated a Muslim terrorist cell that was planning a devastating attack. Khattak, who still mourns his late wife seven years after her death, struggles daily with his man-in-the-middle role between police and fellow Muslims. But as he and his personable partner, Sgt. Rachel Getty, sprint to uncover out what’s really going on in the cell led by the charismatic Hassan Ashkouri while being kept dangerously in the dark by Khattak’s nemesis, Ciprian Coale, about a larger antiterrorist operation, the stakes suddenly skyrocket with the engagement of Khattak’s headstrong sister, Ruksh, to Ashkouri. Those prepared to slog through the blizzard of poetry used to convey clues will be rewarded by a gripping climax in the snowy wilderness of Ontario’s Algonquin Park. Agent: Danielle Burby, Hannigan Salky Getzler. (Feb.)
11/01/2016
This follow-up to Khan's acclaimed debut, The Unquiet Dead, reunites readers with detective Esa Khattak, a thoughtful, reserved, practicing Muslim who heads Canada's Community Policing Section. Esa learns that his old friend Mohsin Dar, who has been killed on a camping trip, had been working undercover to investigate a terrorist cell planning an attack on New Year's Day. An involving study on the complexities of living as a Muslim in a Western country. For his next adventure, Esa will travel to Iran in Among the Ruins, which releases in February 2017. (LJ 12/15)
2015-11-18
Khan's winning Canadian cops return—and this time, it's really personal. Khan's hero, Detective Esa Khattak, a second-generation Canadian Muslim, and his young partner, Rachel Getty, are back from her debut novel (The Unquiet Dead, 2015) to investigate a terrorist cell planning a series of devastating attacks. The stakes for Khattak become agonizingly personal when an estranged friend is murdered by the cell, his relatively green partner goes undercover as a convert, and his difficult-at-best little sister becomes engaged to the cell's handsome, charismatic leader. Soap opera elements abound, but Khan's sophisticated grasp of the religious, political, and social issues at play grounds the narrative in a thoughtful dissection of the conflicting motives underlying the various players' actions; thoughtful to a fault, occasionally, as the characters tend to pedantically verbalize these complex ideas in lieu of engaging in recognizable human dialogue. Still, rhetoric comes with the territory, and the story functions effectively as a mystery thriller, as Khan deploys an impressive depth of knowledge about the subject matter (the cell's plot is based on a real-life scheme by the so-called "Toronto 18," an extremist group that intended to attack Canadian Parliament in 2006), trusting the reader to keep up with context cues when confronted by unfamiliar ideas and scenarios. The characters are well-drawn and pleasingly varied: Khattak is a compelling protagonist, a cerebral, reserved Muslim comfortable with his faith but not ruled by it, and the buoyant, hockey-loving Getty is an endearing foil. The cell members are afforded fully dimensional personalities and varied passions, ideals, and justifications for their actions; everyone has their reasons, Khan understands, and her nuanced exploration of those reasons elevates her second novel above the general run of detective fiction. A smart, measured, immersive dive into a poorly understood, terrifyingly relevant subculture of violent extremism.
