- Paperback: 384 pages
- Publisher: Faber and Faber (1 May 2010)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0571244831
- ISBN-13: 978-0571244836
- Product Dimensions: 17.6 x 11 x 2.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 86,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Black Monastery
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
The Black Monastery is a grizzly whodunit affair that spans over 30 years on the tiny Greek tourist island of Palassos. Successful crime writer Kitty needs to get away from England, her failing marriage and even writing and so lands on this once simple island, now blighted by loud bars, drunken Brits (it always us, innit!) and drugs. Unbeknown to her, Kitty obsessive/stalker Jason had landed on the island the day before with the intention of giving her his manuscript and hopefully more...
Their timing was very bad however as teenage tourists were found mutilated on the altar of the black monastery. Their genitals and faces had been removed, their bodies stuffed with centipedes, identical to the murders of two young Greek boys in the 70s. Back then, two dozen hippies who lead a largely self-sufficient life in the island's bleak interior were blamed for their murder as part of a ritualistic sacrifice but did not face trial as they committed mass suicide in their tents soon after.
Officer Nikos, a tired and disillusioned veteran of the original crimes is brought back from the mainland with his wife at the request of Mayor Petrakis to solve the identikit crime and restore normality to the island. Crime writer Kitty can not help but get involved to her own cost, followed around by the unquestioning but rather morose Jason. The more they delve into the present and past, the more dark secrets are revealed and the island's sensitive history is rewritten by the policeman's investigations.
The plot develops thick and fast, becoming quite "labyrinthine" and occasionally confusing at times with quite a large cast and you may find yourself back-tracking at times to check who's who. There is not much levity in here and none of the characters are particularly cheerful or likeable but I believe the author wanted quite a dark atmosphere for the book which he certainly attained. That said, you are kept guessing until the end and fans of the genre will enjoy the gory details, twisting plot and final unveiling of the perpetrators of both sets of crimes. It is definitely one of the better crime books I have read though definitely not for the squeamish (7/10)
Their timing was very bad however as teenage tourists were found mutilated on the altar of the black monastery. Their genitals and faces had been removed, their bodies stuffed with centipedes, identical to the murders of two young Greek boys in the 70s. Back then, two dozen hippies who lead a largely self-sufficient life in the island's bleak interior were blamed for their murder as part of a ritualistic sacrifice but did not face trial as they committed mass suicide in their tents soon after.
Officer Nikos, a tired and disillusioned veteran of the original crimes is brought back from the mainland with his wife at the request of Mayor Petrakis to solve the identikit crime and restore normality to the island. Crime writer Kitty can not help but get involved to her own cost, followed around by the unquestioning but rather morose Jason. The more they delve into the present and past, the more dark secrets are revealed and the island's sensitive history is rewritten by the policeman's investigations.
The plot develops thick and fast, becoming quite "labyrinthine" and occasionally confusing at times with quite a large cast and you may find yourself back-tracking at times to check who's who. There is not much levity in here and none of the characters are particularly cheerful or likeable but I believe the author wanted quite a dark atmosphere for the book which he certainly attained. That said, you are kept guessing until the end and fans of the genre will enjoy the gory details, twisting plot and final unveiling of the perpetrators of both sets of crimes. It is definitely one of the better crime books I have read though definitely not for the squeamish (7/10)
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
When detective Nikos arrives back in his home town, he finds himself faced with the gory murder of a young boy near an old monastery. Echoing two murders committed 33 years previously in the exact same spot, and a mass cult suicide, it brings back a part of the island's history that it has tried hard to forget.There is a lot at stake - the island's lucrative tourist trade and the open secret of the drugs trade that goes hand in hand with the hordes of mainly young British holiday makers. As Nikos begins his investigation, two British crime writers arrive on the island. The best selling Kitty Carson, on a break from the pressures of writing and her strained relationship, and Jason an aspiring writer whose aim is to strike up a friendship with her and convince her to help him get published. As the two writers are thrown together in an unexpected way, another murder is committed and Jason and Kitty are drawn into an investigation of their own. As they discover more about the island's dark past what began as a diversion becomes a dangerous pursuit.
I'm not usually up for reading straight-up mysteries or thrillers, since I tend to like mixed genres, but this novel was very good. I enjoyed the atmosphere and the tangible tension that pervaded the latter half of the novel. 'The Black Monastery' was in some ways, both a thriller and a mystery: with the story well constructed and well paced.
I really liked the characters, particularly Kitty and Nikos. They were all interesting with good consistent characterisation throughout the novel -- the light touches of humour were nice also.
I'm not usually up for reading straight-up mysteries or thrillers, since I tend to like mixed genres, but this novel was very good. I enjoyed the atmosphere and the tangible tension that pervaded the latter half of the novel. 'The Black Monastery' was in some ways, both a thriller and a mystery: with the story well constructed and well paced.
I really liked the characters, particularly Kitty and Nikos. They were all interesting with good consistent characterisation throughout the novel -- the light touches of humour were nice also.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This is Stav Sherez's second novel, "The Devils Playground" being his first. The situation here is not altogether original; Brits holidaying abroad on an idillic Greek Island confronted with murder. However, the strength of the characters, particularly Nikos the Greek detective, and the pacing of the plot kept me reading through to the end. If you fancy a good murder mystery set in the sun and sea of the Greek Islands this book will certainly satisfy.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Black Death
Macabre and grisly novel about a Greek policeman investigating the reoccurence of a seemingly cult-inspired series of murders after thirty years. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Scaroth, Last of the Jagaroth
No
I gave this up a third of the way through the book when still nothing had happened. Life is too short!
Published 8 months ago by At the end of the Earth
Speedy deilivery
I have purchased quite a number of books through Amazon. Also received one that I think was out of print. I had been after it for over a year. Read more
Published 22 months ago by JJumper07
Very disappointing
As a lover of Greece and her islands, I approached this book with enthusiasm and anticipation. Unfortunately I became increasingly annoyed and frustrated by it, to the point where... Read more
Published on 17 Dec 2009 by Mr. N. Daws
Keeps you Reading
This was an intersting and exciting thriller which kept me reading until the very last page. It is a police proceduaral which is set in Greece, and I certainly did not expect any... Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2009 by Wendy Jones
Thrilling but unsatisfying
The Black Monastery is a well written crime thriller. The pacing is good, the character development is solid and the premise is one which would definately draw you in. Read more
Published on 29 Aug 2009 by The Web Crawler
A great piece of mystery...
An easy to read book, nice thriller (although not the best) - with nice ending.
A police that is about to retire, a novelist and her stalker, find themselves in the... Read more
A police that is about to retire, a novelist and her stalker, find themselves in the... Read more
Published on 27 Aug 2009 by David Calcano
Run-of-the-mill
This isn't a book that I particularly enjoyed reading. I found it to be a very run-of-the-mill thriller with little to distinguish it from others in the genre. Read more
Published on 23 July 2009 by Fantasy Lore
The Best New Thriller I've Read This Year
Stav Sherez is a real discovery. He writes well and knows when he has said enough. This book is only 300 pages long and does not look thick enough to take its reader on an... Read more
Published on 9 July 2009 by Roger Rebec
A VERITABLE BREATH OIF THE SEA...............................
As for the monastery, the building is white, but its history is black - hence the apt title.
Kitty, a famous writer, and Jason, her adoring fan with alternative motives, meet... Read more
Kitty, a famous writer, and Jason, her adoring fan with alternative motives, meet... Read more
Published on 26 Jun 2009 by L. Hay
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