Jason Goodwin

The Janissary Tree, the first book in a new series, is set in a most extraordinary world and features a most extraordinary sleuth.It is 1836. Europe is modernizing, and the Ottoman Empire must follow suit. But just before the sultan announces sweeping changes, a wave of murders threatens the fragile balance of power in his court. Who is behind them? Only one intelligence agent can be trusted to find out: Yashim Togalu, a man both brilliant and near-invisible...

When a French archaeologist arrives in 1830s Istanbul determined to track down a lost Byzantine treasure, the local Greek communities are uncertain how to react; the man seems dangerously well informed. Yashim Togalu, who so brilliantly solved the mysterious murders in The Janissary Tree, is once again enlisted to investigate. But when the archaeologist's mutilated body is discovered outside the French embassy, it turns out there is only one suspect:...

"The fourth chapter in the adventures of Investigator Yashim, the eunuch detective"-- Provided by publisher.

Yashim Cooks Istanbul covers the full spectrum of Turkish cookery, from simple meze and vegetable dishes to meat, fish and puddings. Good in the kitchen, good on the table, it will draw the reader into the extraordinary atmosphere of old Istanbul. Imagine you could step back into Yashims world. Imagine that the flavours and colours of old Istanbul could come to life. Yashim Cooks Istanbul is about time travel and you dont have to leave your kitchen...