AT ANY COST

While unraveling a sinister environmental crime, an avuncular investigator outmaneuvers his imperious sister.

Athens-based chief inspector Andreas Kaldis receives a hysterical phone call from his sister, Gavriella, with the distressing news that her daughter, Anna, who’s been a college student in horrific New York for only a month, is getting married! Her fiance, nine years Anna’s senior, is software engineer Jacob “Jack” Diamantopoulos, born in Greece but now living in Brooklyn. At the request of Kaldis, who’s Anna’s godfather, Anna and Jack agree to a Greek visit before the wedding that Gavi hopes will give her an opportunity to convince Anna to break off the engagement. On the criminal front, Kaldis’ complex and politically sensitive investigation of a series of fires destroying national forests opens the door for the rich, entrancing local color that has become a trademark of Siger’s series. When Kaldis learns of an AI link to the fires, he enlists Jack as a consultant and, when Anna’s arrival is delayed due to an important interview, he and his wife, Lila, invite Jack to stay with them. But how can they tell Gavi that they actually like the guy? Kaldis’ 13th case is a bit of a departure from his first 12, giving center stage to a seemingly benign marriage plot rather than a murder or three, although there will be a kidnapping. Series fans will likely be pleased with Lila’s larger role; detective sidekicks Yianni and Tassos again add texture and a bit of comic relief.

A timely mystery with an engaging cast and a sublime setting.