SANTORINI CAESARS

When the black-sheep daughter of a high-ranking Greek military officer is brutally murdered, the motive is murky and the array of suspects immense.

Veteran police inspector Andreas Kaldis is called to the beautiful Cycladic island of Santorini, some 150 miles south of Athens, to investigate the shooting of an anti-government protestor near the university. Oddly, forensics determines that professional killers are responsible. The victim is Penelope Sigounas, the disruptive daughter of a brigadier general whose stoic reaction to this family tragedy makes Andreas wonder what he might be hiding. The case resonates with both Andreas, who has a young son and a pregnant wife, and his veteran detective Tassos, who’s troubled by the possible political dimensions of the crime. Correctly surmising that the brigadier, assuming he was the intended target, will try to find the killer, Andreas has him followed. The brigadier suspects a group of Greek military men, the Caesars, who think they can run the country better than its elected officials. Andreas assigns the somewhat reckless detective Petro to monitor the Caesars, posing as a waiter. For some reason, the brigadier is not supportive of Andreas’ probe, and unfortunately, all roads seem to lead to the imperious prime minister.

The eighth case for Siger’s police hero (Devil of Delphi, 2015, etc.) has a timely plot and a handful of engaging back stories about its detective team.