Assassins of Athens

By Jeffrey Siger

When the body of a boy from one of Greece's most prominent families turns up in a dumpster in one of Athens' worst neighborhoods, Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis of the Greek Police's Special Crimes Division is certain there's a message in the murder. But who sent it and why? Andreas' search for answers takes him deep into the sordid, criminal side of Athens nightlife and then to the glittering world of Athens society where age-old frictions between old and new money breed jealousy, murder, revenge, revolutionaries, and some very dangerous truths. It is a journey amid ruthless, powerful adversaries that brings Andreas face-to-face with old grudges, new emotions, ancient Athenian practices, and modern political realities once thought unimaginable.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
• Release date: Jan 31, 2010
• ISBN: 9781615951970

Jeffrey Siger

Jeffrey Siger is an American living on the Aegean Greek island of Mykonos. A former Wall Street lawyer, he gave up his career as a name partner in his own New York City law firm to write the international best-selling, award recognized Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis series of mystery thrillers telling more than just a fast-paced story. The New York Times described his novels as "thoughtful police procedurals set in picturesque but not untroubled Greek locales" and named him as Greece's thriller novelist of record. Athens Insider Magazine hails him as "a literary star," the Greek government selected him as the only American author writing novels serving as a guide to Greece, and Reader's Digest calls him "one of our new favorite authors." He's also served as Chair of the National Board of Bouchercon, America's largest mystery convention, and as Adjunct Professor of English at Washington & Jefferson College, teaching mystery writing.

Reviews for Assassins of Athens

[sianpr · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fast moving police procedural set in Athens and Mykonos featuring Inspector Kaldis - who's now back in the Athens fold after a short stint in exile in Mykonos. Good beach read, but plot is stretched and sexual politics too stereotyped for my liking.

[cathyskye · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First Line: Andreas Kaldis once read or heard somewhere that the chatter never stopped in Athens.The body of a teenage boy from one of Greece's most prominent families has turned up in a dumpster in one of Athens' worst neighborhoods. Since the boy's father is known for his tenacity and ruthlessness, Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis of the Greek Police's Special Crimes Division believes that the killer was sending a message. The question is: who sent the message... and why? Kaldis' investigation takes him deep into Athens nightlife and high society, and he begins to understand that the roots of this murder lie deep in the age-old frictions between old money and new.Shame on me. It's been two years since I read the first book in the Andreas Kaldis series, Murder on Mykonos. I loved that first book so much that I immediately got my hands on the next two books in the series (and have since got my hands on the fourth). I don't do that very often, so you can see by that how much I enjoyed my first meeting with Kaldis. I've made a resolution that I would read more of the books languishing away on my shelves this year, and tops on my list was Assassins of Athens. Why, oh why did I wait so long???There are times when reading a book that I sense that what I'm reading is exactly the way it is. The author has captured a place, a culture, a people, precisely the way they are, and that if I were ever to visit there, it would feel familiar to me-- just from reading that author's books. That's how I feel when I read Jeffrey Siger's novels.Siger's main character Andreas Kaldis isn't always politically correct, but he always insists on getting the job done right. In Assassins of Athens he has help from socialite Lila Vardi, and their association adds spice to an already engrossing investigation that includes not only the rich and the lowlifes but students and revolutionaries as well. If you enjoy good characterization and truly involving mysteries, read Jeffrey Siger. If you love crime fiction with all that and a superb sense of place and immediacy, then let me repeat myself: Read. Jeffrey. Siger.

[maneekuhi · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"The Assassins of Athens" is the second in this series by Jeffrey Siger about a newly promoted Police Chief Inspector in Athens. The first book dealt with the officer's adventures in Mykonos prior to his advancement in the ranks. There were a number of things I enjoyed about this book but it is not without its faults as well. This is the first crime fiction I have read set in Greece and I enjoyed the descriptions of the historical sites and neighborhoods, the metro stops and the alleyways. There was also just a touch of history without overdoing it, and there was enough about the Greek culture to recognize the pride that its citizens take in their ancestory, a people proud of their country yet scornful of their democratically elected leaders. The story has an interesting plot, about a family which has been informally banished and they don't seem "to get the message" until a terrible tragedy strikes. A lot of the story is about money, who has it and how it makes them different. But too much of the plot was rather murky for me, too much innuendo and knowing glances; it made the story unnecessarily difficult to follow in parts. The pace was very good, everything moved along at a good clip, with occasional intrruptions for romance, sex and some romantic sex. And the story ends with a rather provocative cliffhanger, a sentence many of us have heard before, but rarely as the last few words of a crime fiction novel. Will I read the next book?.....always the litmus test.....I can only add that I'm on the fence but that last sentence carries a very big hook with it.

[josephlyoung · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A real Greek Tragedy. Inspector Kaldis involve himself in a murder case involving a young student, a child of a wealthy family that had been trying to take over the most prestigious News Paper in Athens. The murder was made to look like a simple case of a young person experimenting with drugs and sex at a homosexual hang out that just got out of hand and he died through self indulgence. Inspector Andreas Kaldis and his associate, police officer Yianni Kouros found inconsistencies that caused them to look deeper into the death. They became involved in many layers of political intrigue and found they were opposed by some of the most powerful men in government, part of the traditional wealthy ruling classes in Athens. They also discovered the roots of an ancient system of driving the unwanted out of Athens social elite, using a banishment system based on the secret threat of death to one or more family members with a typical ten day deadline. The inspector and his officer mixed with the worst villains whether at the bottom of the social system (prostitutes, druggies and pimps) or at the very top of the wealthy social society (captains of industry, politicians and historical wealthy as well as nouveaux rich). Their efforts lead them to determining the guilty but, in Greece, not all justice is equal and frequently the connected guilty are able to avoid all prosecution except that brought directly by the injured party. Realistic policemen take justice where it can be found. Great mystery with many convolutions that are unwound as the inspector and his associates work towards protecting the innocent and punishing the guilty. An exotic location with all the trappings expected in an ancient civilization from the local quarried stone pathways to ancient pottery shards used to communicate messages. Not only a good story but, a window to another place and time.