This is the first Parker Bilal book that I have read from the series. It is a dark, intelligent, gritty and edgy story from an accomplished writer. Makana, the PI, is an ex-police officer from Somalia, with a haunting and traumatic backstory of family loss and exile. He is a strong, engaging, and astute character who lives and walks the mean streets of Cairo. He is aided by a network of colourful people such as Marwan, who works for the military, Sami and Rania at the makeshift media agency, the Zafrani gangster brothers and others.

Makana is hired by Kasabian, a well known art dealer, to find Samari, an Iraqi Colonel, who has a dubiously acquired painting which an American buyer is keen on. It turns out nothing and no-one is as they seem. Kasabian ends up being murdered in a manner that implicates Samari. Samari is wanted by the US who are offering a huge reward for his capture. Makana continues on the trail and comes across Frank Cassidy who is searching for the killer of his son in the Iraq war. The world of private contractors (mercenaries) is uncovered plus links to the Gulf War and the US invasion of Iraq. The everyday casual brutality meted out by state intelligence agents, the military, politicians and gangsters is laid bare. The corruption, deceit, hypocrisy and betrayal of politicians is exposed as the norm, as is their disregard of the people. There is political interference and obstacles placed in Makana’s path. There is a shoot out on Cairo’s streets and the finale is a twisted and bloody affair.

Makana emerges as a man who is adept in handling the unsettling and capricious political, military and criminal factions. He understands that accepting money and patronage will place him in an untenable moral position. He is, as far as is possible, his own man. Bilal has written a fast paced narrative with the inherent tensions of life in Cairo. It is a well plotted novel with believable characters. What lifts the book above the crime genre is the discerning insights and descriptions it offers of Egypt, recent Middle Eastern history and the effects of the US led invasions. It brings to the mainstream audience the lives of diverse, ordinary characters battling to survive the harsh social, political and economic times in Egypt and an unstable Middle East. I loved the book and plan to read the rest of the series. Many thanks to Bloomsbury for a copy of the book via netgalley.

Parker Bilal’s fourth Makana novel does not disappoint. The exiled Sudanese sleuth is employed by a millionaire art dealer to locate a dangerous Iraqi exile who may have possession of art treasures looted from Kuwait. When his employer ends up brutally murdered, bearing all the trademarks of the Iraqi torturer in question, Makana continues the investigation at great personal risk.
It is a violent and dangerous Cairo that Makana inhabits. Renegade American mercenaries, the aforementioned Iraqi colonel and his henchmen, Egyptian gangsters and Jihadis, as well as the wildcard of a retired American cop on a quest for revenge, are all woven into a complex and fast moving narrative.
Not so much a crime novel as an intelligent political thriller, Makana’s Cairo excites, entertains and educates the reader throughout. You just know it is going to end in blood… and it does.

I enjoyed this book. It's the first Makana I've read, and I'll be trying others as a result.

Makana is a private investigator in modern Cairo. The Burning Gates is set in 2004; Mubarak is in power and the invasion of Iraq is a major factor in the region. The story is convoluted and involves looted art treasures and a vicious, high-ranking Iraqi officer wanted by both the Americans and a group of mercenaries, set against a background of a corrupt government and police force, vested interests and organised crime.

I thought the story was pretty well done. Parker Bilal writes well and creates good characters who speak in believable dialogue. It is decently plotted, although I thought that the first half of the book was a little slow, the twists in plot could be a bit hard to follow, and some aspects of the denouement were pretty silly. Nonetheless, it kept me reading.

Where this book really shines is in its depiction of modern Egypt and in the character of Makana himself. I really did get a feel for the world of 21st Century Cairo; the atmosphere and physical sense of the place were excellently done, I think. I also found Makana an engaging, believable character. For once, comparisons between Makana and Chandler's Philip Marlowe, aren't just a lazy Private-Eye-Equals-Marlowe cliché. Of course the setting, period and style are very different, but there is a similar sense of a fundamentally decent, moral man trying to do the right thing in a dirty world. In The High Window, Marlowe describes himself as a "shop-soiled Sir Galahad," which I think would be a decent description of Makana.

This isn't a perfect book, but I think it's a good one. It's thoughtful, evocative and a good read. Recommended.

Not the normal setting for a PI story, this uniqueness adds a lot of atmosphere and character to what is a straight forward plot. Set in Cairo, Egypt, Makana is hired to track down an Iraqi who is believed to have stolen art treasures for sale. As you can imagine with all the wars and infighting that goes on in the Middle East it is easy to get dragged into a much more dangerous investigation, but this guarranteed when Americans get involved. Although it is the fourth book in the series it is standalone and the author cleverly avoids any long history lessons by concentrating on the current storyline. The book is written in a very easy to read style with good pace and action throughout. My favourite character is Sinbad Makana's driver, very few words but the picture of the large friendly Egyptian is very clear. Excellent book that I would recommend to most.

What's utterly intriguing abt reading this thriller is its central character, he seems just to know where to be and has the friends to help him figure out this deeply complex crime that is international. The art world and its players and pains are laid bare and wealth and its ubiquitous power is the theme. Physical violence is part of most people's repertoire too and the police are last to know. It took me a while to place myself in the Middle Eastern surroundings and to suss out Makana's modus operandi - but there is also a lot of.cultural discussions along the way to really relish - the ending which starts to unroll about 3/4 way through is still full off surprises when you get there; ready great find for publisher - I found once I found my feet I could.not put it down, it's an absorbing read rather than one you skim through. Highly recommend