The Foreign Service Journal, November 2010

38 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 0 Publications, 2001) and When Tigers Fly (Impact Pub- lications, 2005), as well as numerous articles based on his extensive research into the history of aviation and OSS operations in Southeast Asia and China. When not writing, he and his wife, Monique, deal in the art and antiques of Southeast Asia at their shop, Banana Tree, in Alexandria, Va. Forty Wolves Mark Jacobs, Talisman House, Publishers, 2010, $19.95, paperback, 256 pages. Mark Jacobs’ novel Forty Wolves begins sim- ply enough: middle-aged American Cris Alessi trav- els to Turkey to find the woman he believes is his bio- logical mother. But the plot quickly thickens, as each chapter shows a new perspective on the inhabitants — and intrigue — of the Village of Forty Wolves. Ja- cobs’ experience as a short-story writer shines through in this novel, which expertly juggles everything from accusations of espionage to emotional farewells and subsequent reunions. Perhaps the most intriguing part of the novel is its eponymous town. The setting weaves together the lives of Cris and a host of other characters, including a Turkish woman attempting to uphold her family’s heritage, a blacksmith coming to terms with his reli- gion, and a ruthless businessman seeking to control Forty Wolves and its citizens. This vivid novel, set against the backdrop of modern Turkey, presents the twists and turns of a thriller alongside the more subtle drama of literary fiction — and readers will be equally satisfied with both aspects. Retired FSO Mark Jacobs served in Spain, Turkey and Latin America. He is the author of two collections of short stories, A Cast of Spaniards (Talisman House Publishers, 1994) and The Liberation of Little Heaven ( Soho Press , 1998), and two novels, Stone Cowboy (Soho Press, 2003) and A Handful of Kings (Simon and Schuster, 2007). A native of New York, he lives with his wife in Virginia. The Saladin Affair: A Robbie Cutler Diplomatic Mystery William S. Shepard, iUniverse, 2009, $20.95, paperback, 360 pages. In this fourth installment of his diplomatic myster- ies series, William S. Shepard presents a tale in the tradition of Dashiell Hammett and Dan Brown. Shepard tells an interna- tional story that spans six Euro- pean capitals and 400 years of history. Robbie Cutler, the spe- cial assistant to a new Secretary of State, plans to accompany the Secretary on his travels overseas. What Cutler does not plan on is a string of mysteries, including an al- Qaida assassination conspiracy and an enigmatic desk that once belonged to the playwright Christopher Marlowe. The author’s experience as a career diplomat in- vests the novel with an impressive realism, while his authorial skills spin a gripping mystery. William Shepard is a retired FSO. With his first Robbie Cutler thriller, Vintage Murder (iUniverse, 2002), Shepard created the genre of the diplomatic mystery. Currently a resident of eastern Maryland, he is the author of Murder on the Danube (Writers Club, 2001) and Murder In Dordogne (iUniverse, 2005), Diplomatic Tales: Your Invitation to the Embassy (iU- niverse, 2006) and Shepard’s Guide to Mastering French Wines (iUniverse, 2003). City of Strangers Ian Mackenzie, Penguin Books, 2009, $14, paperback, 224 pages. City of Strangers , Ian Macken- zie’s first novel, deals with a man who sets out to confront the demons of his past. Paul Metzger is a lonely writer who has prob- lematic relations with all the im- portant people in his life. His ex-Nazi father is dying; he is deeply estranged from his older half-brother; and he has lingering feelings for his ex-wife. The backdrop to Paul’s complicated life is a larger-than-life structure, the modern city. In the book’s opening, Mackenzie takes a quote from The Death and Life of Great American Cities in which strangers are said to be, “common not just in places of public assembly, but more common at a man’s own doorstep.” This quote encapsulates an im- portant theme of the book: modern alienation. FSO Ian Mackenzie is currently on his first post- ing, to Addis Ababa. After graduating from Harvard, he was a teacher in Brooklyn, N.Y.