on Courtenay Grimwood's Felaheen won the 2003 British Science Fiction Award and is the third novel in his Arabesk mystery trilogy. In this adventure, now in a U.S. edition for the first time, Ashraf "Raf" Bey, formerly chief of detectives and governor of North Africa's El Iskandryia, goes undercover to find out who is trying to kill the emir of Tunis. The Ottoman Empire, which in reality dissolved in 1923, is still going strong in the 21st century.
Among the suspects and main characters are Kashif Pasha, current heir to the emir and a playboy gambler; Lady Maryam, the emir's estranged wife and Kashif's mother; Murad, the emir's youngest son; Hani, young girl genius and Raf's niece; Eugenie de la Croix, senior citizen roughneck security chief and the emir's former lover; Sally Welham, hot crazy girl and Raf's mother; and Zara, Raf's pseudo-lover, who doubles as a miserable ornament.
Raf's detective abilities are due to his perfect memory, superior reflexes, heightened vision, batlike hearing and a sense of smell "acute enough to revolt a dog." He also indulges in crystal methamphetamine, which heightens his senses in other ways. He's an amazing fighter, knowing exactly where to sink his fingers into nerve endings and reacting to attacks with the speed of a cheetah.
Undercover as a bum, Raf wears sandals cut from old tractor tires, a filthy jellaba and a cheap cap. He starves himself for 76 hours, adopts the smile of an idiot savant and works as a chef's helper. After someone tries to kill the emir with a snake bite, another attempt is made on the emir's life, this time by gun. Eugenie dies while saving the emir's life, and Raf steals a police identification card to drill further into the evidence behind the crimes.
What he learns shocks him. The real mystery in this book is finding out the true identity of his father.
A most fitting finale
Felaheen is an exotic blend of Islamic language and Middle Eastern society, genetically enhanced humans and some very warped characters. The main character, Ashraf "Raf" Bey, is a man without roots or purpose. He listens to an inner voice that he calls the "fox," and in the past he's been known to indulge in various criminal pursuits. He doesn't seem to fit in anywhere, he's jobless, and while he's been genetically altered to have super powers, he feels useless and turns to stoking up on crystal meth.
His character is beautifully drawn, as is the character of his niece, Hani. When Raf becomes a cook-bum to track down the would-be assassins of the emir, Hani also becomes a detective, seeking to find her uncle and help him. In fact, by the time the book ends, we know that Hani possesses many of the superior powers that her uncle enjoys (or rather, doesn't enjoy, because he's so busy being unsettled).
The unique aspect of Felaheen lies in its settings and language. The reader is immersed in a society steeped in traditional, claustrophobic class structures and manners. At the same time, Grimwood drenches the reader in the lush language of his alternate Ottoman Empire. The result is a fascinating blend of the traditional exotic and the futuristic noir punk life endured by the genetically enhanced and naturally depressed Raf.
Readers who haven't read the first two novels in the series—Pashazade and Effendi—may have a rough time understanding the background of this world, the relationships among the characters and even the reason Felaheen falls into the category of science fiction. As a standalone novel, Felaheen feels more like a light character-driven mystery than a science-fiction story. The science is barely mentioned, as are the aspects of alternate history. Overall, though, this is a must-read book for readers seeking the unusual.
