The Language of Secrets

Rachel Getty & Esa Khattak #2

by Ausma Zehanat Khan

Detective Esa Khattak heads up Canada's Community Policing Section, which handles minority-sensitive cases across all levels of law enforcement. Khattak is still under scrutiny for his last case, so he's surprised when INSET, Canada's national security team, calls him in on another politically sensitive issue. For months, INSET has been investigating a local terrorist cell which is planning an attack on New Year's Day. INSET had an informant, Mohsin Dar, undercover inside the cell. But now, just weeks before the attack, Mohsin has been murdered at the group's training camp deep in the woods.

INSET wants Khattak to give the appearance of investigating Mohsin's death, and then to bury the lead. They can't risk exposing their operation, or Mohsin's role in it. But Khattak used to know Mohsin, and he knows he can't just let this murder slide. So Khattak sends his partner, Detective Rachel Getty, undercover into the unsuspecting mosque which houses the terrorist cell. As Rachel tentatively reaches out into the unfamiliar world of Islam, and begins developing relationships with the people of the mosque and the terrorist cell within it, the potential reasons for Mohsin's murder only seem to multiply, from the political and ideological to the intensely personal.

The Unquiet Dead author Ausma Zehanat Khan once again dazzles in The Language of Secrets, a brilliant mystery woven into a profound and intimate story of humanity.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Canada, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Thriller, Crime

352 pages, Paperback

First published February 2, 2016

About the author

Ausma Zehanat Khan is a British-born Canadian living in the United States, whose own parents are heirs to a complex story of migration to and from three different continents. A former adjunct professor at American and Canadian universities, she holds a Ph.D. in International Human Rights Law, with the 1995 Srebrenica massacre as the main subject of her dissertation. Previously the Editor in Chief of Muslim Girl Magazine, Ausma Zehanat Khan has moved frequently, traveled extensively, and written compulsively. Her new crime series debuted with 'Blackwater Falls' in November 2022. She is also the author of 5 books and 1 novella in the Esa Khattak/Rachel Getty mystery series, including the award-winning 'The Unquiet Dead'. And she is the author of The Khorasan Archives fantasy series, beginning with 'The Bloodprint'. She has also written a middle grade non-fiction book called 'Ramadan'.

Reviews

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know so little about the events in this book, so little about the Muslim religion as a whole. So this was a very eye opening book for me and one that is very different. A Muslim Detective in Toronto and his younger partner Rachel and an inside look at a radical cell that is based on an actual event called the Toronto 18, who intended to blow up Parliament in the summer of 2006. When Detective Khattack's friend is killed in Arlington Park after camping with a group from a mosque, Khattack is brought on to find the shooter. There are of course political agendas, family involvement and some young people in the mosque that may be innocent.

The characters, all of them are very well fleshed out. The ending of this book has a very frantic and suspenseful pace. I learned a little and with the author's note learned a little more. But this book is very smartly written and though a few things left me a bit doubtful on the whole this was an excellent read. The second in the series, I now need to go back and read the first. This isma new series I will be following.

ARC from Netgalley.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continuing with Ausma Zehanat Khan’s Canadian police procedural series, I remain enthralled with the themes and topics that come to the forefront in a single novel. It has forced me to take a harder look at myself as what is soon becoming the ‘invisible minority’ in my country of birth, while also requiring that I step back and explore some of the general sentiments that pieces of mass fiction I have read make regularly. Not only does Khan pack a punch with her story, but she challenges the reader to pay attention to how we might ‘Keep Canada Great’, while our geographic neighbours are dragged into the proverbial political cave and clubbed over the head with xenophobia and scare tactics. Canada’s Community Policing Section remains an integral part of keeping the peace in the country, overseen by INSET, the premier security team. After the fallout of a recent high-profile case, Esa Khattak’s leadership sits on shaky ground, but he is sent to investigate another case with significant implications. INSET has been watching a terror cell within a Toronto mosque and has gone so far as to plant an informant, Moshin Dar, in hopes of cracking a New Year’s Day attack that seems to be gaining momentum. When Dar is shot in the wilderness while out with a number of cell members, many wonder if his cover has been blown. Khattak has a hard time with this, as Dar was a long-time friend of his. Sure that the publicity to which he has been subjected will make the investigation more difficult, Khattak takes the ‘policing’ role and investigates the crime, while he sends his partner, Rachel Getty, in to investigate as a wayward young woman seeking direction. As Khattak seeks to make headway on the investigation, he must face his past and some of the tangled roots of his own family tree. With some loose information that Dar was able to leak to his handlers, Khattak is a little closer to determining what is being planned in the coming weeks. But, there are those who remain leery of this Muslim police officer who appears to be siding with the established enemy. Meanwhile, Getty is trying to piece together the life Dar had within the cell and the mosque as well, but faces much judgment and her queries rub some the wrong way. There is little time, forcing both Khattak and Getty to up the pressure, worried that one misstep could cost countless lives, including their own. Another powerful novel that explores many issues about the view many (Canadians) have of the Islamic religion and generalizations about their beliefs and supports. Khan is both subtle and forthright in her criticism of the country she once called home, though one can imagine that her views do not stop at any geographic border. Highly recommended for those who loved Khan’s series debut, as well as the reader who enjoys the exploration of the religious and political clashes between Western democracies and the larger Muslim community.

Finding this series can entirely be attributed to a morning scan of Goodreads. Thereafter, I had to locate Ausma Zehanat Khan’s work without delay. After a debut that left me stunned, I had to keep reading to determine how things would progress with Khan’s unique perspective. She has chosen to take a look at Canadian multiculturalism and peels back the neutral nature the country has received. Khan mixes the narrative up with some frank discussion of the Muslim population and how they are viewed from the outside, as well as within the larger community. Here, Khan pushes a terror cell theme and explores it from a variety of perspectives, all of which enrich the reader’s experience. Khan again uses her two protagonists—Khattak and Getty—who come from completely different backgrounds, but connect well on a number of levels. Esa Khattak’s active practice of Islam helps him to empathize well in this novel, though his connection to the victim poses numerous hurdles. Khan also injects the plight of a community who feels he has turned against them, and a family that is anything but easy to handle. The reader learns a little more about Khattak’s backstory and his wife who has died, though there is much that is left undiscovered up to this point. As the story progresses, Khattak must face a number of roadblocks in order to get to the truth, both of the case and his own life. Rachel Getty’s perspective on things is quite intriguing and might be more in line with much of what the young Canadian feels today. Khan has done a wonderful job to instil some of the preconceptions made in living the life of a Caucasian in Toronto, but also allows for a view of a young person challenging themselves and all they hold dear. Using Getty in a ‘plant’ role within the mosque was a great way for Khan to bridge the divide, as well as provide the reader with some non-judgmental insights into the blinders many wear. Getty struggles at times, but is always trying to make connections, fully aware that her own personal life with a brother who was ‘off the grid’ for a long time matches some of the isolation that others within the cell felt before ‘finding their niche’. There are a handful of other characters who add great layers to the story, particularly the Islamic sentiment in a Judeo-Christian country that espouses openness and multiculturalism. Canada finds itself in an odd spot, with the Americans breathing down their proverbial neck. The narrative was amazing and challenged me throughout, forcing me to stop allowing my notions to cloud my reading experience. I was drawn to the story from the opening pages and accepted Khan’s perspective not to vilify the Islamic elements, which also not painting them as angelic. There were many twists and turns throughout, but the themes of the story were not lost on me. I could easily see what Khan was trying to do and accept the perspective she offered. While many may say they ‘know enough’, I would challenge the curious reader to try going into the experience with as open a mind and clean a slate as possible. It will provide a language of understanding, rather than secrets ill-advised perspectives that are shaped by xenophobia that is constructed on fear-mongering.
Kudos, Madam Khan, for such a riveting tale to open this series. I cannot wait to see what themes return and which new perspectives you have to offer in the second novel.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Esil · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. The Language of Secrets had a bit of a messy and overly dense plot, but I still liked this mystery well enough because of the characters, topic and setting. It's the second mystery featuring Detective Esa Khattak. Set in contemporary Toronto, it is loosely based on a fictional follow up to the Toronto 18, which involved a terrorist plot that led to the arrest of 18 individuals in 2006. In this story, another group is fomenting a similar act of terrorism, and one of their members is killed in Algonquin Park during the work up to the act of terrorism. Khattak and his partner Rachel are brought in to provide some assistance in the investigation -- mostly to manage the PR side of the case. Khattak is on the outs with the head detective in the case, and he feels a need to play a much more active role in the investigation which impacts directly on some people he knows. So there are plenty of internal police politics. There are also plenty of issues between the cell members, and between Khattak and members of the Muslim community in the book. At times, I felt like I was missing some background to Khattak and Rachel that may have been provided in the first book. But this does work as a stand alone book. I liked the characters, the Toronto setting and how the plot slowly moves toward a tense and well done ending. The depiction of the internal politics within the Toronto police were a bit over the top, but -- who knows -- maybe I'm just being naive. And the author includes a great note at the end to remind readers not to equate Islam with violence and terrorism. I will definitely look for her first book in the series. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

[Kym Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first work I read by Ausma Khan who poetically gives those of us who are not familiar with Muslim traditions a look into the community and misconceptions about the culture we hear about through various channels of media. I think Ausma did an amazing job with this novel through her in-depth research surrounding the real-life case of the Toronto 18, where 18 suspects were arrested on terrorism charges beause they were radicalized by jihadist websites and influenced by a charismatic ideologue, who participated in secluded training camps and attempted to secure materials necessary to detonate fertilizer bombs in Toronto Canada in 2006.

There is no inherent connection between Islam and terrorism, despite the rash of events that appear to link the two. Now, radical interpretations of Islam do exist like Wahhabism, a puritanical doctrine based on an exclusivist reading of Islam. As I look at other religions it is evident to see some of their members also practice a radicalization that breeds homegrown terrorism wearing a different face, but share similar ideologies to that of other extremist terroristic plots.

In "The Language of Secrets," Detective Esa Khattak was brought in to investigate the murder of his friend Mohsin Dar (who went undercover as an informant in a terrorist cell at a mosque that was planning an attack on New Years Day). Coale Ciprian, Khattack's superior is a total, narcissistic jackass by the way. Khattak partnered with Detective Rachel Getty so she could go undercover in the mosque Moshin Dar was part of to see if she could find any evidence which would lead to solving his murder. When Rachel enters the mosque under the pretense as an individual curious about learning about Islam and was trying to find herself, she finds herself in the presence of a complex and tense climate.

"Do you come from mud and crime?" This line was reworked from a poem that galvanized the Arab world. The cataclysmic poem well predated Huntington's thesis on the clash of civilizations that read Islam as a monolithic force hostile to the West, due to ingrained inferiority and a permanent sense of inadequacy. It seems like there were hidden messages of communication embedded within the poems Ashkouri read in which he grafted his particular ideology into, one of extreme radicalism. Khattak also found out that his sister Rukshwas planning to marry Ashkouri and Esa didn't know how deep or involved she was in this planned terrorist attack. The suspense is hauntingly gripping!

[Mackey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Language of Secrets is the second in a series featuring Esa Khattak and Rachel Gerry, members of Canada's Community Policing Section. This book is loosely based on the actual events that occurred in 2006 called "Toronto 18" in which a group of 18 young men and women were thwarted in an attempt to blow up the Canadian Parliament. However - a huge pause here - while that is the mystery and plot of the storyline, Khan's books always are more about the characters, their lives, their emotions and, yes, their religion. In this instance Islam is front and center - from its history, the wars against its people, it's poetry to so much more. Reading Khan's writings is an experience that is both enjoyable and educational.
I could, at this point, go into detail about the story but like with any other mystery it is a complicated murder that must be solved. What sets this book apart are its marvelous characters, the author's exquisite prose and the unique and timely subject matter that she brings to the table each and every time. Obviously I highly recommend this book.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This second mystery featuring Esa Khattuck and Rachel Getty involves a terrorist plot loosely based on a fictional follow up to the Toronto 18 plot of a decade ago. In this instance Khattuck has become somewhat marginalized in spite of his described role of dealing with ethnically sensitive criminal matters. Here he is assigned tasks but with his hands tied--if he leaves them so. And his community, and even family, are vitally involved.

As in the first book, there is excellent writing and portrayals of the emotional costs of trying to be a thoughtful, lawful Muslim in a Western country, while there are many forces pulling in other directions are on prominent display. There is also much detail about assimilation and how it happens or does not happen in varying ways. Khan is writing such timely novels that happen to be mysteries...but they are so much more since they involve the intersection of contemporary Muslim life in a Western country (Canada), policing with sensitivity (or sometimes not) in an age of terrorism, and the inevitable misunderstandings that can arise. Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty are an exciting team.

I found this episode slightly more fractured during reading--I believe because so much was being covered. But I still found it an excellent story and am looking forward to the next book which I hope to read very soon.

I highly recommend this series.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vacillating between 4 and 5 stars, which is a positive indicator in itself. Review to come.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

A complicated case that reminds me strongly of the Toronto 18 case of many years ago. Like the real life plotters, the people involved in this case are planning some sort of terrorist act on Canadian soil. Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty become involved because one of the supposed plotters was found murdered. I say supposed because in reality that man was working with the RCMP and had infiltrated the group.
Esa encounters difficulties constantly from the beginning of his investigation, primarily from the man in charge of the terrorism case, who seems to hate Esa, and holds back information and lays down such tight boundaries on Esa's investigation that it's almost guaranteed that Esa and Rachel will get nowhere.
Esa decides to send Rachel undercover to infiltrate the group so she can gather information, and allow Esa and Rachel to get around some of their investigation's restrictions.
The author gives a nuanced portrait of muslims in Canada, and the sadly pervasive racism that's found in the country. She shows how plausible and seductive the people involved in the terrorist plot are at bringing on new members: because of the unfortunately long and brutal history of violence in Islamic countries, perpetrated from within due to sectarian violence, but also from the damage, violence and oppression both caused and supported by Western countries, going back centuries.
The case is suitably complex and messy, and involves Esa's family. Rachel must confront some preconceived ideas, and because of her position near the plotters, makes many of the case's breakthroughs.
This was a tense read; I love the many questions author Khan raises about Canada's politics, racism, religion, policing and justice. This is a fascinating series, and well worth reading.

[Mark Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esa Khattak is just too cool.

He’s thoughtful, careful and analytical. He sees the world in subtle, complex ways. Best of all, he knows who he is and what he’s up against. He’s a Muslim. He’s a detective. He works in multi-cultural Toronto. And he just happens to work in the special community policing division, handling sensitive cases. And he’s coming off a rough outing for how he managed the investigation of the murder of Christopher Drayton (in “The Unquiet Dead”). That case required diving into a tight community of survivors of the war in Bosnia and, more specifically, the massacre in Srebrenica.

Licking his wounds, and fully aware of his shaky reputation among his superiors, Khattak is handed a new case in “The Language of Secrets.” Again, Khattak wades into tricky, pricklish turf. The murder victim, Moshin Dar, was an estranged friend. Moshin “believed in the Islamic nation, a supernatural community whose faith transcended language, sect, ethnicity, and borders, tied together by a spiritual commonality.”

But when he was murdered, Moshin Dar was on an undercover mission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. And Khattak is asked by the federal intelligence agency to figure out what happened all while not disrupting or giving away the ongoing undercover work into a terrorist cell that operates out of a Mosque and is running commando training in the suburban woods. To make matters worse, few cops trust Khattak. He’s constantly being reminded of his missteps and, occasionally, being baited into “anger and indiscretion.” Oh, and one more thing. Khattak’s sister is involved with the erstwhile leader of the Muslim cell.

These are just a few elements that frame this layered novel. As in the first installment, Khattak works with his partner Rachel Getty, as purebred Canadian as they come. But agnostic Rachel must first go undercover to the mosque as a potential new recruit, as someone who is thinking about converting to Islam. The only religion Rachel cares about is ice hockey. While Khattak turns to prayer to ease the “ferment of his thoughts,” the only thing she’ll pray for is to have her cherished Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup.

Khattak and Getty are a terrific pair. One of my favorite things about these two is how considerate they are of each other. The cliché approach requires tension between odd-couple protagonists. The cliché approach requires quick-fire repartee and rapid retorts, but Khan avoids the tired tropes and puts two real people on the page who are struggling with their own self-doubts and struggles. She admires Khattak’s “understated elegance” and hopes to emulate it. He wants to expand their relationship to genuine friends—just because. He shows her a few things about how to approach the case, but he would never ask her to moderate her partiality to the “young and dispossessed.” They like each other, get along. The point is to see this case from two different vantage points and Khan slips effortlessly back and forth, alternating chapters as we absorb Khattak’s more nuanced intake of the clues and as Getty bounces, more youthful and a touch wide-eyed, into the heart of the fray.

It’s Khattak’s ongoing struggle with his identity that gives “The Language of Secrets” its weight. It’s also his ethics and his interest in simple truths about how the story of his people (his faith) is being skewed and skewered in public. Khattak is fully aware of his secret fears. He has ample reason to sink into an abyss of cynicism and anger, but he remains a believer in peace even as his dusk prayer breaks his heart anew each night. Ultimately, of course, it’s Khattak’s keen knowledge of the culture that begins to break the case and soon Rachel Getty finds herself in deep jeopardy. In the tense finish, Khan takes full advantage of the rugged Canadian winter and Rachel’s familiarity with ice.

Language across cultures (meaning, emphasis, subtleties, nuance) and secrets (between people and within both Rachel and Essa) play critical roles in unraveling the conspiracy, which is based on a real-life case from 2006. Esa Khattak, in a beautifully written scene, isn’t afraid to whisper to an “unseen presence.” He’s also not afraid to listen—and observe—with care. The whole issue of subordination to existing authority versus a higher spirit, in Esa’s case, is fascinating. What makes these first two Khattak-Getty novels click is the space between two interesting, contrasting characters who model thoughtful, mutual respect.

Q & A with Ausma Khan on my blog and review of the first novel, too: https://markhstevens.wordpress.com/20...

[Roman Clodia · Rating 5 out of 5]

It wasn't enough to say that the same faith that had produced Hassan Ashkouri had also produced Esa Khattak, good and evil sketched out in broad strokes. It wasn't easy and two-dimensional like that.

Look, this is why Khan is such a good writer: she tackles difficult, complicated topics and she doesn't dumb down or over-simplify; instead, she embraces nuance and complexity with a rigorous and graceful intellectual force.

Wrapped up in a story that, on the surface, might appear to be yet another terrorist thriller is an absorbing narrative that thinks about big questions of identity politics, religion, compassion, violence, humanity, family. There are no easy options here and even our troubled hero Esa Khattak does things of which he's not proud. But the alternatives are worse. And amidst all the large issues at stake, are the petty prejudices and maneuverings of personal status and power in the Canadian security services.

This topical book doesn't perhaps have quite the emotionally stunning effect of Khan's first book The Unquiet Dead, but it opens up at least a part of Toronto's Muslim community to a wider audience, and does it with understanding and knowledge. I particularly enjoyed the part played in this book by Arabic poetry, something which I know practically nothing about.

Khan's writing is never flashy but it's wonderfully fluent and precise, disappearing behind the story she's telling. There is a driving 'thriller' compulsion behind this but really the book is better than that, and uses the genre to say important things about the fractured world we live in today.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done”

Oh my! Canada is so set up for the snow! 200 salt trucks and 600 ploughs for Toronto alone!! I’m a slight obsessive when it comes to snow as I’ve always been a bit of a nervous driver. I’ve got better over the years, even managing to correct a skid whilst on my own earlier this year. But anyway back to The Language of Secrets.

How personal is this case for Khattak? His old friend murdered, his rival and his ex partner involved in the investigation, and then his sister! I thought The Unquiet Ones was personal but this cuts close to the bone for Khattak. Can he keep his personal feelings separate to his professional logic and investigation? I don’t want to talk to much about the plot as I really don’t want to spoil the story. No one likes a review that even if its gives a hint of what is to happen.

As the book’s blurb suggests, Getty plays a key part in the investigation of Mohsin’s death. She has to grasp her inner strength to play the part in her undercover mission, gaining the trust of the suspicious members of the cell. I did fear for Getty as she got herself deeper into the group. Would she be rumbled?

And don’t you love it when the title of the book suddenly makes sense? The Language of Secrets definitely fits into that category. The title has a multitude of possible meanings and as the story progresses, there are plenty of secrets to be uncovered!

Yet again, Ausma Zehanat Khan has written a fictional crime thriller inspired by real life events making the story feel rather real and feasible. This is a murder mystery intertwined with a terrorist plot and what would seem a group heading towards a kind of cult status.

It was a proper whodunnit and it kept me guessing right to the end. Sinister themes running through an addictive follow up to The Unquiet Ones. And I for one am glad to see that Khattak and Getty will be back next year!!

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

A little over a year ago, I wrote probably one of my most glowing reviews ever for The Unquiet Dead, Ausma Zehanat Khan's spectacular launch of her Rachel Getty and Esa Khattak series. I concluded that review with an expectation that this would be "a terrific new mystery series." I am sorry to say that the second entry, The Language of Secrets, crushed my expectations.

The Unquiet Dead centered around the Bosnian war, and Khan's expertise as a scholar of international human rights law, for whose dissertation the 1995 Srebrenica massacre served as a main focus, was evident in every scene. In contrast, The Language of Secrets revolves around a terrorist cell composed of your standard, run-of-the-mill, radical Muslim extremists. The plot is confusing, the characters wooden, and the tone that of a moderate Muslim stridently distancing himself from the barbaric acts of his co-religionists:

He knew what he was, what his community was. So different from what he saw on the news nightly—the lone wolves, the well-armed gunmen, the rabid mobs, the blistering flags, the overturned tanks, the rocket launchers, the blood-doomed faces, the cries in the street, the slogans of death chanted by those with nothing to lose.

The titular "language of secrets" is that of poetry, but Khan's attempts to import poetry into her own writing are both clunky and trite:

This was the missing context for the spreading scourge of enmity and hate, the broken and sprawling politics of the Middle East.

The generations mislaid by decades of war, by centuries of struggle.

The splintered past, the crippled future, nothing to gain, less to give.

A bruised carnation planted in a cup.

A rose exchanged for a rifle.

And the round of bread traded for both, in a fleeting moment of innocence.

I am not inherently opposed to police detectives who wax philosophic or lyrical; Batya Gur's Israeli Chief Superintendent Michael Ohayon is a superb example of the breed. Unfortunately, Khattak's episodes of "deep thinking" feel inauthentic; Khan uses him to repeatedly expound upon her theme, explicitly set forth in her Author's Note, that "[t]here is no inherent connection between Islam and terrorism," to the detriment of both her character development and her story.

Khan is hardly the first author to fall into this trap; I was constantly reminded of Josh Bazell and his Peter Brown series, in which the intriguing protagonist of Beat the Reaper abruptly became, in Wild Thing, a ventriloquist's dummy for his creator's diatribe on the environment. I had hoped for better from Khan.

I received a free copy of The Language of Secrets through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This stunningly complex police procedural set in Canada is told with grace and poignancy grabbing the reader’s attention from first page to the last word. The storyline is loosely based on a terrorist attempt in Canada in 2006 and feels very current based on recent headlines. But the strength of this novel is the characters and the author’s skillful development of the multi-dimensional characters and emotionally perceptive skill of the motives, reasoning, and the group and individual objectives of the situations.
For me mystery series are also about the lead investigators of the crime/puzzle/mystery to be solved and building what we know about them from book to book. This is the second book in the series and I so enjoyed what was revealed to us about Esa and Rachel. This case becomes very personal to Esa on both a professional and personal level as he is often pawn between two opposing groups and needs to figure out how best justice, fairness, and doing the right thing is best served.
The language is poetic and lyrical yet reveals the tension and suspense as the dialogue is often jabbing at the characters to provoke them into action.
Overall I found this book to be immensely satisfying and a splendid addition to the series. This book will appeal to mystery readers looking for a compelling diverse read. I am so looking forward to the next book in the series. While it is not necessary to read the first book in the series, The Unquiet Dead, it is highly recommended that readers to savor the full experience of the atmosphere and characters.

[Meggy Chocolate'n'Waffles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Justice must not only be done. It must be seen to be done.

I read to escape my reality and if a book is done right, I dive right into a parallel world. This happened when I met Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty in The Unquiet Dead. I was eagerly waiting for another story from the author. I was right to be eager, and I was right to feel in good hands before even opening the second book.

Esa and Rachel have suffered the consequences of their last investigation, and I immediately felt all emotions from the first installment in the series coming back; my friendly feelings for Rachel, my curiosity and fascination for Esa. Two worlds colliding, two faces of a coin. This time again, the team works in such harmony it makes anyone who has ever worked as a team drool with envy.

The tea was for her nerves. The familiarity was that of a friend.

Their relationship is at the heart of the story, the author exploring how well people can trust each other, rely on each other, and most of all, confront their different opinions without fear or judgment. I admire the balance Ausma Zehanat Khan puts in her books to give the reader the biggest view possible, not leaving out any angle on any subject, using her characters as channels to explore and discover, to learn and to open minds.

The rallies in Germany, the rise of Le Pen, the minarets of Switzerland, the discriminatory laws, the Charter of Values, the hallowed ground. The divulgation of Maher Arar.

Escapism takes another definition with Ausma Zehanat Khan’s narration. I was scared to recognized the name of Le Pen, and it was like a slap in the face, a reminder things are happening in the world, and no one seems to be able to stop it. Oh, racism and glances have always been around, anyone and anything different or new is treated the same way, but the world has changed and the issues that were once far from our preoccupations are now at the heart of our lives. It is sad to think so much has happened without the world doing anything.
Esa’s religion is a barrier between him and his own workforce, but the story goes so much further than this.

The Language of Secrets starts as a crime investigation quite hampered by a bigger terrorist operation and takes you all the way through common preconceptions, faith, loyalty, and fear. The author doesn’t “play” with current themes, she gives a masterfully researched, detailed, and unbiased view about how things turned out the way they did, why people do the things they do, and don’t we look up to books for answers? I know I do, and I am in love with the perfect writing style that takes me to unknown territories, explains to me notions I barely know, and gives me the opportunity to think twice before making any assumption.

Poetry – winding you up with its archive of questions, its vainglorious phrases.

The other fabulous aspect of this book is its musicality. The Language of Secrets is a door to another sphere of language, something I usually am not fond of, but found myself completely falling for between the beautifully filled pages of a book that expresses actions, emotions, plans, and life, through words you can interpret in so many ways. The author plays with words, I simply loved getting to know Arabic poetry and a bit of its history. Most books you can love but won’t actually learn from, but not those books. This series is a well of information, no info dumping here, only sentences taking you far away, keeping you on your toes, awake, both ready for the action of the actual investigation and the amazing story enveloping the narration. Because Ausma’s tales are of another world. A world where the balance between characterization, plot, and context all collide to give you an experience bound to make you feel and THINK.

The splintered past, the crippled future, nothing to gain, less to give.

No moralization here, no lessons given, only a door to a world so many of us don’t understand. I’ll say it again, what makes this series different is how religion is handled, how the cases serve a bigger purpose without losing the appeal of a strong crime story, and how the past and present come together to give the reader a better understanding of what has been lived, is being lived, and how everything can be twisted, interpreted, and used.

Ausma Zehanat Khan possesses the kind of poetic and powerful style which can convey any message with authenticity and beauty.

[Shomeret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I particularly liked Rachel Getty and her relationship with Esa Khattak. I am interested in the concept of someone who investigates cases that are sensitive for minorities. I appreciated the fact that Ausma Zehanat Khan writes with authenticity.

Because I am an admirer of great poetry, I was glad to discover Adonis through The Language of Secrets. I read several of his poems online including "A Grave For New York" which is mentioned in the book. It's important to point out that although Adonis' work was being used by terrorists in this book, he is not himself a terrorist. He does deal powerfully with controversial issues through his poetry, but this doesn't mean that he advocates violence. A poem is released into the world when it's published. No one can predict how readers will view it.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second in this series featuring INSET Detectives Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty and it's the first series, I've read with a Detective who is Muslim and who works on unique cases in Toronto. Khan's storytelling not only incorporates the crime and police procedures, she delves deep into the different aspects of a thriving Muslim community. In this case, Esa and Rachel are investigating a murder connected to an ultra-conservative mosque. Esa is again torn by between faith and family and his job. Sometimes the two cross unfortunate paths. The way Khan incorporates the poetry and imagery of the Muslim faith helps readers see a broader picture and not stereotypes portrayed daily by the media. Unquiet Dead and Language of Secrets are a great start to what promises to be an excellent series.

[Book Riot Community]

I raced through Khan’s first mystery novel, The Unquiet Dead, so I’ve been eagerly awaiting its sequel. Khan builds on and further develops the themes and characters from the first novel, but tells an entirely new and exciting story. The Language of Secrets beautifully balances social commentary, religion, poetry, and mystery—it’s an exciting, insightful look at Muslim culture in the West. Though it deals with religious extremism, it never falls into the trap of stereotyping religions or cultures; readers encounter many different representations in this novel. This is a series I think everyone should pick up immediately. — Swapna Krishna


from The Best Books We Read In January: http://bookriot.com/2016/02/01/riot-r...

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daggone, I get into this series, frustrating my spousal unit as my focus is so rapt!

This author applies an intellectual and culturally poetic perspective to her main character that at first pale I presume her words intend the opposite of what she's portraying. Upon a more careful read, I recognize her more nuanced meanings. She somehow writes other characters from their own cultural place, which often requires much less from me but makes her ability that much more astounding. Who else can blend world history into an intriguing, present-day mystery with compelling, culturally diverse characters?!?

I can't get enough.

[Judy Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A special thank you to St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Talented author, Ausma Zehanat Khan returns following her debut, The Unquiet Dead, (an emotional, and haunting mystery of horrific crimes committed against Muslims in Bosnia, based on Srebrenica massacre of 1995.). She heats up the intensity with a new murder-mystery thriller, featuring Canadian dynamic duo (Rachel Getty & Esa Khattak #2) caught up into a complex world, where loyalties are tested.

THE LANGUAGE OF SECRETS —another enthralling well researched political mystery thriller--of controversy, terrorism, religion, social issues, violence, culture, suspicion, and humanity; infused with history, poetry, and the classics. (Inspired by true, Canadian Toronto 18).

Toronto-based Muslim detective,Esa Khattak heads up Canada's Community Policing Section, which handles minority-sensitive cases across all levels of law enforcement. Khattak is tested, torn divided by his devotion to his Muslim faith and community and his role as a police detective. He is constantly being scrutinized, suspected of being a traitor by both his Muslim community and by the police force.

He was assigned to investigate the murder of Moshin, by INSET, Canada's federal intelligence agency. After investigating a local terrorist cell, planning an attack on New Year's Day, their informant, Moshin now has been murdered. They cannot risk exposing the operation; however, Khattak is divided, since this was his friend.

His partner, hockey-loving Detective Rachel Getty, goes undercover in the mosque, claiming she is considering converting. An unfamiliar world of Islam--developing relationships and things get complicated—both professionally and personally.

Well-researched (based on a real-life scheme by the so-called "Toronto 18," an extremist group that intended to attack Canadian Parliament in 2006)—and to behead parliamentarians as part of a plan to force the recall of Canadian troops from Afghanistan.

In the summer of 2007 Canadian law enforcement carried out a major anti-terrorism operation that resulted in the arrest of eighteen suspects on terrorism charges. This group would later become known as the Toronto 18. Even though the participants in the plot were ill-equipped and poorly trained, they nevertheless attempted to make their plot a reality.

As the author mentions in her notes:

“As I researched the Toronto 18 case, I became aware of how closely the jihadist ideology of the Toronto 18 was tied to other issues: the conflation of Islam with violence, the perception that the actions of an extremist fringe inescapably taint and implicate an entire faith community, and the necessity of moving beyond reductive notions of (us and them) to achieve a deeper understanding of the present moment in history—one that might suggest a way forward.”

Thought-provoking! Khan creates an eye-opening look into the world of Muslim faith, often misunderstood. An education for those ill-informed and uneducated into this world—the author’s passion is reflected throughout the pages with history, research, and her characters. A top notch, action-packed cop procedural, and a powerful insightful look into the Muslim community.

Khan, equipped with a Ph.D. in international human-rights law, specializing in military intervention and war crimes in the Balkans, drew on her expertise and background for her debut novel, The Unquiet Dead a mystery-thriller connected to the 1995 Srebrenica genocide—highly recommend reading prior to THE LANGUAGE OF SECRETS.

Beyond wanting to celebrate and share Eastern art, Khan had another personal reason for incorporating poetry into a whodunit murder. She says,

“If you look at Arab or Persian traditions, you’ll see poetry is very much at their heart. I thought a very beautiful way to temper the ugliness of the jihadist ideology is also to express the beauty of those traditions.”

JDCMustReadBooks

[Juniper · Rating 4 out of 5]

loosely based on the real story of the 'toronto 18', the language of secrets examines radicalization. again, khan is smart, nuanced and sensitive in her storytelling. i found that this second book in the series was a little more emotionally charged than the first book, The Unquiet Dead. though both deal with very difficult subject matter, we are given more connections to esa khattak's and rachel getty's personal lives, their work histories, and their relationship with one another. the feelings of trust and protectiveness have grown in this book. i enjoyed how well khan portrays her diverse cast, and i love how i feel like i am learning so much more about khan's chosen subjects when i read her stories. with the books mostly set in toronto and the GTA (and algonquin park in this installation), it's also very cool to picture so clearly the places referenced.

[Sezin Koehler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating insight into how people get radicalized and how that process leads to so many different levels of violence. The story is also a rather scathing indictment of the Islamophobia plaguing North America at the moment, which is part of the vicious circle leading to more Muslim youths becoming radicalized. The ending was shocking, and while I usually am able to guess whodunnit fairly early on, this one had me guessing until the reveal. So unexpected and powerful.

I love the character of Esa Khattak, and the dynamics between this Muslim detective with his pseudo-atheist white partner Rachel Getty are really fascinating and feel so real. Once again the prose reminded me of Dennis Lehane's work, which is high praise for the author indeed. I love the way she intersperses these poetic interludes with the more straightforward crime story narrative. The actual poetry in this book was breathtaking.

If you're looking for a crime/mystery jaunt that has a lot of natural diversity and multiculturalism, this is absolutely the series you've been waiting for. I'm hooked!

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another 5* read for this week. Again a review will appear nearer publication (I'm getting ahead!) but this is another example of an excellent literary crime novel with a strong social and relevant theme. A great follow up to the debut.

[MargaretDH · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a bit of a disappointment. I really like what Khan set out to do here - to explore how Islam in Canada does and does not fit in with the larger community, and how people can be radicalized. She writes sympathetically about the immigrant experience in Canada, and the what it means to try and build a new home for yourself when you're an outsider. It's also an exploration (as so many mysteries are) of the ties that bind, and the kinds of loyalties people will uphold with the going gets rough. The themes, premise, and thoughtful handling of the subject matter almost made me bump this up a star.

Unfortunately, I felt like clumsy writing got in the way of what Khan wanted to do. First of all, stylistically, I find her prose to be a little clunky, and a too much tell without enough show. Second, the construction of the actual mystery isn't terribly expert. I didn't figure out the murderer before the end, but when the murderer was revealed, I felt like any of the suspects could have been slotted into that role. There wasn't the kind of inevitability you get from, say, an Agatha Christie denouement. Finally, I didn't find any of the side characters (or the internecine police politics plot) very compelling. And for me, mysteries live or die by their side characters.

So, I wouldn't recommend this. If you want a Canadian mystery series, probably just pick up Louise Penny. I think her sensibility is what Khan was going for here, albeit with a different Canadian community. And that's another part of the disappointment for me. I would love to read more detective literature featuring more of Canada's multicultural communities.

[Rebecca Tredway · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars may be a touch high, but these books have helped me realize exactly what kind of mysteries I'm down for. I like the ones with stories, personal stories, ones that aren't dependent on the actual mystery but are far more about the human condition. (I often feel tricked when I read mysteries that aren't deeply connected to people because I feel like the author can easily withhold information that solves the actual mystery, in which case I might as well skip to the end and read the final chapter.) Plus, Khan's novels are intelligent and warm at the same time. She writes of worlds I don't know much of, and for that she has my respect.

[Doreen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book brings back Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty, the police duo who handle minority sensitive cases. This time they are asked to investigate the murder of Mohsin Dar, Esa’s estranged friend who had infiltrated a Muslim terrorist cell planning an attack on Toronto. One of their problems is that greater value is “ascribed to the façade of Khattak’s investigation than to the actual truth it might uncover.” Another problem is that the man in charge of unravelling the terrorist plot bears a grudge against Khattak and so withholds information. Complications also arise when Rachel goes undercover as a potential Islam convert at a local mosque and when Khattak’s sister Ruksh becomes engaged to Hassan Ashkouri, the leader of the terrorist cell. Can the murderer be identified and arrested and the terrorist attack prevented?

As in the first novel in this series, it is the characterization of Khattak and Rachel that stands out. They behave consistently with the traits outlined in The Unquiet Dead. Their relationship develops further; the partnership is “expanding, deepening.” In this second book, Khattak’s divided loyalties are emphasized: he is torn between his Muslim faith and his role as a detective investigating members of his community. His actions are constantly being scrutinized and suspected by both his faith community and the police force.

The motives of the various members of the mosque are thoughtfully dissected. Readers will find themselves not agreeing with the actions of some of these people, but they will have a good understanding of their sometimes complex motivations. The author insists that the reader not equate Islam with terrorism by contrasting Khattak’s moderate views with those of Ashkouri: “It wasn’t enough to say that the same faith that had produced Hassan Ashkouri had also produced Esa Khattak, good and evil sketched out in broad strokes. It wasn’t easy and two-dimensional like that. It was nuanced, complex, difficult . . . Ashkouri had chosen a different path, a different means of addressing his anger and grievances, his choices vindicated by his reading of history. Something could be beautiful, humane, encompassing. Or it could be made ugly. And maybe that was the lesson. We bring to a tradition what is already within ourselves, however our moral compass is designed, whatever our ethical training is.”

The author also addresses the issue of moderate Muslims having to speak up. She has Khattak regretting that he didn’t always do so: “Times he should have spoken up, questions he should have asked, challenging others to an ethical reading of scripture in lieu of the tropes of dogma. It had seemed like a burden that someone else should carry, yet he realized it belonged to him, just as it belonged to each of his coreligionists, this personal quest for an ethical life – and it couldn’t be put down by choice, not without abandoning the field to the hardened and hidebound, whose rigid conservatism and eschewal of modernity contained with it the seeds of jihadist ideology.”

My reservations about the book revolve around the plot. There are some unrealistic elements. For example, Rachel admits that she is not really prepared for her undercover role: Choosing an undercover surname “was as far as she had gone in establishing her cover. Rachel possessed little previous undercover experience.” Why then would Khattak be “authorized to send [Rachel]” to the mosque in such a role? Wouldn’t the agency charged with gathering intelligence and ensuring national security be wary of sending in an amateur who could unwittingly make a terrorist cell aware of its being under surveillance? And perhaps I’m naïve but would a man in charge of bringing down a terrorist cell purposely withhold information because of his personal animosity towards Khattak, a tactic that could risk national security and the safety of innocent people? The secrets within policing are almost as dangerous as the secrets of the terrorist cell.

I appreciated the insight offered into Arabic poetry. For example, readers are told about the “well-established tradition of Arabic poetry, conflating the personal with the political.” Agha Shahid Ali, a Kashmiri poet, and Faiz Ahmad Faiz, a Pakistani poet, are mentioned more than once so I was inspired to do some research. Faiz, I discovered, was nominated four times for the Nobel Prize for literature.

Apparently a third book in the series is already being written. In an interview with Maclean’s magazine, the author said the following: “In my third book I send him to Iran, where Khattak, who’s from the same majority Sunni tradition as me, will be in the minority in a Shia country. I wanted him to examine the privilege of membership in a majority tradition, where you never have to think about the feelings or the traditions of the other and see what that feels like. I like to put him in situations where he’s uncomfortable, and has to examine his perspective and assumptions much more critically” (http://www.macleans.ca/culture/books/...).

The first two books of this series have sufficient strengths that I look forward to the third one.

Please check out my reader's blog (http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).

[Suus · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5*
This was an okay read for me, but I did not like it as much as the first book in the series.The plot was engaging enough, though I did see a lot of the twists coming. The two characters from the first book which are Esa Khattak's main adversaries, I'm not convinced by their motivations. Maybe I'm just over 'the troubled detective that the whole world is against' trope.

[Douglas Lord · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rich and darkly atmospheric, The Language of Secrets continues the story begun in the author's previous The Unquiet Dead. Here readers find more of the same: sadness, bleakness, solitude characterize the case and the characters; no one is having much fun. It seems to me that most of the plot and import are conveyed indirectly, through implication or surmise. There's very little of the traditional, 'aha!' moments that detectives in novels 'usually' reach. A challenging, untraditional, and dark tale with regrettably convenient plotting - one lead investigator infiltrates a terrorist cell with unfeasible ease.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As in the first of this series, The Unquiet Dead, author Ausma Zehanat Khan, presents a beautifully written, politically-electric mystery that examines the complex intersection of Muslim and Christian/western cultures. Detective Esa Khattak and his partner, Rachel Getty, are called in when an informant in a local terrorist cell is found murdered in a vast wilderness park outside Toronto. Khan conjures up the wonderful, terrible Ontario winter that chills nearly every scene, in contrast to dramatic tensions that heat up the plot.

When it become apparent that this small network of operatives is planning disaster on a large scale, Getty goes undercover to infiltrate the mosque these would-be terrorists frequent, and Khattak takes on his foes within the Toronto law enforcement community who seem to wish his personal failure even at the risk of jeopardizing the investigation.

The Language of Secrets is loosely based on a real-life plot to blow up the Parliament building uncovered by Canadian law enforcement in 2006, and captures the conflicting religious, social, and political issues at play when ideologies clash with dogma.

As much as I enjoyed watching both Khattak and Getty at work and play, I struggled to believe the mosque-goers ready acceptance of Getty's presence. The villainous nature of Ciprian Coale- Khattak's professional arch enemy-was so over the top as to be laughable. The poetry device also demanded a suspension of disbelief that became tiresome- overmuch telling that felt like a classroom lecture in a course I hadn't intended to sign up for.

As a detective pair, Khattak and Getty are both endearing and nuanced- I'm with them for the long haul. I sense Khan settling into her style and her stories- I respect and admire the literary depth and resonance she brings to an oft-formulaic genre. I look forward to Khattak and Getty #3 and watching this writer explore political mysteries with grace, intelligence, fantastic writing, and interesting characters.

[Tundra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fast paced police thriller by Ausma Khan that punches above its weight. Loosely based on a real Canadian terror plot this novel provides a meaningful exploration of terrorism and the impact it has on those that are genuine religious worshippers (Islamic) who do not seek to harm others. Perhaps the only weakness is the tendency to stereotype the police investigators.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m enjoying this developing mystery series focusing on a pair of Muslim-Canadian Community Policing detectives. This is the second book in the series, and like the first, The Unquiet Dead, it offers strong characters, careful plotting, and substantive background that shows Khan’s experience as a former law professor specializing in international human rights law.