Devil-Devil (Kella and Conchita Mysteries #1) in Around the World in 80 Books

Aug 16, 2021 Julie Griffin rated it it was amazing

This mystery set in the Solomons just before Independence is like taking an actual trip and being immersed in the culture. Very detailed and a good introduction to a culture I knew little about.
Ben Kella is a bit of a misfit with the Colonial police in the Solomon Islands. As a young boy he was identified as an achiever and educated on and off the Islands, yet he still follows the customs and ways of his fellow saltwater tribe and takes his role as the peacemaker seriously. This causes conflict This mystery set in the Solomons just before Independence is like taking an actual trip and being immersed in the culture. Very detailed and a good introduction to a culture I knew little about.
Ben Kella is a bit of a misfit with the Colonial police in the Solomon Islands. As a young boy he was identified as an achiever and educated on and off the Islands, yet he still follows the customs and ways of his fellow saltwater tribe and takes his role as the peacemaker seriously. This causes conflict at times with his superiors and with his kinsmen. He's treading carefully when he's called in for the death of a man who is proclaimed a victim of murder by the ghost speaker. The man's closest relative disappears and is later found murdered himself. Kella already has enough on his plate trying to resolve this situation without escalating violence or incurring the disapproval of his superiors when he becomes involved with the discovery of a body that was probably someone he knew that disappeared during the Japanese invasion of WWII 18 years previously. This brings him into contact with an unstoppable force of nature, Sister Conchita, and the two end up running for their lives in the bush interior. More questions pile up: who wants to kill the Sister? Where is the missing anthropologist that Kella was originally charged with finding? Why are people being murdered, and what does a missing artifact have to do with this? As we follow Kella, and Conchita, readers are introduced to the cultures of various islands and groups of people, the history and politics of the Solomons post WWII and just before independence in 1978. The reader learns about the three kinds of war clubs, the way homes are built, how artificial islands are made, even about the role of the British authorities and the Catholic church. Unlike some books set in exotic (to us) locations but could take place anywhere, this is solidly grounded in place and culture. Kella and Conchita are both interesting and likeable characters and continue on with several other books in this series. Good for mystery lovers (not gruesome, almost but not quite cozy) and armchair travelers alike. ...more

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Jun 22, 2019 Nancy H rated it liked it

This is an excellent mystery set in the Solomon Islands. It reminds me a great deal of the Arthur Upfield series, though that one is set in Australia. This one features a local policeman who is also part of the indigenous culture, an asset that helps him solve the murder and figure out exactly what is happening. In an unlikely pairing, he gets help from a nun who is serving at a local mission. This is an intriguing series, and I hope there will be a lot more of them.

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