The Mystery of Rio

The narrator of this meandering mystery from Brazilian author Mussa (The Riddle of Qaf) serves on “the Unesco Standing Committee on the Theory and Art of the Police Novel, headquartered in London and financed by Scotland Yard,” and in that capacity becomes entranced by a perfect murder committed in Rio de Janeiro in 1913. The personal secretary to the president of the Republic of Brazil was found bound to a bed and strangled in an unusual brothel run by a Polish doctor who advocated abortion and sterilization. The obvious suspect, the prostitute last seen with the victim, is nowhere to be found, and the investigation comes under the purview of an acclaimed forensics expert. So far, so good. But the book rapidly goes off on a number of tangents—cemetery desecrations, disappearing treasure, female sexual fantasies—that will frustrate those hoping the author had simply followed through on the promising setup. Agent: Ella Sher, Ella Sher Literary Agency (Spain). (Sept.)