Name: The Shadow Walker
Rating: 4.6 (7 reviews)
Author: Michael Walters

BookBrowse Review
Beyond the Book

BookBrowse Review

The first in a new mystery series set in Mongolia

Crime novels are a dime a dozen, but The Shadow Walker by Michael Walters stands apart for both its exotic setting in modern-day Mongolia and its intriguing investigator Nergui. Offering a fast-paced and dark setting, Walters, a management consultant, presents an exciting debut novel.

Throughout the book the author provides detailed descriptions of Mongolia, the resulting portrait is of an unsettled country, formerly occupied by the Soviet government and now feeling the effects of western modernization, all the while maintaining its nomadic history. Here, for example, is British police officer Drew McLeish's first glimpse of Ulan Baatar's city center:

The road widened into a brightly lit avenue, lined with a mix of official-looking buildings, many studded with communist emblems, and newer commercial offices, some with Korean, Japanese or even American business names .... This could be any Eastern European city struggling to come to grips with life after the Soviet Union—the first shoots of Western capitalism alongside drab weathered concrete, poorly maintained roads and streetlights, shabby squares and inner-city parks. Familiar logos, neon-lit on the summits of office buildings, competed with stylized images of soldiers and stars—the fading murals of communism.

Adding to the exotic flavor of Ulan Baatar are the settlements of the traditional round nomadic tents, gers, found on the outskirts of the city, adjacent to the bland apartment complexes originating from the Communist era. The author also draws attention to the culture clash of Mongolian clothing, ranging from cheaply made, mass-produced Chinese suits to traditional dels, heavy robes with ornate belts, worn by both steppe herdsmen as well as older urban residents.

Nergui, former head of the Serious Crimes Team who rose through the police ranks during Communist oppression, represents as much of a mélange of cultures as does Ulan Baatar. As Drew studies Nergui's physical appearance, he notes his distinctive Mongolian features with dark and almost leathery skin, "…as though it had been burnished by the sun and wind of the desert," as well as his high-quality suit contrasting with his garish shirt and tie. Having studied in both London and Boston, Nergui has adopted certain Western characteristics, but Drew recognizes Mongolia's past in him, too, sensing "it would not be difficult…to imagine him, centuries before, riding out as a member of Genghis Khan's armies, leading the conquest of the known world." With his questionable former ties to the Communist government, as well as his experience in the West, Nergui, like his country, remains mysterious.

A few times clues emerge a tad bit too conveniently. In a mining site shanty town Nergui and his protégé Doripalam seemingly stumble upon a former revolutionary, who provides plenty of useful information. Later, as Nergui wonders how Doripalam unearths a slew of impressive connections, the latter vaguely replies, "Did a bit of searching on the internet—got some basic information. Also got some data from government systems."

Overall, however, the book successfully combines an unusual locale with plenty of thrills, and readers will eagerly look forward to reading the next two books in the series - Adversary and The Outcast (both published in the UK in 2008, USA publication date unknown).

Reviewed by Beth Hemke Shapiro

This review is from the November 12, 2008 issue of BookBrowse Recommends. Click here to go to this issue.

Beyond the Book

A Short History of Mongolia

Mongolia (map) is located in Northern Asia between China and Russia. It should not be confused with the Mongol autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (known as Inner Mongolia), which is located in the north of China, bordering southern Mongolia.

The name 'Mongol' was first recorded by the Chinese during the Tang dynasty (618-907 AD). Until the 12th century, the region consisted of loose confederations of rival clans, then a 20-year-old Mongol named Temujin (better known as Genghis Khan meaning "Universal King") united most of the tribes. By the time of his death in 1227, the Mongol empire extended from Beijing to the Caspian Sea. Genghis' grandson, Kublai Khan, completed the subjugation of China, ending the Song dynasty (960-1279) and becoming emperor of China's Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). At this, the height of the Mongols' glory: the empire stretched from Korea to Hungary and as far south as Vietnam, making it the largest contiguous empire the world has ever known.

After Kublai Khan's death in 1294, the Mongols became increasingly dependent on the people they ruled and were deeply resented by them. In less than a century, the Yuan dynasty collapsed and most of the Mongols returned to Mongolia, dissolving back into clan units frequently at war with each other. By the late 17th century, most of the Mongolian tribes had submitted to Chinese rule.

In the wake of the collapse of China's Qing dynasty in 1911, the area known to the Chinese as Outer Mongolia declared independence from China. Four years later, the Treaty of Kyakhta (signed by Russia, China and Mongolia) granted Mongolia limited autonomy. Full independence was achieved in 1924 when the Mongolian People's Republic, supported by Russia, became the world's second communist country.

Mongolian communism remained fairly independent of Moscow until Stalin gained absolute power in the late 1920s and the 'reign of terror' began. By 1939 it is estimated that 27,000 people, 3% of the Mongolian population, had been executed, including many thousands of monks.

Perestroika (the restructuring of the Soviet economy and bureaucracy) came to Mongolia in the late 1980s, and by 1989 full diplomatic relations with China were established. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989, large pro-democracy protests began, resulting in the 1996 election of the Mongolian Democratic Coalition which ended 75 years of communist rule.

Since then, each Mongolian government has attempted to pursue Western-style policies of reform and privatization but, with government corruption rife, the gap between rich and poor has widened. Increasing economic hardship, combined with particularly harsh winters in 2000 and 2001, have forced many nomads to give up the old ways and move to the cities to join the ranks of the urban poor.