Target: Tinos

Andreas Kaldis #4

by Jeffrey Siger

In an isolated olive grove on the idyllic Aegean island of Tinos, revered by pilgrims around the world as the Lourdes of Greece, the remains of two bodies charred beyond recognition are discovered chained together amid bits and pieces of an incinerated Greek flag.  An enraged press screams out for justice for the unknown victims, until the dead are identified as gypsies and the story simply falls off the face of the earth.  Is it a gypsy clan war, a hate crime, or something else? With no one seeming to care, the government has no interest in resurrecting unwanted media attention by a search for answers to such ethnically charged questions and orders the investigation closed. But Andreas Kaldis, feared head of Greece’s special crimes division, has other plans. He presses on in his inimitable, impolitic style to unravel a mystery that yields more dead, a modern secret society rooted in two-hundred-year-old ways, and a nagging suspicion that his answers lay in the sudden influx of non-Greeks and gypsies to Tinos.  It is there, on Tinos, Andreas learns of priceless hoards of gold, silver, art, and precious gems quietly amassed over centuries out of the offerings of grateful pilgrims. He has found a motive for murder and an irresistible inspiration for robbery.  All that is left for Andreas to do is find the killers before more die, stop the robbery of the century, and get married in the process. 

Genres: Mystery, Greece, Procedural, Thriller, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Fiction

259 pages, Hardcover

First published May 22, 2012

About the author

I am an American living on the Aegean Greek island of Mykonos. A Pittsburgh native and former Wall Street lawyer, I gave up my career as a name partner in my own New York City law firm to write mystery thrillers that tell more than just a fast-paced story. My novels are aimed at exploring serious societal issues confronting modern day Greece in a tell-it-like-it-is style while touching upon the country's ancient roots.

Some Mykonian friends told me if I started sprinkling murders with a message across my adopted country's tourist paradises, I'd likely be banished, if not hung. No one was more amazed than I when my debut novel, Murder in Mykonos (a sort of Mamma Mia setting for a No Country for Old Men story), became Greece's #1 best selling English-language novel (and a best-seller in Greek, as well).

As of September 2016 I have eight Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis novels out there and receive no more than the customary number of death threats. I'm diligently trying to improve my percentage in that regard with posts about Greece each Saturday on the Murder is Everywhere blogsite I share with nine renowned mystery writers from around the world.

It's been a remarkable journey, punctuated most notably by The New York Times selecting the fourth in my Andreas Kaldis series (Target: Tinos) as one of its five "picks for the beach" while calling the entire series, "thoughtful police procedurals set in picturesque but not untroubled Greek locales;" Left Coast Crime's nomination of the fifth in the series (Mykonos After Midnight) in 2014 as Best Mystery in a Foreign Setting; a 2016 Barry Award Best Novel Nomination for my seventh in the series (Devil of Delphi); starred reviews and official government citations; and this quote from Fodor's Greek Islands Travel Guide under a section titled "Mykonos After Dark," which colleagues say I should consider the equivalent of winning an Oscar: "Some say that after midnight, Mykonos is all nightlife—this throbbing beat is the backdrop to Jeffrey Siger's popular mystery, Murder in Mykonos."

My work is published in the US, UK, Germany (German), and Greece (Greek and English), and I'm honored to have served as Chair of the National Board of Bouchercon, the world's largest mystery convention, and as Adjunct Professor of English at Washington & Jefferson College, teaching mystery writing.

Reviews

[Gloria Feit · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the troubles in Greece are reflected in this, the fourth novel in the Chief Inspector Andreas series: prejudice against immigrants, aversion to taxes, repugnance to working at menial jobs for low wages (but it’s ok for immigrants to take the jobs) and, of course, the huge national debt. Many astute asides throughout the novel allude to these current problems. But the main plot has to do with the discovery of the murders of two gypsy brothers, followed by a few more on the island of Tinos.

Complicating the excellent police procedural is the fact of the imminent wedding of Andreas. The pressures from his intended and that of the Minister of Justice on Andreas to make the investigation “go away” (for obviously different reasons) do not deter him from doggedly pursuing the matter.

Along the way, the reader learns much about the geography and history of the island, especially about the Church of Panagia Evangelistria, the Greek “Vatican” and home of a relic of the Virgin Mary. Such information is fascinating, and the novel is recommended.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good mystery. I had no clue this was part of a series since the book doesn't even list the others. May have enjoyed it more if I started from the beginning of it all.

[J.F. Juzwik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was in my glory with this 4th book in the Kaldis series. Again, more Greek history, more on their islands, more on their culture, all very interesting and written in such a way that it just makes you want to know even more. We get to know the main character more and more with each novel, and share all the changes in his life, as well as tag along while he solves whatever case he is handling.

I do not want to give anything from the plot away, but this is another must-read. The entire series must be read. The reader is pulled into each story from Page 1, and the vivid descriptions of locations, characters and events transport you there where you remain until the last word.

I recommend every book in this series very highly.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the forth for this author’s books about the Cyclades Islands in the Aegean Sea, featuring Andreas Kaldis the head of the Greek Special Crimes Division.


The Inspector is called to the Island of Tinos to investigate the remains of two bodies burned beyond recognition, found chained together in a van. They were wrapped in a Greek Flag and a message was left saying “Freedom or Death.” It’s a weird place, for anything like this to happen. The Inspector is also in a bind as he is getting married in a few days and wants to sew this crime up so he can concentrate on the big day. When the victims are identified as gypsies, called Rom, in Greece, that seems to be the end of the investigation. These Rom are noted for being criminals and the theories of the crime think that this might be a war between criminal families or a hate crime. Andreas’ boss, Greece Minister of Order, Spiros Renatis, and his pals let the investigation slide and tell Andreas to close it as the people involved are not high on his list of people the Greek Government care about.

Andreas and his sidekicks, Yianni, Kouras and Tassos decide to look into the crime anyway and take the trip to Tinos again to check up on the victims' whereabouts before they were incinerated. The team of detectives gets almost no cooperation from the locals so have to figure it all out for themselves. There are a couple more murders and some meetings, in Athens, with the criminal element from Albania who seem to be hip deep in this whole operation. There is a large festival coming up in the town and the detectives feel that there may be a robbery at the Church of Panagia Evangelistria as they have an icon of the Virgin Mary there that many people pray to and leave money and jewels. But the case still drags out. Andreas’ will not give up and it is left up to him and his men to find the killers, find out where the robbery is going to take place and last, but certainly not least, GET MARRIED!!

This book is a definite keeper. The descriptive passages about Greece and the Greek Isles had me fascinated as I really am a history buff and this author definitely knows his subject. This book is a gem and shouldn’t be unread. It’s an exciting read.

[Elli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hooked me onto it quickly. A very good picture of modern day problems in a changing world in a small country who wanted to keep a good impression in the EU international community, but with all the difficult problems crime-wise of a changing and difficult world.

[Lynn Kearney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know this author or this series. Its setting and the character of the protagonist are interesting enough that I'll look for more.

[Ken Fredette · Rating 4 out of 5]

It had a good flow to the story with a great love story. should have read him a long time ago.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun book set very atmospherically in Greece in the Cyclades Islands. Will look for other stories featuring Chief Detective Kaldis.

[Grkchkruns · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the best of the series, or else I'm getting to know more about police characters. The best thing about this book is Greece, the author's descriptions of customs, history and current events in Greece. That's worth the two stars. The attitudes of the Greek people are spot on, as I have been here for over a month and have been in many conversations. Athens is definitely not a safe place anymore. He got that right, too. As much as we don't like to stereotype as Americans, what's happening here with immigration is also true, but in reality, it seems to be the case in most countries. Also didn't like the lame joking between the officers, or the corney dialogue with Andreas and his fiance. Perhaps they do talk like this, but it REALLY loses in the translation. I liked his first two better. Not too interested in the religious retreat of Patmos. Don't know if I'll read any more of Mr. Siger. Sorry.

Oh yes, and a glaring mistake in facts: there are no weddings taking place on the first 15 days of August in the Greek Orthodox church. According to the author, he sent his new wife on ahead on their honeymoon so he could wrap up the case before the big theft supposedly to take place on August 15. Small detail, perhaps, but since the author lives in Greece, he should know this as well as all his other observations on the country.

[Robert Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished 06/29/2014. Inspector Andreas Kaldis is ordered by his boss, a government minister to close out an investigation into the death of two gypsy brothers on the island of Tinos. Instead he & his whole crew become involved in a convoluted series of clues that lead nowhere. A young man who everyone on the island thinks is crazy is at the heart of the whole thing, and his sister that is also believed to be slow is his executioner, unbeknownst to him. During this whole time, plans for A's wedding to Lila, the rich upper class mother of their son are under way and take place on Mykonos.

[Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Target: Tinos is a set in Greece, a Chief Inspector Kaldis novel in English for the first time. Inspector Kaldis is called in by the Greek government to close a double murder so an not to bring International pressure on them, Kladis finds a plot to rob a Church that contains a great fortune donated by pilgrims to the shrine. When Kladis gets close to the answer He and his family are threatened. An excellent series.

[Rebecca Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The exotic setting and cultural details rescue this one from two stars. Characterization has no depth and the relationship at the center of the book is really not particularly interesting. I liked the very up-to-the-minute details, though, about the political and economic climate in Greece and about attitudes toward those perceived as "foreigners." Romas and "Travellers" seem to be showing up in a lot of European fiction these days, brought to the fore by Human Rights legislation in the EU.

[Triss Stein · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written police procedural set in Greece, one of my favorite places, with some characters I want to keep following. A good mystery doesn't happen in a vacuum. The author weaves in social issues (immigration) and Greece's current economic woes to create a mystery that feels both up to date and solidly anchored in the real world.I've read two in this series; I must go get the rest

[Harolynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy following Siger's main characters. Most detective novels have only one, sometimes two - he has a whole family of folks who interact the way that people in general, and Greeks in particular, do with each other.

I want to know what happens next with these people as well as resolve the mystery. Doesn't often happen this way.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourth book of Jeffrey’s that I’ve read and each one is a gem. This book shows the gritty underworld of Greece, not usually seen by tourists. In this book we wonder whether Andreas will make it to his own wedding as he deals with the fallout from a gypsy dispute which turns out to have far reaching consequences. An underrated writer in the UK, who deserves to be much better known.

[Jackie R · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of the geography, ancient & current history, & the descriptions and attitudes of the Greek people, but the mystery was weak. After all, that's why I read this book.

[SallyTheLibrarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review will appear in Library Journal. This book will be published June 2012.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Modern Greek, a bit on the gritty side but with deftly drawn characters. Very current, with many references to current economic situation and Greek politics.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this series of police mysteries in foreign country.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, mostly because of the setting. It's set in Greece, and the author does a great job of providing a sense of place.

[John Wintersteen]

There are four more books after this one.

[Mam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will read more in this series - liked the Greek setting along with interesting characters and uniquely Greek problems.

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Andreas gets caught up in a case on Timos on his way to his wedding. The Albanian mob is out to kill him and his team.

[J Melachrinos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this one. Having read all four books in the series to this point, I think this one is best after Murder in Mykonos.

[Reff Girl]

still great series

[Vallery Feldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent. I recommend all of Jeff Siger's Greek Mysteries. He lives there part of the eyar and knows the country well.

[Tahera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Combined review:

I had never heard of the author Jeffrey Siger until I came across these books by chance a few months ago. This is a series that has been described as '"thoughtful police procedurals set in picturesque but not untroubled Greek locales", revealing the wildly lucrative dark side of an internationally renowned Greek island playground for the world's rich and famous, those battling for control of its vices, and the innocents affected by it all.'

The crimes committed are deeply rooted to the history, religion, culture, economic, political and immigrant conditions of modern Greece. The immigrant issue is an important plotline in Target: Tinos.

I loved the character of Andreas Kaldis. He is an honest, no-nonsense, politically incorrect police chief/detective who goes the extra length and is willing to put himself in mortal danger to get to the bottom of these cases. Mind you, the cases are definitely not straightforward. There are many red herrings in terms of people and motives that Andreas has to sift through until he cracks it right at the end.

These books can be read as standalones but from being single in Murder in Mykanos to being a father and getting married to his fiancé in Target:Tinos, a lot seems to have happened in Andreas's personal life.

Both the narrators did a very good job with their narration. I will definitely be reading more of this series if and when I get a chance.

[Scilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two charred bodies are found in a remote area on Tinos chained together. Andreas Kaldis is trying to find out what happened and why, in spite of the fact his boss is telling him to close the case. Andreas is getting married on Mykonos in a few days, and Lila isn't happy about him going off to Tinos instead of going to the wedding planning meeting. After even more murders, they begin to suspect the reincarnation of a secret society long thought dead. However, Andreas, Kouros, and Tassos continue to work on the murders right up to the wedding. After a threat to Andreas, there are a lot of police in evidence at the wedding. And then there is a threat to Andreas' and Lila's young son, Tassaki. Lila and Tassaki go on to the honeymoon, while Andreas solves the case.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series of police mysteries takes place in Greece, my home of five years back in the 60s.While Siger's premises are improbable, he does a pretty good job of capturing some of the essence of Greece that I remember. He well understands the deep nature of officialdom's corruption there, which still bedevils Greece. In the story he describes a wedding, including the quaint practice where the bride stomps on the groom's foot to show who will actually be boss in the family. I had made the mistake of telling my future wife about that... and got my foot stomped during the ceremony. I attended many weddings back then, and remember one where the priest paused the ceremony to separate the wedding couple, who were engaged in a foot-stomping contest! I'll continue with the series.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth book and fifth I have read in the Andreas Kaldis series. I am enjoying this series and I will continue to read these books.

This one was a little bit of a letdown from the others I've read, as the plot and premise lacked the urgency of the previous novels. But most of the plusses remain. Strong and likable protagonists, interesting and educational settings, and a fast moving finish (which lacked the impact of the previous books). But don't skip this one, things such as Kaldis's wedding are important elements of the ongoing story.

Kaldis is called upon to investigate the savage death of two Romanian immigrants on the island of Tinos. He is assisted by his assistant, his mentor and his secretary in what becomes a complex mystery. 3.5 adjusted to 3 as a rating.