The Wooden Library: Ikmen Mystery 27

by Barbara Nadel

The twenty-seventh mystery featuring Çetin İkmen and Mehmet Suleyman, stars of BBC Two's gripping crime drama series The Turkish Detective, available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
Praise for Barbara Nadel's İkmen

'Complex and beguiling: a Turkish delight' Mick Herron

'İkmen is one of modern crime fiction's true heroes, complex yet likeable, and the city he inhabits - Istanbul - is just as fascinating' The Times

'Barbara Nadel's distinctive Istanbul-set Inspector İkmen thrillers combine brightly coloured scene setting with deliciously tortuous plots' Guardian

416 pages, Hardcover

Published January 6, 2026

About the author

Barbara Nadel is an English crime-writer. Many of her books are set in Turkey. Born in the East End of London, Barbara Nadel trained as an actress before becoming a writer. Now writing full-time, she has previously worked as a public relations officer for the National Schizophrenia Fellowship's Good Companion Service and as a mental health advocate for the mentally disordered in a psychiatric hospital. She has also worked with sexually abused teenagers and taught psychology in schools and colleges, and is currently the patron of a charity that cares for those in emotional and mental distress. She has been a regular visitor to Turkey for more than twenty-five years.

Reviews

[Stephen the Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barbara Nadel is at the top of her game with this 27th Ikmen story. It's all the better for not being too gang crime based as some recent stories have.

This is a mystery story weaving family feuds; greed; life beyond death and a great plot with twists and turns.

Ikmen , Suleyman, Gonca, Gursel and other favourites return and it is this familiarity with characters that make this an intriguing series along side learning more about the fascinating city of Istanbul.

As previously said - for maximum enjoyment the series is best read in order but this story could just about be standalone.

Crime fiction at its best. A total winner

[Shirley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wonder if I would have enjoyed this more if I had read others in the series. The story was very good, but there was a lot of back story that I didn’t know about. Also I felt the end was a bit rushed. Not a lot of explanation of how the murders was committed.

[Elizabeth Sirett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Opening the 27th book in the Ikmen series is like welcoming an old friend.

One is quickly taken on a journey to both unknown and strangely familiar places. Inspector Mehmet Suleyman is on holiday in Romania with his Roma wife visiting her family.

A distant cousin has purchased an ancient building - a wooden library - and he is cataloguing the priceless contents. Ikmen is called upon to help with the task as he is now retired. However, there is a body in the library! A rotting corpse and Suleyman's cousin becomes a suspect.

The story involves old feuds and familial relationships which go back many generations. As in all this series the regular minor characters add their own dramas to the tapestry of events and there is a fascinating intermingling of both Istanbul and its history and the lives of all the various characters both in Turkey and Romania.

This novel is a welcome addition to Nadel's oeuvre and leaves one wanting more!
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Reviewer: Toni Russell
For Lizzie Sirett (Mystery People Group)

[Oundle Crime · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked this off the shelf I had no idea it was Book 27 in a series featuring the Turkish detective, Inspector Ikmen. Ikmen is now retired and helping the friend of a friend to catalogue the contents of the Wooden Library, an ancient building in Istanbul. As they start work, they can’t ignore a terrible smell in the building and soon discover a rotting corpse concealed under the floorboards. The body is that of Senol Ulusoy, the man who had recently sold the library. It’s quite a convoluted plot but very readable and has a great twist at the end. There’s also a useful Cast List at the beginning of the book to help you keep track of who’s who. This was the first book I've ever read in this series but I'll definitely be looking for more. It doesn't seem to be that much of an issue to read them as standalone novels.
Review by: Cornish Eskimo, Oundle Crime

[Lilisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another enjoyable read with a great sense of place and time. I love the series and enjoy spending time with favorite characters Cetin Ikmen and Mehmet Suleyman as they solve murders and mysteries. This book felt like it wandered around with too many people and was shoehorned with too many complexities the author wanted to share about Turkiye, which is why I love Turkiye so much - but in the context of one book it felt forced. Because of this it was a bit long-drawn out and complicated, which it didn't need. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed the book and look forward to the next Ikmen-Suleyman adventure.

[Marina Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't be entirely objective about this book, as part of it is set in Romania and it features a dedication to me and two of the authors I've translated. Besides, returning to Ikmen and Suleyman is always a delight. This one has a rather sad thread of family secrets and abuse running through it. But I'd love to have access to that library in spite of the smell.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me longer than usual to get into this book, I usually find this author’s work quicker to follow. I really got confused between characters this time!

[Steven Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Another excellent book in this detective series. Well worth a read. A great page turner that keeps you guessing until the end.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

not my cup of tea

[Christine Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

More Ikmen sorcery…I love it!

[Pete Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story.

Suleyman and Ikeman get better as they both age.
Great storyline and they paint a great picture of life in Istanbul.

[Katie Steuerwald · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but there is a lot of characters. I found the layout of the chapters hard to follow as it jumped from character to character