THE INVISIBLE by Peter Papathanasiou

THE INVISIBLE

Peter Papathanasiou

MacLehose Press (maclehosepress.com)

£16.99

Buy a copy at your favourite independent bookshop

Following the accidental death of a teenage boy during an arrest-gone-wrong, Detective Sergeant George Manolis decides he needs a break. Arriving at the Greek town from whence his parents came, Manolis discovers that Lefty – a friend of the family, and something of a fixture in the small village of Glikonero – has disappeared, leaving his friends worried. Lefty is an “invisible” – there is no paper trail meaning that, in the eyes of the Greek government, he doesn’t officially exist – so the local police are in no rush to find him. Manolis, with the help of his friend, Stavros, sets himself up as a labourer, and starts to dig into Lefty’s disappearance, discovering that the man he knew had as many different facets as the town has residents.

Peter Papathanasiou’s The Stoning was one of my favourite books of last year, pitch-black noir that gripped from the first page. This year’s follow-up, The Invisible, is something of a departure in many ways, but is still sure to be one of the best crime novels you’ll read this year.

The first big departure is a literal one: moving from the harsh, remote Australian outback to the slightly less harsh, but just as remote northern part of Greece. We learn a lot about Manolis’ family and background during the course of The Stoning, so it is interesting to see him return to his roots as early as the second book. This is a part of Greece that isn’t on the tourist trail, its defining feature a large lake that shares borders with Albania and North Macedonia. The tiny village where Manolis spends most of his time is populated exclusively by elderly residents and Papathanasiou does a brilliant job of portraying it as the sort of place that is very much set in its ways and, while there is no outward hostility towards outsiders, you can feel the tension just under the surface.

For me, the other big departure is in the tone of the novel. The Stoning is pitch-black, fast-paced police procedural, deserving of the “Outback noir” label with which it has been tagged. The Invisible, like the area where the action takes place, moves at a much more sedate pace and is much less intense than its predecessor. This is due to the nature of the story: there is no murder for our hero to solve, no imminent threat hanging over his head. While it’s a far cry (thankfully!) from Death in Paradise, it does have something of a “cosy” feel to it, making it a much different beast to the previous book. It will be interesting to see in which direction the next book will take us.

The Invisible lets Papathanasiou shine a light on the region where he was born. It’s a region caught in a time capsule, bordered by two countries still firmly ensconced in the past. Many of the houses Manolis visits still proudly display Nazi memorabilia, while many of the residents point the finger at one or other of the town’s immigrants (one Albanian, one Syrian) when it comes to Lefty’s disappearance. This is an attitude that Manolis himself finds hard to shake, harbouring suspicions about both throughout. The novel also tackles a number of other “big” topics but that way lies spoiler territory. All of this gives us a chance to get to know DS Manolis in a slightly less frantic environment as Papathanasiou pits his flaws against his strengths, presenting a well-rounded and realistic character that we’ll want to meet again.

In all, The Invisible is a solid sophomore effort. It may not have the thrills and spills of its predecessor but engaging characters and a well-constructed mystery will keep you reading – and guessing – until the very end. Peter Papathanasiou has earned his slot on this reader’s “must read” list, and I can only recommend that you give him a shot if you haven’t already.