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Bringing 1950s Morocco vividly to life, Jane Johnson's masterful new novel, The Black Crescent, is a gripping story of murder, magic and divided loyalties...Hamou Badi is born in a mountain village with the magical signs of the zouhry on his hands. In Morocco, the zouhry is a figure of legend, a child of both humans and djinns, capable of finding all manner of treasure: lost objects, hidden water.
But instead, Hamou finds a body.
This unsolved murder instils in Hamou a deep desire for order and justice: he trains as an officer of the law, working for the French in Casablanca. But the city is trapped in the turmoil of the nationalist uprising, and soon he will be forced to choose between all he knows and all he loves...
Praise for Jane Johnson'An irresistible story-teller' Barbara Erskine
'Page-turning stuff'
The Times'Jane Johnson writes with such grace' Carol Drinkwater
'Beautifully written'
Mail on Sunday'Johnson writes the sort of books you want to tell everyone about' Katie Fforde
About the author
Jane Johnson is a British novelist and publisher. She is the UK editor for George R.R. Martin, Robin Hobb and Dean Koontz and was for many years publisher of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Married to a Berber chef she met while researching The Tenth Gift, she lives in Mousehole, Cornwall, and Morocco.
Summary
1950s Morocco: murder, magic and divided loyalties...
Hamou Badi is born in a mountain village with the magical signs of the zouhry on his hands. The zouhry is a figure of legend, capable of finding all manner of treasure. But instead of finding treasure, young Hamou finds a body.
Haunted by this unsolved murder, Hamou goes on to train as a police officer in Casablanca. Yet the city is trapped in a nationalist uprising, and Hamou is soon torn between his heritage and his employers. How will he choose between all he knows and all he loves?
'Hugely enjoyable' Rachel Hore
'Compelling' The Times
'Addictive reading' Viggo Mortensen
'Powerful and transportive' Elizabeth Chadwick
'A must-read' Chat
Foreword
Set in the mid-1950s against a backdrop of the violent end of the French protectorate, The Black Crescent sees Jane Johnson return to Morocco with a novel filled with romance, mystery and murder...
Additional text
PRAISE FOR JANE JOHNSON:
'A beautifully written and intriguing story that stayed with me long after I had turned the last page' Santa Montefiore.
'A wonderful blend of the past and the present day making an unputdownable, beautifully written novel' Katie Fforde.
'I wanted to live in this story. Jane Johnson writes with such grace and ease' Carol Drinkwater.
'The Sea Gate just blew me away. Utterly compelling and one of the few books for a long time that kept me reading deep into the night' Barbara Erskine.
'Johnson weaves a passionate, lyrical story of family secrets, wartime Britain and modern-day Cornwall. Think Arabian Nights meets du Maurier's Rebecca - I loved it'
