Praise for the Omar Yussef series:

"The Collaborator of Bethlehemis readable and literate, and offers a vivid portrait of Palestinian life today."-The Washington Post

"Matt Beynon Rees has taken a complex world of culture clash and suspicion and placed upon it humanity."-David Baldacci, author of The Collectors

"Omar's probe of a West Bank ruled by political intrigue, religious hatred, and militia thugs lets ex-TIMEJerusalem Bureau Chief Rees make the Mideast conflict personal."-Entertainment Weekly

"The Collaborator of Bethlehemis the best-and the rarest-sort of mystery: exciting and compelling, but it is also a deeply moving story that will, for many readers, shed much light on the conditions in the Palestinian territories."-David Liss, author of The Ethical Assassinand A Conspiracy of Paper

"Uncovers the gritty, often disturbing human realities of life in Palestinian society. . . . [Rees] gives his characters heart as he gives his readers a thrill."-TIME.com

"An evocative, compassionate tale."-San Francisco Chronicle

As he tries to save the lives of two men, Omar Yussef is confronted with the corruption and violence of Gaza's warring government factions and the criminal gangs with which they are connected.

Matt Beynon Reeswas born in South Wales. He was previously the Jerusalem bureau chief for TIMEmagazine, where he is currently a contributor. He is the author of one previous mystery in the Omar Yussef series, The Collaborator of Bethlehem, and the nonfiction work Cain's Field: Faith, Fratricide, and Fear in the Middle East. He lives in Jerusalem.

"palestinian history teacher Omar Yussef travels from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip, where he becomes immersed in local violence and politics, in this over-the-top sequel to Rees's The Collaborator of Bethlehem (2007). Omar Yussef is a modest figure, quiet and middle-aged. When a U.N. official asks him to speak to a kidnapped schoolteacher's wife, he soon finds himself in the midst of international intrigue, dealing missiles over dinner, shouting down police officers and militants armed with machine guns and rescuing someone from a smuggling tunnel. These incidents seem a bit extreme for an aging academic, though his charm and calm demeanor are almost enough to convince the reader. The zany plot is interesting despite its implausibility, and the richly detailed descriptions, complete with deliberately brutal details of torture and death, emphasize Omar Yussef's peril and the violent tumult of the Middle East." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Matt Beynon Rees was born in South Wales. He has covered the Middle East as a journalist for a decade and for five years as Time magazine's Jerusalem bureau chief. He is the author of the nonfiction work Cain's Field: Faith, Fratricide, and Fear in the Middle East, and two previous mysteries in the Omar Yussef series.