The Cairo Diary by Maxim Chattam

One to look out for in June. From Minotaur's Spring catalogue:

A bestselling historical thriller from France, set in meticulously researched locales with a healthy dose of mystery and intrigue.

Cairo, 1928: Several children disappear and are found horribly mutilated in the tombs just outside the city. Has a ghoul from the Arabian Nights come to life? British inspector Jeremy Matheson follows the trail of the monster while grappling with his own past as well as with the charged political situation in British-occupied Cairo.

Mont-Saint-Michel, 2005: Marion has been spirited away from Paris and brought to a remote monastery by the French Secret Service.When she finds a diary dating from 1928 in the monastery library hidden inside an Edgar Allan Poe jacket and penned by Jeremy Matheson, she is inexorably pulled into the past as she follows his investigation.The two stories intertwine and culminate in an absolutely baffling climax and will leave the reader questioning his sense of the truth.

“One of the best contemporary thriller authors…there is a toughness to his stories, a truth to his characters and a writing style that, even though it flirts with the fantastical, always stays realistic. Chattam knows how to make the most of his readers’ fears and phobias.” —LE MONDE

After stints as an actor, night watchman and bookseller, MAXIM CHATTAM studied criminology in Paris. He is also the author of several plays and a well-received trilogy (The Soul of Evil, In Darkness and Evil Spells). He lives in Poissy, France.

Update: Read the Euro Crime review of The Cairo Diary.