BOOK DESCRIPTION

She’s an Israeli data analyst. He’s a headstrong Bulgarian detective. Together they must track down those responsible for a horrific bombing.

In the wake of a deadly terrorist attack at Burgas Airport in Bulgaria, Israeli and Bulgarian intelligence agencies launch a joint investigation. Detective Boyko Stanchev on the police task force teams up with Ayala Navon, a young Israeli intelligence analyst on her first overseas assignment.

The two must establish whether the terrorists were assisted by a Bulgarian crime organization in laying the groundwork for the attack.

It should be a routine investigation, but shadows of the past keep interfering.

Boyko’s interactions with a crime boss pursuing a vendetta against him threaten to throw him off track. Ayala’s pursuit of the terrorists and their accomplices brings up painful memories of a family tragedy.

Boyko and Ayala form a shaky alliance, one that evolves into growing cooperation and affection as they desperately race against time to uncover who was behind the Burgas bombing.

The Burgas Affair is a fictional account of the aftermath of a very real terrorist attack. On July 18, 2012, a deadly explosive rocked a tourist bus at Burgas Airport, killing five Israelis and their Bulgarian bus driver. The terrorists responsible for this murderous attack have never been brought to justice.

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by Ellis Shuman

HERE ARE MY THOUGHTS AND REVIEW

Whoa I felt as clueless as the woman who was just opening her eyes and discovering her situation at the same time as me. Laid on the ground, wires kriss crossing round her body and a sudden realisation that she shouldn’t move. would they circle a woman with  She didn’t speak their language, they thought she was another suicide bomber. Then the story moves back in time.  I don’t really know whether to say the story begins on 18th July 2012 or ends there. For 5 Israelis and a Bulgarian bus driver they would never go anywhere again. The bombing of a bus in the Bulgarian Airport was a true event, the author Ellis Shuman has gone on to write a fictitious story round the investigation afterwards.

It was never going to be an easy operation, the Bulgarian Police force having to share information with the Israeli terrorist investigation team. Both sides having very different theories about who could be responsible for the bombing, local knowledge of the area and the ultimately who should do what. Paired together were Detective Boyko Stanchev of the Bulgarian police task force and Ayala Navon, a young Israeli intelligence analyst on her first overseas assignment. It just felt like from the beginning that sparks would fly. Ayala was use to being seen as an equal in the job she did while Boyko saw her purely as a woman and very much of the weaker sex.

The story is as much about the relationship that developes between them as it is about finding the bombers before there were more deaths. Boyko had his own dodgy past to deal with which was slowly coming to light throughout the story. There are times that the story drops back to fill in how events went down. I really didn’t like Boyko to start with but he did grow on me. Anya feels she has a lot to prove about herself and how she is seen by other members of both these teams.

There was plenty of action throughout the book, both surrounding the bombing and Boyko’s past. It is very much a tension builder with spikes of adrenaline fuelled scenes to allow you to take a break before the next one, if you need to. They were a couple that I would want on my side. I really enjoyed this book, though it is sad that in real life the case was never solved. If you continue reading after this story ends  the author goes on to fill in facts about the real bombing.

 

HERE IS A LITTLE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ellis Shuman was born in Sioux City, Iowa, and immigrated to Israel as a teenager. He completed high school in Jerusalem and served for three years in the Israeli army’s Nahal branch. Along with his wife, Jodie, he was a founding member of Kibbutz Yahel in the Arava Valley in Israel’s south. On the kibbutz he worked in agriculture, industry, tourism, the dairy barn, and served as the kibbutz’s general secretary. After moving with his wife and three young children to Moshav Neve Ilan in the Judean Hills, Ellis received formal training in the hotel industry. He worked in a variety of positions at the Neve Ilan Hotel and later was Food and Beverage Controller at the Jerusalem Hilton. He served as the moshav’s general secretary during a period in which the community underwent major social changes. As a hobby, Ellis began writing on the Internet. He wrote extensively about life in Israel in his position as the Israeli Culture Guide at About.com. He designed and maintained websites for the Neve Ilan Hotel and for Indic–Independent Israeli Cinema. For two years he was webmaster for Yazam, an international financial firm that provided support for technological start-ups. Ellis served for three years as Editor in Chief of Israel Insider, an online daily newsmagazine that developed new technologies as it posted the latest news and views, from and about Israel. Starting in 2004, Ellis began working in a marketing company servicing the online gaming industry. In the years 2009 – 2010, his job was relocated to Sofia, Bulgaria. During those years, Ellis and Jodie traveled extensively in Bulgaria as well as in the countries of the region. Today Ellis continues working at this job, based in Ramat Gan.

 

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