Death in Umber

Amid the hundreds of ancient Buddhist temples that litter central Burma's drought-stricken Pagan plain, Aung, the puppet singer of the royal Burmese puppet troupe, stumbles upon a murdered child monk. Thus begins the third mystery featuring Aung and the impish Yamin, the youngest of the magical marionettes. Amidst too many suspects, including an English 'giant, ' and the growing rift between those who believe in the spirits and those who undermine that ancient belief, the two unlikely investigators must unmask the killer, and find a second missing novice before he is killed, too. As the magical Burmese puppet troupe and their mischievous puppets solve murderous crimes, they find their land of living spirits becoming darker. A Death In Umber is the third in the Aung and Yamin mystery series that melds magic to the history of Burma on the eve of English colonization. Other books in the series include Death By Effigy and A Death In Passing.