The Burnt City
A novel of Iran on the eve of revolution
The Burnt City, by Robert Bangor, gives the reader a different slant on the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1978-79. Against a background of marches, strikes, and violence, several groups and individuals are in pursuit of loot, not political change—at least not until they get their hands on the loot. The characters are sharply drawn and represent not only West and East, but also class struggle, conflicting aspirations, pure greed, and even innocence.
The Warriors of Truth, who open the book with a bank robbery, vie with Kurds, SAVAK, a US CIA contractor, and several individuals for the prize. The action moves them from Tehran to southeastern Iran with one of the most forbidding places on the planet: the Kavir-e Lut—the Naked Desert. Their journeys end at the Burnt City at its edge.
If the action is not enough, the author spices the adventure with touches of humor, irony, and surprises, plus an adroit manipulation of the characters from crisis to crises. As the story develops, the focus moves to the machinations of the CIA contractor, Mitchell Ritchie, and to the “new” woman, Margaret Lexler, who is unwillingly caught up in the avarice of others. Plot twists and cliffhangers abound, but the tale is not without pathos and introspective moments of considerable beauty.
Robert Bangor formerly lived in Iran and witnessed the Revolution and the return of Ayatollah Khomeini. He is fluent in Persian and a knowledgeable observer of Muslim culture, especially that of Iran. His book sparkles with authenticity and keen observation.
I found The Burnt City very entertaining. I enjoyed the character sketches and the variety of the story. Just when I thought I had it figured out, the author turns the tables on the reader. I can heartily recommend it to anyone who likes adventure spiced with a little greed and lust in exotic settings, and does not mind learning something about Iran and Iranians in a pleasurable way. In short, reading it is a good way to spend a few hours of your leisure.
Agron Belica, author of The Revival of the Prophet Yahya & The Crucifixion: Mistaken Identity?
Review
Tehran, 1978. As Iran slides into revolution, the escalating chaos provides ample opportunity for adventurers: A secret fund that is to be transported to southeastern Iran has excited the larcenous instincts of several disparate parties: the Islamic Warriors of Truth, the amoral son of a missionary, a desperate husband, a group of exiled Kurds, and a determined US agent. Events push the reserved but vulnerable Margaret Lexler into the center of the drama, the US operative and a young Iranian her only shields. They pursue the money from Tehran to Kerman to Bam to the edge of the Kavir-e Lut, one of the most desolate regions on the planet, where they meet in a bloody showdown at the Burnt City, an eerie geological formation resembling a petrified city, rumored to be a hideout for bandits, smugglers, and demons.
Robert Bangor, a veteran of more than 17 years in Iran and an eye-witness to the Revolution, provides his readers with a sumptuous banquet of violence, intrigue, greed, and lust in the streets of Tehran and Kerman, a Sufi shrine, the ruins of Bam, the Kavir-e Lut, and the Burnt City itself.
