Book Log 2007 #4: The Coffee Trader by David Liss

I'd been looking for A Conspiracy of Paper, Liss's Edgar-winning first novel, but the only book of his the library had was this one, the story of a 17th century speculator named Miguel Lienzo who is living in Amsterdam as part of its community of Portuguese Jews. Having seen some business reversals, Lienzo devises a plan involving the coffee trade, which is just beginning to take off. But with his plans for wealth he must also deal with a partner he doesn't trust, a brother he doesn't like, a sister-in-law he may like too much, a former partner who has apparently gone mad, and a community leader who can crush Lienzo whenever he wants. There's also some excerpts from the memoirs of a moneylender sprinkled throughout, which gives an alternate (though not really objective) view of the action.

While it's not really a mystery or a thriller, there's healthy bits of both, which keeps the pace up, and the depiction of the Amsterdam Jewish community is pretty interesting. It does end a little too neatly, but that's a minor problem. It's worth a read.