Gold in the Furnace

Rating:
Summary: Love as Yugoslavia self-destructs
Review: People have long memories in the Balkans in southeastern Europe, where the history of the world began with the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, and the pressure of old grievances has been building up ever since. In this novel, by a former member of the U.S. Foreign Service who was stationed there in the early 1990s, the events of the breakup of Yugoslavia are dramatized through the experiences of an American diplomatic official who develops a romantic connection with a Serbian consular employee temporarily posted to the U.S. consulate in Zagreb, among the Croatians whom she despises. After the couple are split up - first by her return to working at the embassy in Belgrade, and then by a spat which they both regret - all hell breaks loose in the country as they try to find one another again.

In background chapters the book provides a clear "scorecard" of information on the various ethnic factions which helps greatly in understanding the events against which the story is played out, and in explaining the ferocity of the forces which were unleashed. (One thing which might have been useful is a map of the various regions of the country which are mentioned in the text.)

All in all, a gripping read which you will find hard to put down.