There are three story lines here surrounding a private investigator called Makana, an ex-police inspector from Sudan, now living and working in Cairo.

The first story, the main story line and catalyst for the book, is about Makana being hire by a wealthy business man, who owns a football team, to help find one of his missing players. But it's not just any player, he is national hero figure. The businessman is a former criminal, in many ways he still is.

The second story is about an English woman who's four year old daughter disappeared 17 years previously. She keeps coming back to Cairo to search for her daughter. She runs into Makana once and it changes everything.

The last story line is the story of Makana and how and why he ended up in Cairo. It's a background that runs through the entire book.

All these story lines end up intertwined in a rather convoluted way that is totally reminiscent of a TV soap opera and that is where this book is a let down. In the end none of this explains why the football player disappeared. We do find out what happened to him but it's barely related to anything that is revealed in the book previously. 

For me it dragged when and just didn't grab me. I wanted to put the book down but I always force myself to finish what I start.