Murder in the Rue de Paradis
An Aimee Leduc Mystery
Cara Black
Soho Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-56947-474-5 (1569474745)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-474-7 (9781569474747)
Publication Date: March 2008
List Price: $24.00
Synopsis
(from
the publisher): Aimée Leduc is thrilled when her one-time
lover, Yves Robert,
an investigative journalist, returns from his assignment in Egypt and
proposes marriage. She accepts and Yves places a Turkish betrothal ring
on her finger. But after a single night of bliss, he meets a dreadful
fate. The next day, Aimée is summoned by the Brigade
Criminelle to identify a corpse found in a doorway in the Rue de
Paradis. It is Yves. According to a witness, his killer was a woman in
a chador.
Determined to avenge her lover's death, she ventures through Paris's
Little Istanbul district. The trail leads to a sleeper jihadist and she
becomes embroiled in Turkish-Kurdish political controversy.
Review: French private investigator Aimee Leduc looks into the murder of her fiancé of but one day in Murder in the Rue de Paradis, the seventh book in this series by Cara Black.
It's 1995, a time of turmoil around the world and especially in Paris.
Terrorist attacks, Metro bombings, and assassinations, with the
conflict between the Turks and Kurds taking center stage. Aimee is
thrilled when a lover from her past returns safely from Turkey where he
was on assignment. Yves Robert, an investigative journalist, not only
wants to remain in Paris, he wants to marry Aimee. Thrilled, she
agrees. But the next morning Yve's body is found in a nearby alley, his
throat slashed. The police record the incident as a robbery gone wrong,
but Aimee is convinced he was the victim of a political hit. Her
subsequent investigation seems to support her conclusion, but she's met
with resistance at every level of the police department who tell her in
no uncertain terms to stop interfering.
Murder in the Rue de Paradis
is a frequently bewildering mystery. The plot seems almost as
convoluted as the back streets of Paris through which Aimee must
navigate to pursue the truth. Contributing in no small part to the
confusion is the author's frequent use of French colloquial terms. No
doubt intended to lend an authentic flavor to the story, they instead
tend to detract from the story. The setting itself already serves this
purpose and is quite descriptive, even atmospheric.
It can be tricky constructing a credible mystery using as a backdrop
the politics of the Middle East, and for the most part it works here.
Still, Murder in the Rue de Paradis presents a bit more of a challenge than many readers may want to take on.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Murder in the Rue de Paradis and to Soho Press for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
Murder in the Marais
Soho Press (Hardcover), July 1999
ISBN-10: 1-56947-159-2 (1569471592)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-159-3 (9781569471593)
Murder in Belleville
Soho Press (Hardcover), October 2000
ISBN-10: 1-56947-211-4 (1569472114)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-211-8 (9781569472118)
Murder in the Sentier
Soho Press (Hardcover), April 2002
ISBN-10: 1-56947-278-5 (1569472785)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-278-1 (9781569472781)
Murder in the Bastille
Soho Press (Hardcover), April 2003
ISBN-10: 1-56947-324-2 (1569473242)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-324-5 (9781569473245)
Murder in Montmartre
Soho Press (Hardcover), March 2006
ISBN-10: 1-56947-410-9 (1569474109)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-410-5 (9781569474105)
Murder on the Saint-Louis
Soho Press (Hardcover), January 2007
ISBN-10: 1-56947-444-3 (1569474443)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-444-0 (9781569474440)
Murder in the Rue de Paradis
Soho Press (Hardcover), March 2008
ISBN-10: 1-56947-474-5 (1569474745)
7ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-474-7 (9781569474747)
Omnimystery keywords for Murder in the Rue de Paradis ...
Location(s) referenced: Paris.