This was an impulse purchase during a recent visit to a favourite bookshop in Victoria. I was looking for something light, a new-to-me mystery series in the vein of the Lane Winslow books by Iona Whishaw. Something about the shape of the book and the style of the cover, as well as the praise on the cover from the Winnipeg Free Press drew me to this one.
Bruno is the chief of police in the small Dordogne town of St. Denis. His daily duties include resolving conflicts between stalls at the local market, investigating troublesome neighbours, and generally keeping the peace in a peaceful place. He’s also in charge of facilitating major town events like the annual parades for key French historical holidays, which bring the diverse community together and exemplify egalité and fraternité that France is about. It is after one such patriotic event that a horrific murder takes place, turning Bruno’s peaceful days upside down. Other significant crimes and less peaceful activities are uncovered, all leading to revelations about the complicated and violent past of St. Denis and its denizens.
I loved this book. The characters are well thought out, complex without being farcical, and each have their own features and flaws. There is sufficient development to be engaging, while also leaving the reader looking forward to the next instalment in the series. The crime itself is resolved in a plausible way, involving exploration of little know histories of France and the region while also reflecting the modern integrated society and its ongoing tensions.
There is also lots of food. The region is not as well-known as others for its food and wine, but that doesn’t make it any less mouth-watering. As described in a review, the region seems to deliberately strive for a lower profile in order to keep its traditions intact and the quality of its comestibles consistent with those. It is ironic that the very EU rules that purport to preserve cultures as well as safety often undermine those very things, and the good people of St. Denis quietly and respectfully disagree with those rules, finding their own approach to maintain their delicious and simple ways.
The author is a former journalist and somewhat recent English ex-pat in the Dordogne region, and the people and locations in the book, while fictional, are modeled on his new home and life there. The books have led to increased tourism in the region, a perhaps good thing/bad thing for this quiet part of the world.
I’ll be seeking out more in the series over time. I’m also interested in looking for a comparable series recommended by a fellow book-clubber, so that will also go on the list.
Fate: I’ll be passing this along to another mystery lover.
1 – book with a murder
7 – author’s debut
13 – set somewhere I’ve never been
14 – a name in the title
25 – a new author to me
36 – part of a series
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