A good sleuth is hard to come by, and intelligent and unpredictable Aimée Leduc prides herself on being one of the best. This Parisian private investigator returns to star in author Cara Black’s new noir mystery Murder Below Montparnasse, a tale teeming with complicated characters, mysterious plot twists and appealing escapades. Set in a colorful Parisian neighborhood in the last years of the 20th century and told with snatches of French dialogue interspersed throughout, Murder Below Montparnasse follows Leduc as she uncovers high-stakes art theft and dabbles in revolutionary politics.
Contracted to guard a famous portrait of Lenin only to discover it has gone missing and the contractor has been murdered, Aimée finds herself caught up in more than she can handle, including a blood vendetta and a buried Soviet secret. Dangerous people come out of the woodwork to threaten her and her colleagues and only Aimée can find the painting, stop the attackers and solve the murder. There are a lot of plotlines for one story, but this mystery is filled with enough consistently entertaining adventures to keep things moving at a quick pace.
Black is the author of 11 books in the bestselling Aimée Leduc series. Her first novel, Murder in the Marais, was nominated for an Anthony Award for best first novel. Black was born in Chicago and educated at San Francisco State University. She will speak at Mystery One Bookstore on Tuesday, April 2, at 5 p.m. and at Boswell Book Co. that evening at 7 p.m.
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