Death in the Dordogne: The Dordogne Mysteries 1

Description

An unwelcome delegation from Paris causes upset in St Denis, but is it really cause for murder? The first installment in the acclaimed and internationally bestselling BRUNO, CHIEF OF POLICE series. 'Hugely enjoyable and absolutely gripping. Martin Walker has got off to a flying start in what promises to be a great series. Bruno will be the Maigret of the Dordogne' Antony Beevor Introducing Captain Bruno Courreges: he goes by the grand title of Chief of Police, though in truth he's the only municipal policeman in the small town of St Denis in the Perigord, south-west France. Bruno sees his job as protecting St Denis from its enemies, and these sometimes include the capital's bureaucrats and their EU counterparts in Brussels. Market day in the ancient town. Inspectors from Brussels have been swooping on France's markets, attempting to enforce EU hygiene rules. The locals call the Brussels bureaucrats 'Gestapo' and Bruno supports their resistance. Although, here in what was Vichy France, words like 'Gestapo' and 'resistance' still carry a profound resonance. When an old man, head of an immigrant North African family, is found murdered, suspicion falls on the son of the local doctor, found in flagrante playing sex games surrounded by Nazi paraphernalia. But Bruno isn't convinced, and suspects this crime may have its roots in that most tortured period of recent French history - the Second World War, a time of terror and betrayal that set brother against brother. Now it's up to him to find the killer - but will the people of St Denis allow him to go digging through the past in order to do it?

Martin Walker is a prize-winning journalist and the author of several acclaimed works of non-fiction, including The Cold War: A History. He lives in the Dordogne and Washington, DC.

Hugely enjoyable and absolutely gripping... the Maigret of the Dordogne -- Antony Beevor A satisfyingly intriguing, wish-you-were-there read * Guardian * Hugely enjoyable and absolutely gripping. Martin Walker has got off to a flying start in what promises to be a great series. Bruno will be the Maigret of the Dordogne -- Antony Beevor It's beguiling, evocative and utterly wonderful. it also made me very hungry . . . the Alexander McCall Smith of La France Profonde -- Francis Wheen The selling point of this delightful book is its setting in the legendary France profonde . . . Walker brings to life both a complete community and the chief of police who is its protector, teacher and friend. This book's ingredients are combined as carefully as Bruno's good meals * Literary Review * Has many of the characteristics of Golden Age novels, above all the apparently remote setting which reveals its involvement in wider events. Martin Walker's Dordogne is worth a visit * Times Literary Supplement * The pleasures of life in the Dordogne, some distinctive well-rounded characters and an intriguing mystery are a winning combination . . . one of the most enjoyable books I've read in a long time * Telegraph * [Death on the Dordogne] may be a gentle book but it does not pull its punches. It is well-written, introducing a charming, likeable main character: a satisfying detective story; and conveying a strong love and understanding of the Dordogne region of France * Eurocrime * Deftly dark, mesmerizing, and totally engaging * French Embassy *