Review by Booklist Review
Pryor, author of the Hugo Marston mysteries (as well as two excellent novels about a psychopath named Dominic), launches a new series. This first installment, like the Marston novels, is set in Paris. But this is Paris in 1940, about a month after the German occupation of France. Detective Henri Lefort is not fond of the Germans, and when he's asked to investigate the murder of a German officer who was stabbed in the Louvre, he's not all that keen. Especially since Hitler is due to visit Paris in a week, and the SS wants the case solved by then . . . or else. As he digs into the officer's death, he realizes this is no ordinary murder. Pryor has constructed a compelling wartime mystery, and he's made 1940 Paris a vividly real place, much as Cara Black did in Three Hours in Paris (2020). The realism extends to the introduction of real people into the story, including Pablo Picasso and the psychoanalyst Marie Bonaparte, who plays a major supporting role. A fine addition to the ever-growing list of WWII thrillers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Set in 1940 Paris, this uneven series launch from Pryor (the Hugo Marston series) introduces Insp. Henri Lefort, who soon after the Germans occupy the city is called to the home of famous psychoanalyst Marie Bonaparte ("call me Mimi"), to investigate a burglary and a murder. After a quick-witted assessment of the situation, Henri brings the case to a successful conclusion, which catches SS officer Ludwig Vogel's attention. Vogel gives Henri one week to solve the murder of his subordinate, Walter Fischer, who was stabbed to death in the Louvre two days earlier. Should Henri fail to do so, he faces torture at the hands of Vogel. Meanwhile, Henri's angry reaction to certain sounds, such as the crunch of apples being eaten, has intrigued Mimi, who wants to psychoanalyze him. He agrees to this in exchange for parcels of hard-to-get food and wines. Henri's psychoanalysis sessions alternate with the sleuthing. An intriguing setup and fascinating details about life in occupied Paris help make up for the coincidence-heavy plot and some ramshackle pacing caused by the many scene shifts involving Henri's complicated backstory. WWII history buffs may want to have a look. Agent: Ann Collette, Rees Literary. (Aug.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Narrator P. J. Ochlan impressively portrays the international cast of characters in this thought-provoking World War II thriller, the first in a new series from Pryor, a defense attorney and author of the Hugo Marston series. Ochlan is magnificent as Pryor's protagonist, the cynical and somewhat cheeky Paris police detective Henri Lefort. It is July 1940, and Lefort's crankiness is justified as Nazis have overtaken his beloved Paris, and he now reports to German officers. Still haunted by his traumatic WWI experiences, Lefort can barely maintain civility toward his German associates, especially after he is threatened with severe punishment if he cannot solve--by himself and in seven days--the murder of a German officer. During the course of his work, Lefort encounters the lively historical figures of Princess Marie (Mimi) Bonaparte, great-grandniece of Napoleon and a psychoanalyst by trade, and artist Pablo Picasso, who stayed in Paris when many other artists and celebrities of means fled. Ochlan creates remarkably distinct personalities for Bonaparte, Picasso, and all of Pryor's other compelling secondary characters. VERDICT Art aficionados, hardboiled detective lovers, and wartime fiction fans should enjoy this audio, especially given Ochlan's amazing performance. Expect listeners to eagerly await the next series installment.--Beth Farrell
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A French detective helps the Nazis find a killer. Even under the heel of the German occupiers, there's plenty of crime in Paris, as Princess Marie Bonaparte, great-grandniece of the emperor himself, learns when she finds her fashionable home ransacked and her servants dead. Police detective Henri Lefort impresses her with his quick wit, which saves her from immediate danger. But much as Henri wants to stay and solve the case for the princess, Roger Langeron, chief of all the police in Paris, has other priorities. Sturmbannführer Jung has asked Lefort and no one else to investigate the death of Hauptman Walter Fischer, the German officer charged with cataloging the Louvre's vast treasures and reassigning them to new homes in Axis-friendly countries. Jung gives Lefort a list of suspects and one week to crack the case, promising that he'll repay failure with unspecified penalties Lefort can only imagine. From this edgy premise, Pryor spins a tale increasingly complex. Nicola, Lefort's assistant, finds a Picasso drawing hidden in the dead man's clothing. Marie Bonaparte, a trained psychoanalyst, bribes Lefort to engage in sessions with her in order to probe his pathological aversion to noise. A reporter shadows Lefort, revealing unexpected news. Suspects produce alibis provided by Picasso himself. The identity of Fischer's murderer is perhaps the least surprising of the many twists and turns this tale of love, hate, and misophonia has on offer. Wheels within wheels power this homage to battles waged without and within. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
