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Aimee Leduc Investigations #10
Murder in the Palais Royal
Just as Aimée is about to leave for New York City to follow up on a lead about a possible younger brother, her partner in Leduc Detective, René Friant, is wounded by a near-fatal gun shot. Eyewitnesses identify Aimée as the culprit. The police have pegged her as the guilty party. Aimée is distraught over René’s condition and horrified to be under suspicion. At the same time, a large, mysterious sum appears in their firm’s bank account, and the tax authorities descend upon Aimée. She has no idea who would have sent this money. It seems that someone is impersonating Aimée, someone who wants revenge. But for what? Two murders ensue. How do they relate to the youth whom Aimée’s testimony sent to jail in the very first Aimée Leduc investigation, Murder in the Marais?
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
92 people are currently reading
750 people want to read
About the author
Cara Black
44 books1,349 followersCara Black frequents a Paris little known outside the beaten tourist track. A Paris she discovers on research trips and interviews with French police, private detectives and café owners. She lives in San Francisco with her husband, a bookseller, and their teenage son. She is a San Francisco Library Laureate and a member of the Paris Sociéte Historique in the Marais. Her nationally bestselling and award nominated Aimée Leduc Investigation series has been translated into French, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, German and Hebrew. She received the Medaille de la Ville de Paris for services to French culture. She's included in the GREAT WOMEN MYSTERY WRITERS by Elizabeth Lindsay 2nd editon published in the UK. Her first three novels in the series MURDER IN THE MARAIS, MURDER IN BELLEVILLE AN MURDER IN THE SENTIER - nominated for an Anthony Award as Best Novel - were published in the UK in 2008 and MURDER IN THE LATIN QUARTER comes out in the UK in 2010. Several of her books have been chosen as BookSense Picks and INDIE NEXT choice by the Amerian Association of Independent Bookstores. The Washington Post listed MURDER IN THE RUE DE PARADIS in the Best Fiction Choices of 2008. MURDER IN THE LATIN QUARTER is a finalist for Best Novel Award from the NCIBA Northern California Independent Booksellers Association.
She is currently working on the next book in the Aimée Leduc series.
She is currently working on the next book in the Aimée Leduc series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 124 reviews
February 5, 2012
Such simplistic writing with an unlikable, narcissistic primary character. I felt like I was reading a book written by a freshman college student who is enamored of her self-appointed francophile expertise.
Don't waste your time with this author.
Don't waste your time with this author.
August 22, 2018
No character depth. Would not recommend this series. Although I usually enjoy mysteries that take place in Paris this one was a dud
January 14, 2024
I have now read a number of the Aimee Leduc series and am still unconvinced that I really like them but still, I come back for the next!
The Murder in the Palais Royal starts in the Leduc Detective office where Rene is working when he is shot and severely wounded. All the indications are that Aimee is the shooter but what are the 100,000 francs in their bank account and why does Nicholas Evry want her to visit him in prison? All this mystery has Aimee one step ahead of the authorities.
Lots of intertwined threads that all seem to lead to different but connected conclusions. Perhaps too many? Aimee is her usual frustrating self as her fashion consciousness sees her rushing after suspects in her high heels and designer outfits. Some of the threads are somewhat tenuous and lots of licence is taken when joining up the evidence. I do like the colourful descriptions of the various historical sites that feature in the story.
A good story, well written, and worth a 3-star rating.
The Murder in the Palais Royal starts in the Leduc Detective office where Rene is working when he is shot and severely wounded. All the indications are that Aimee is the shooter but what are the 100,000 francs in their bank account and why does Nicholas Evry want her to visit him in prison? All this mystery has Aimee one step ahead of the authorities.
Lots of intertwined threads that all seem to lead to different but connected conclusions. Perhaps too many? Aimee is her usual frustrating self as her fashion consciousness sees her rushing after suspects in her high heels and designer outfits. Some of the threads are somewhat tenuous and lots of licence is taken when joining up the evidence. I do like the colourful descriptions of the various historical sites that feature in the story.
A good story, well written, and worth a 3-star rating.
August 10, 2010
MURDER IN THE PALAIS ROYAL begins when Aimee Leduc, sharing some quiet moments with her newest boyfriend, Mathieu, receives a call from her partner, Rene Friant. One hundred thousand francs have been deposited into the Leduc Detective Agency bank account. Regrettably, no one owes them so much money and Rene is afraid Aimee has done something less than legal. A short time later, Rene is shot and Aimee is the principal suspect.
Using her connections at the Surete, Aimee escapes arrest and begins her own investigation, a move that requires she cancel her trip to New York City where she is expecting to meet the brother she never knew she had.
Fans of the series know that, with Aimee, nothing is simple or straightforward, and this adventure is no different. There is another large deposit of money into the Leduc Agency bank account leaving the Agency to be investigated for money laundering, Rene is taken to an undisclosed location to protect him from Aimee, Aimee receives a pass to visit a man who is in prison as a result of Aimee’s testimony about the burning of a synagogue, a contact is murdered seconds before she and Aimee meet, and a man with a brilliant future in politics finds that future in jeopardy. There is some blackmail thrown in to make sure readers aren’t bored and, just maybe, Aimee’s long missing mother might have a hand in her problems.
Readers are never bored by Cara Black’s series. Aimee lives a charmed life in so many ways. She invariably finds herself in tunnels or on rooftops but she is rarely out of breath and she has enviable good luck in finding couture fashions in rummage sales. The stories move as fast as Aimee and each book offers the reader a taste of the arrondissements (sounds so much better than zip codes) that make up the city of Paris.
Rene Friant, her business partner, Commissaire Morbier, her godfather, and a few girlfriends are the constants in Aimee’s life as they are constants in the 10 books of the series. I always think that it is best to start a series at the beginning but the author has constructed the series so well that new readers can jump in anywhere and enjoy the story to the full.
Those who are familiar with Cara Black’s series already know they are in for another treat. Those who haven’t yet met Aimee should hurry to do so.
Using her connections at the Surete, Aimee escapes arrest and begins her own investigation, a move that requires she cancel her trip to New York City where she is expecting to meet the brother she never knew she had.
Fans of the series know that, with Aimee, nothing is simple or straightforward, and this adventure is no different. There is another large deposit of money into the Leduc Agency bank account leaving the Agency to be investigated for money laundering, Rene is taken to an undisclosed location to protect him from Aimee, Aimee receives a pass to visit a man who is in prison as a result of Aimee’s testimony about the burning of a synagogue, a contact is murdered seconds before she and Aimee meet, and a man with a brilliant future in politics finds that future in jeopardy. There is some blackmail thrown in to make sure readers aren’t bored and, just maybe, Aimee’s long missing mother might have a hand in her problems.
Readers are never bored by Cara Black’s series. Aimee lives a charmed life in so many ways. She invariably finds herself in tunnels or on rooftops but she is rarely out of breath and she has enviable good luck in finding couture fashions in rummage sales. The stories move as fast as Aimee and each book offers the reader a taste of the arrondissements (sounds so much better than zip codes) that make up the city of Paris.
Rene Friant, her business partner, Commissaire Morbier, her godfather, and a few girlfriends are the constants in Aimee’s life as they are constants in the 10 books of the series. I always think that it is best to start a series at the beginning but the author has constructed the series so well that new readers can jump in anywhere and enjoy the story to the full.
Those who are familiar with Cara Black’s series already know they are in for another treat. Those who haven’t yet met Aimee should hurry to do so.
May 31, 2012
I really enjoyed my 10th Aimee Leduc mystery a lot. Aimee, the quirky Paris private detective is spending the night having sex with a married man (who she does not know is married with a kid and in marital counseling with his wife) She is planning to leave the next day for New York to meet with a detective her godfather the flic (cop) Morbier set her up with to investigate a possible brother. Her mother abandoned Aimee and her flic father when Aimee was only 8 to become a 1970's radical and Aimee receives two letters claiming to be from a brother who is on the run with their mother.
Before her sexcapades with the married guy, her partner Rene Friant, a dwarf who is a computer genius calls from the office asking why a huge deposit from out of the country has mysteriously shown up in their business account. Aimee tells him she'll swing by later to look into it.
Someone dressed in clothes just like Aimee wears comes into the office with a scooter helmet like hers , gets her gun from the desk, and shoots Rene. When the hospital calls Aimee, she rushes there and spends the night. The next day, she finds herself to be the suspect.
Things continue to get worse. A tough flic Melac is handling her case and giving her no slack. The married guy gives the police a lie about being with his wife and not even knowing Aimee so there goes her alibi. Other pieces of evidence point to her and Rene thinks she is the one who shot him.
While trying to find out who really did shoot Rene and framed her, she gets involved with a prisoner she sent to prison who is murdered but made to look like a suicide, his pregnant girlfriend who is in to blackmail, and a government minister who along with her husband and son have a LOT to cover up. Of course Aimee finds dead bodies along the way, comes face to face with a killer, survives an explosion, and the usual weird things that happen to her. Why did an old Jewish couple get run over in front of their 3 year old great-grandson? Who really bombed the synagogue? Who were the mysterious people the detective in New York was talking to who wanted him to lure Aimee to the USA? Worse of all-how will Aimee clear herself and pay the rent and for food when the government has frozen the bank accounts pending an investigation about the mysterious money showing up in them and she has no other money?
Read and find out.
Before her sexcapades with the married guy, her partner Rene Friant, a dwarf who is a computer genius calls from the office asking why a huge deposit from out of the country has mysteriously shown up in their business account. Aimee tells him she'll swing by later to look into it.
Someone dressed in clothes just like Aimee wears comes into the office with a scooter helmet like hers , gets her gun from the desk, and shoots Rene. When the hospital calls Aimee, she rushes there and spends the night. The next day, she finds herself to be the suspect.
Things continue to get worse. A tough flic Melac is handling her case and giving her no slack. The married guy gives the police a lie about being with his wife and not even knowing Aimee so there goes her alibi. Other pieces of evidence point to her and Rene thinks she is the one who shot him.
While trying to find out who really did shoot Rene and framed her, she gets involved with a prisoner she sent to prison who is murdered but made to look like a suicide, his pregnant girlfriend who is in to blackmail, and a government minister who along with her husband and son have a LOT to cover up. Of course Aimee finds dead bodies along the way, comes face to face with a killer, survives an explosion, and the usual weird things that happen to her. Why did an old Jewish couple get run over in front of their 3 year old great-grandson? Who really bombed the synagogue? Who were the mysterious people the detective in New York was talking to who wanted him to lure Aimee to the USA? Worse of all-how will Aimee clear herself and pay the rent and for food when the government has frozen the bank accounts pending an investigation about the mysterious money showing up in them and she has no other money?
Read and find out.
October 30, 2013
I think Gwen picked this book as well--it had the word "Royal" in it.
Important thing to note when reading a detective novel set in Paris...do not just have a discussion that night about the Pink Panther movies. Seriously, for the first 100 pages, I kept picturing every single French police officer as Chief Inspector Dreyfus and the main character Aimee as Clouseau. Didn't help that the roommate person was name Chloe--way too close to Cato.
I get why people read mysteries. They are like mind-candy. You can read them without taking a breath. Total escapism entertainment without annoying "omigosh will he ever ask me out" crap. So that's good.
So yeah this book is fun, and I actively enjoyed it. When I turned the last page (oh my gosh, did this book read fast), I was rather pleased to see that this is the tenth book with Aimee as the lead character--I bet I could read a couple more of these without feeling horribly guilty or having my intelligence insulted.
Sure that's not glowing praise, but it's good enough for four stars...after all, don't just fun enjoyable reads need stars too?
Important thing to note when reading a detective novel set in Paris...do not just have a discussion that night about the Pink Panther movies. Seriously, for the first 100 pages, I kept picturing every single French police officer as Chief Inspector Dreyfus and the main character Aimee as Clouseau. Didn't help that the roommate person was name Chloe--way too close to Cato.
I get why people read mysteries. They are like mind-candy. You can read them without taking a breath. Total escapism entertainment without annoying "omigosh will he ever ask me out" crap. So that's good.
So yeah this book is fun, and I actively enjoyed it. When I turned the last page (oh my gosh, did this book read fast), I was rather pleased to see that this is the tenth book with Aimee as the lead character--I bet I could read a couple more of these without feeling horribly guilty or having my intelligence insulted.
Sure that's not glowing praise, but it's good enough for four stars...after all, don't just fun enjoyable reads need stars too?
August 6, 2016
I really looked forward to trying this series of mysteries set in Paris. Maybe it was because I started with the 10th in the series, but I thought the plot was convoluted while the author tried to patch together two relatively unrelated stories. Also, I found the main character, Aimee, somewhat annoying; bad taste in men, often wearing outfits or shoes that interfered with her investigations, e.g., she wore high heels when she knew she was going to be on the move. And if she used the word 'flics' one more time, I was going to scream. The fact that some of the police who'd known her for a while actually thought that was involved in the shooting of her longtime partner (happens early, not a spoiler) seemed absolutely ridiculous. There were a few inconsistencies, most notable was when Aimee returns to a building and enters one of the rooms, even tho the building had been demolished by a bomb earlier that day...
February 1, 2014
Paris is the background; and the investigator is French. Supposedly. I am unconvinced. It takes more than guidebook details to convince me this is Paris and more than random French nouns to convince me Aimée thinks like a Frenchwoman.
And it is not so much a mystery as an action novel in which facts are revealed bit by bit. I have no sense of the investigator really figuring anything out. She just keeps moving to the next set-up where she learns something new.
I kept thinking of Simenon's Maigret novels in which I feel as if I am taken into the heart of a neighborhood and of a community, with real people and relationships. I am going to dig out some of my old Simenon, I think.
I am sick and I have three of Cara Black's novels from the library, so I am reading another one right now. It is passing the time.
And it is not so much a mystery as an action novel in which facts are revealed bit by bit. I have no sense of the investigator really figuring anything out. She just keeps moving to the next set-up where she learns something new.
I kept thinking of Simenon's Maigret novels in which I feel as if I am taken into the heart of a neighborhood and of a community, with real people and relationships. I am going to dig out some of my old Simenon, I think.
I am sick and I have three of Cara Black's novels from the library, so I am reading another one right now. It is passing the time.
November 11, 2010
Just a quick summary: The beginning was horrible and choppy. The middle 150 pages were okay and a decent read. Then ending was not believable...at all.
On American TV crime shows, there is always an episode where we are suppose to believe that "one of their own is accused" and helps the team investigate the crime to clear his/her name. This would never happen in real life and we are suppose to believe it here.
Will her mother just show up for God's sake. Enough already.
I refuse to give this series high stars just because "it's Paris"!
On American TV crime shows, there is always an episode where we are suppose to believe that "one of their own is accused" and helps the team investigate the crime to clear his/her name. This would never happen in real life and we are suppose to believe it here.
Will her mother just show up for God's sake. Enough already.
I refuse to give this series high stars just because "it's Paris"!
December 4, 2010
I confess to some jealousy that I did not think of writing a series like this first. Having said that, the plot was merely overly complicated without any sense of design, the dialogue seemsed very forced and often confusing, and the characters one-dimensional and unbelievable, especially the heroine. Who, even in France, wears a vintage designer blouse on a stakeout, or worries about a stain on it when someone's trying to kill you?
And, having lived in Paris for 12 years, I also know you can't see the Pont Neuf from inside Le Chien Qui Fume restaurant.
And, having lived in Paris for 12 years, I also know you can't see the Pont Neuf from inside Le Chien Qui Fume restaurant.
July 23, 2015
This is the first book in the series I've read. It may not be the best representative. I can't believe that a professional private eye can be so dangerously confrontational--just going up to people and accusing them of murder one after another and doing it is scary dark places. And she did all of this while under suspicion of murder herself. I'm really not sure why she didn't have more trouble with the police. The story was complicated, but not all that satisfying. I can see others rating it higher, but it wasn't my cup of tea.
March 15, 2016
Poor Aimee...who was impersonating her? Who was trying to make the police think that she had committed a crime against her partner? And why? Throughout the book, Aimee tries to determine who is trying to set her up for a murder and why there is a large amount of money placed into her bank account. As various things happen that get her in hot water, she continues to find more and more that connects certain individuals to the shooting of her partner and the depositing of the money into her business account. This was a great book and it kept me reading until I was finished.
September 30, 2017
Murder in the Palais Royal was a fast paced book and would sometimes leave you wanting to read more , other times it would make you want to close the book because of how uninteresting it would be. This book mostly made me feel like not wanting to read, it was very confusing and I had to go back in the book and check what was going on. I thought this book was not so great and would not recommend this book , I read every page and I was not wow'd at all. For example when Aimee finally found out something about Clemence , I already saw something like that coming.
October 22, 2012
My 1st of Cara Black's Aimee Leduc Parisian PI stories that I picked up in a church thrift store in NYC..usually choose to start with the earliest written of a series...this is the 11th.
Didn't like the breathless pacing of this story nor the complexity of the plot and couldn't quite
warm to Aimee. May try an earlier story in the future.
Didn't like the breathless pacing of this story nor the complexity of the plot and couldn't quite
warm to Aimee. May try an earlier story in the future.
July 30, 2010
It pains me to give this two stars because I like the series and love the descriptions of Paris. But the plot of this one seemed thin and I found myself wishing Aimee's mother would just show up already.
September 3, 2012
My first time to read this author/series and I was not overly entertained, sadly. I picked up a few insights into French culture and Parisian locales but the mystery wasn't that interesting. Perhaps the upcoming discussion will change my opinion if Black has any fans in the group....
August 27, 2016
I wanted to like this more (a mystery set in Paris, what's not to love?), but the dialogue didn't ring true and the story was just okay. Aimee is a likable enough heroine so I may give another a try someday.
September 7, 2016
Maybe one has to read this series in order, but I never had enough info to formulate a theory as to whodunnit. Just meh.
October 20, 2019
I would have liked to start closer to the beginning of the series, but this was the earliest one the library had. I enjoyed the descriptions of Paris; was not enamoured with the characters.
July 27, 2021
Another awful book with a repulsive completely hate-able heroine. Of course, with her pitiful taste in men, she goes to bed with one who is married with a kid and who (like any sane man) would pretend not to know her, though he's gross enough to have sex with her.
Her business partner gets shot, and she first wonders what he has done to anger anyone, when she does nothing but piss people off with her chronic lying and selfishness. Of course, as usual, someone got shot and many more get killed because they know this stupid woman. And yet somehow this dumb man is loyal to a woman constantly lying and screwing him over and saddling him with all the work.
10 books in and the main character is still too dumb to carry a pen, still covering her eyeliners with germs from every kind of surface imaginable.
10 books in and now we learn she is so attractive that she is mistaken for a model. Please!
And every dialogue is the exact same interaction with a slight change. "Oh, I have to try one last thing!" and, what a surprise, it is always successful, this "last attempt."
Oh, and of course she "drooled over" the body parts of a dead ostrich fashioned into gloves. This was before she slathered herself with a dead cow (jacket), dead goat (cashmere) and dead sheep (wool) all in the same sentence. as I have mentioned before, this character is so selfish, that everywhere she goes she kills people and other animals and then whines about her pathetic life and tries to find a mother smart enough to run away, but dumb enough to have had her, her (maybe) sister, and her (maybe) brother.
Really, this author lacks any creativity. This annoying character spends practically every book looking for some possible family member she just heard about. So boring and typical for this series.
Okay, so the building blows up and she flies to high heaven and is at the very least on the second floor, likely more, but is fine and allowed to go back into the building and nothing happened to her apartment even though the floor above was filled with gas!!!!
And she's upset a shirt got ruined while someone is trying to kill her!
And, she outran a man in stiletto heels! Oh, and yet another dumb thing, the author decided that the character can get shot and blown up and hit over the head and not generally be bothered much, but we have to read about a stupid stubbed toe all throughout this stupid book. with the way she carried on about that, she should have gone to the hospital.
Oh, and she treats her godfather so awfully that it's a wonder he doesn't shoot her himself.
And her dog is still eating horses, living fine without ever getting fed (except once every book in a (don't forget) CHIPPED bowl or given water or walked.
Finally, Aimee didn't pinch her cheeks "for color" this book, but she put on a jacket "for warmth." Wow, so glad Cara told us why Aimee did this, otherwise i would have thought it was a fashionable bulletproof vest/jacket combo.
And finally, of course, as in every book, she skanks off into the sunset with yet another idiot man. Is this one a neo-Nazi too like in the first book in this series? She doesn't care. If he's attracted to her despite how gross she is, she's willing to overlook everything.
The best thing that could happen to this series would be for someone to successfully kill the main character. It's certainly way overdue.
Her business partner gets shot, and she first wonders what he has done to anger anyone, when she does nothing but piss people off with her chronic lying and selfishness. Of course, as usual, someone got shot and many more get killed because they know this stupid woman. And yet somehow this dumb man is loyal to a woman constantly lying and screwing him over and saddling him with all the work.
10 books in and the main character is still too dumb to carry a pen, still covering her eyeliners with germs from every kind of surface imaginable.
10 books in and now we learn she is so attractive that she is mistaken for a model. Please!
And every dialogue is the exact same interaction with a slight change. "Oh, I have to try one last thing!" and, what a surprise, it is always successful, this "last attempt."
Oh, and of course she "drooled over" the body parts of a dead ostrich fashioned into gloves. This was before she slathered herself with a dead cow (jacket), dead goat (cashmere) and dead sheep (wool) all in the same sentence. as I have mentioned before, this character is so selfish, that everywhere she goes she kills people and other animals and then whines about her pathetic life and tries to find a mother smart enough to run away, but dumb enough to have had her, her (maybe) sister, and her (maybe) brother.
Really, this author lacks any creativity. This annoying character spends practically every book looking for some possible family member she just heard about. So boring and typical for this series.
Okay, so the building blows up and she flies to high heaven and is at the very least on the second floor, likely more, but is fine and allowed to go back into the building and nothing happened to her apartment even though the floor above was filled with gas!!!!
And she's upset a shirt got ruined while someone is trying to kill her!
And, she outran a man in stiletto heels! Oh, and yet another dumb thing, the author decided that the character can get shot and blown up and hit over the head and not generally be bothered much, but we have to read about a stupid stubbed toe all throughout this stupid book. with the way she carried on about that, she should have gone to the hospital.
Oh, and she treats her godfather so awfully that it's a wonder he doesn't shoot her himself.
And her dog is still eating horses, living fine without ever getting fed (except once every book in a (don't forget) CHIPPED bowl or given water or walked.
Finally, Aimee didn't pinch her cheeks "for color" this book, but she put on a jacket "for warmth." Wow, so glad Cara told us why Aimee did this, otherwise i would have thought it was a fashionable bulletproof vest/jacket combo.
And finally, of course, as in every book, she skanks off into the sunset with yet another idiot man. Is this one a neo-Nazi too like in the first book in this series? She doesn't care. If he's attracted to her despite how gross she is, she's willing to overlook everything.
The best thing that could happen to this series would be for someone to successfully kill the main character. It's certainly way overdue.
August 3, 2017
Want to take a quick trip to Paris, completely free of charge? (Or if you choose, for the purchase price of a book.) Read any of the Amy Leduc Investigations books by Cara Black and you'll be transported to the City of Light. Black peppers her writing with French words and phrases (I kept my iPhone beside me for translation purposes) and Amy herself is "tres" French, from her Byte-me Blue lacquered nails and her Tintin watch down to her high end designer stilettos, Amy is a Parisian through and through. In this outing her partner Rene has been shot...by Amy? Someone looking very much like Amy barges into the Leduc offices and shoots Rene with Amy's gun. Amy herself is quickly arrested and must figure out a way to extricate herself from the police while also investigating what turns out to be a complicated case with many twists and turns and a whole lot of extremely French characters. Immersing myself in this book really was like a mini-trip to Paris and was a nice break from heavier reading.
November 20, 2017
So I decided to catch up on the Cara Black mysteries (Aimée Leduc/René Friant the recurring characters) in between the books I read for my two book groups.... just need a mystery fix, I guess. I have five more in the pile. This one, Murder in the Palais Royal, had several threads going at once, all of which you think are connected, and some are, but confusion is part and parcel of the whole book! Aimée's partner at Leduc Detective is attacked and shot in their offices just after he's called her to ask about a huge wire transfer into their accounts which is mysterious but also triggers investigation by the fiscal authorities. Aimée is suspected of the attack and spends the book trying to figure out who impersonated her to do such a dastardly deed. In the mix is a young man incarcerated at the Prison de la Santé who is there largely due t Aimée's testimonies some years earlier. The ancillary characters are all pretty cool, too, and the read is fun. I'm on to the next later today, my first day not working at When Pigs Fly in over a week. And Thanksgiving is only three days away!!
December 13, 2017
I liked this next Aimee Leduc story immediately. From the opening pages all the way to the last. Two mysteries actually in one book. All emanating from Aimee being falsely accused of shooting her partner Rene in the opening pages.
It was fascinating how Aimee, in her various vintage outfits and high-heels, continues to pick at crumbs and lose threads and manages to solve all her problems. And I love all the characters, esp the newer recurring Saj in his laid back Buddhist ways. It is refreshing to continue to read thus series and enjoy Aimee’s tenacity and loyalty and vulnerability towards her life, her long list alive mother, and now, the possibility of a long lost half-brother.
I look forward to the next book in the series and hope Ms Black continues to write abt Aimee’s adventures in her cyber fraud agency and Paris arrondishments.
It was fascinating how Aimee, in her various vintage outfits and high-heels, continues to pick at crumbs and lose threads and manages to solve all her problems. And I love all the characters, esp the newer recurring Saj in his laid back Buddhist ways. It is refreshing to continue to read thus series and enjoy Aimee’s tenacity and loyalty and vulnerability towards her life, her long list alive mother, and now, the possibility of a long lost half-brother.
I look forward to the next book in the series and hope Ms Black continues to write abt Aimee’s adventures in her cyber fraud agency and Paris arrondishments.
October 26, 2018
Cara Black is a good writer overall. However, I found this book to be over long and found myself yelling at it several times, "Get to the point!". Too much detail makes it difficult to keep track of the characters plus the French comments, though short, might not appeal to everyone. (I liked it but then I know some basic French. Not fluent!)
I liked the idea of reading about places in France by someone who knows them, since I will never go there myself. Ms Black is French and her writing style is not my favorite. I'm not sure I'll read her work again. Maybe.
I liked the idea of reading about places in France by someone who knows them, since I will never go there myself. Ms Black is French and her writing style is not my favorite. I'm not sure I'll read her work again. Maybe.
May 8, 2020
Parisian PI Aimée Leduc's partner, René Friant, has been shot, and Aimée herself is accused of the crime. In addition, a large amount of money has mysteriously appeared in the agency bank account, prompting a tax investigation, and a young man Aimée helped pack off to jail for anti-immigrant activities demands to see her, but then ends up an apparent suicide. Aimée's follow-up of the convicted man's death (even as she tries to clear her name and figure out who really shot René) leads her straight into the hate-filled terrain of neo-Nazi agitation and Les Blancs Nationaux.
September 24, 2018
Another Aimeé Leduc adventure. I have nothing negative to say, pure reading pleasure. The vivid descriptions of the Paris landscape enhance the mystery and main character’s likability. I have read a lot 10 of these and hope the series continues. I don’t think it is particularly important to read them in any order, as long as you like the characters it is imteresting to see what they are up to in each book.
April 6, 2021
3.5 stars! I think this was my favorite one so far. And I really liked how it ended. I cannot get a read on Morbier though. He has so much up his sleeve, I have no idea what he's planning, is he going to turn out to be a bad guy after all? Just trying to do his job? I can't tell what's up with him. I'm excited to read the next one.
August 15, 2021
I've read one other book in this series, and so when I saw this in a used book shop in Longmont, I decided to buy it. I think this series is just not for me. I'm not sure why--if it's the characters, the plot, the pacing, or maybe all three. I believe it's a much admired series, so I'm attributing my indifference to it to personal taste.
What I enjoyed the most was the Paris setting!
What I enjoyed the most was the Paris setting!
April 14, 2024
A friend recommended this as a series I might want to check out. While well written with a surprise, at least for me, twist at the end, quite frankly I was bored. Paris and it's environs just didn't make up for the pacing and the heroine and I would not be sharing a cafe au lait. Still check it out as this is a well known author. As for me I'll just keep strolling down the boulevard.
August 11, 2021
Aimee is about to fly to New York to meet a private investigator and find out what happened to her brother. But she is set up and told to stay in France. The police think that she tried to murder her partner, Rene. Somehow she is able to discover what really happened. Quite entertaining read.
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