The Unwanted Dead

Eddie Giral #1

by Chris Lloyd

Paris im Juni 1940, Einmarsch der Deutschen Wehrmacht. Inspecteur Eddie Giral, traumatisiert vom Ersten Weltkrieg und mit Leib und Seele Polizist, will gegen alle Widerstände den Mord an vier polnischen Geflüchteten und den Selbstmord eines weiteren Polen aufklären. Die Todesfälle scheinen miteinander in Verbindung zu stehen und ein besonderes Interesse der Wehrmacht zu wecken. Auch die Résistance ist involviert. Um die Morde aufzuklären, muss Giral mal mit der einen, mal der anderen Gruppe paktieren und wird dabei in einen Strudel von Ereignissen gezogen, die er nicht mehr kontrollieren kann.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Thriller, Fiction, Historical, France, Historical Mystery

464 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 17, 2020

About the author

After graduating in Spanish and French, I lived in Catalonia, where I worked in educational publishing and as a travel writer and translator. I’ve also lived in Grenoble, researching the French Resistance movement.

The result of my lifelong interest in World War 2 and resistance and collaboration in Occupied France, The Unwanted Dead (Orion) is my first novel set in Paris, featuring Detective Eddie Giral. I’m also the author of the Elisenda Domènech crime series (Canelo), featuring a police officer with the newly-devolved Catalan police force.

Reviews

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the day the Germans invaded Paris - 14th June 1940, four men (thought to be Polish refugees) were found gassed in a railway truck, and across the city, there were people so desperate, and unable to see a future, that they ended up taking the ultimate and tragic step of committing suicide. One of these was another Polish refugee, Fryderyk Gorecki, who stepped off his balcony, falling to the pavement below, and sadly, his death turns out to be even more heartbreaking than it already was.

Paris police detective, Eddie Giral is determined to find out who killed the men in the railway truck, and why, and he also wants to track down any next of kin of the Polish refugee Fryderyk.

Giral is very much your old school detective, and gives scant regard to orders given by the occupying German officers, indeed he takes much joy in treating them with disdain, and taking pleasure in acts of defiance - quite a brave yet dangerous attitude to take, and he doesn’t come out of it unscathed, but of course it makes him immensely likeable!

Giral is a professional, though not always ethical cop, however, his tenacity is to be applauded, and he has a wicked sense of humour, but he also has a dark and unpredictable side - a result of the shell shock that he still suffers after serving in the First World War.

Giral’s search for answers is conducted among so many lies and distortions, against a background of a city trying to adjust to a new normal, under German rule, its citizens’ liberty savagely curtailed. And it results in him being caught between doing his job and trying to remain true to himself, while around him circulate his colleagues (both good and bad) the resistance, foreign journalists and the German establishment made up of the army, the Gestapo and the SS.

Though fictional, The Unwanted Dead does have its basis in fact, which makes the reading of it even more harrowing, and, with a closing chapter that finally brings some long awaited answers, it’s a conclusion that you may find difficult to read, and even more difficult to forget.

Well written, well researched and highly recommended.

* Thank you to Netgalley and Orion for an ARC. I have given an honest unbiased review in exchange *

[Paromjit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris Lloyd's WW2 historical fiction is set in Paris from the moment in June 1940 that German occupation forces arrived, a city that so many Parisians have fled, leaving behind only the elderly, the poor and the desperate. Many commit suicide, unable to face life under Nazi rule, the streets are empty, a virtual ghost town as the Germans impose a curfew. Detective Edouard 'Eddie' Giral, is a survivor of WW1 whose life was destroyed, war which makes strangers of us all, living a life he accords no value to, constantly entertaining thoughts of ending it all. He finds himself observed by German soldiers, at a crime scene at a railway yard, where four Polish refugees have been discovered tortuously gassed to death, one victim from Bydgoszcz, a town in Poland.

It is soon clear that Giral is not going to be able to conduct a normal police murder investigation amidst the chaos and new order of the Germans taking hold of the reins of power, establishing control, such as imposing Berlin time. Commissioner Dax becomes only a nominal police chief, their guns being removed initially, although they are returned eventually. The police are overseen by an Abwehr officer, Major Hochstetter, who takes a close interest in a determined Giral intent on looking into the murder of the Polish refugees. By what seems to be an apparent coincidence, Giral finds himself outside a hotel and the tragic suicide of the Polish Frederyk Goreski, who had stepped off a balcony with his young son, Jan, sheltered in his coat. Goreski was from Bydgoszcz as well, and despite being an impoverished refugee, had acquired a safe which strangely contains only 3 books, whilst his passport is carelessly left outside in the flat, all of which makes little sense to Giral.

In a narrative that includes a strand from 1925, where Eddie's life with his wife, Sylvie, and young son, Jean-Luc is falling apart, Eddie tries to protect his son, getting beaten up and assaulted constantly, tangling with the murderous Gestapo who are not supposed to be in Paris, becoming close to an American journalist. He remains relentless in pursuing his inquiries into the death of the Polish refugees and what lay behind Goreski's despairing suicide, but is unable to avoid being caught up in German machinations, the different factions and the rivalries between them. This is a wonderful historical read with its blend of fact and fiction, set in a atmospheric wartime Paris with its famous landmarks, jazz clubs and cafes that Lloyd evokes beautifully. Giral makes for a fascinating protagonist, a man with severe PTSD, who cares little if he lives or dies, volatile, estranged from his French soldier son but desperate to protect him, irrespective of the cost to him. Many readers who love their historical fiction set in WW2 will find this a terrifically appealing novel. Many thanks to Orion for an ARC.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a crime novel with an interesting setting. It begins on the 14th June, 1940, the very day that the German army reached Paris and occupied the city. Detective Eddie Giral is a WWI veteran, who is still damaged from his time in the trenches. With Paris overrun with German troops, he is sent to investigate four dead men in a railway yard and then a man, his young son wrapped in his coat, who steps off a balcony and kills himself. He finds a link – the suicide and, at least one of the men in the railway, came from Bydgoszcz in Poland.

Of course, Giral’s investigation is hampered by the German’s. Commissioner Dax is in charge in name only and the French police force have their guns first removed, then returned. Giral is overseen by Major Hochstetter, who involves himself in the two cases that he is investigating. Meanwhile, Giral’s son, who he has not seen for fifteen years, suddenly appears and complicates Giral’s life still more. Giral is a man beset by demons, who flirts with death and violence. He has immense guilt for what he sees as his failure as a husband, and his father, and does his best to keep his son out of trouble.

I do enjoy novels set in the Second World War and I found the setting of occupied Paris an interesting one. Should this become a series, there are some good characters, including Kate Ronson, an American journalist, and Major Hochstetter, who worked really well. He was urbane and charming, but it is obvious who is in charge and not all of Giral’s colleagues resent the Germans equally. The author explores all of those political affiliations; of those who resisted the occupation and those who collaborated, as well as many Parisians left behind – many elderly - who simply wanted to survive. A good novel and, hopefully, the first in a series. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGally, for review.

[8stitches 9lives · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Unwanted Dead is an intriguing and gripping police procedural, set against the backdrop of Nazi-occupied Paris in 1940. The first instalment in a brand new historical crime series, it is centred around the murders of four Polish refugees slain on June 14 in a railway siding, the day the Germans invaded and occupied Paris. Enter Detective Eddie Giral, an individual weighed down by his worries and whose wife has long left him. The four dead Poles, poisoned by what appears to be phosgene gas, were discovered in the rail yard near the Gare D’Austerlitz. Then another Pole jumps to his death from a balcony still holding his young son and leaving behind a slew of strange documentation. Giral becomes obsessed with the cases and draws parallels between them and the atrocities committed by Nazis in Poland. Unfortunately, because of the war, nobody can be trusted to be who he appears, as the distortions and lies perpetuated cannot be easily distinguished from the truth making Giral’s job all the more difficult. Caught between a strong sense of duty and trying to not to lose himself in the process makes for an additional and engaging facet to the story.

This is a captivating, compelling and superb read, rich in accurate historical detail and an absolute pleasure to pick up. Reminiscent of Alan Furst, this top-notch procedural not only has the intrigue of the murder investigation to keep you feverishly turning the pages but also the danger of being caught between the occupation and the resistance too. The Unwanted Dead is the result of Chris Lloyd’s lifelong interest in World War 2 and resistance and collaboration in Occupied France. Lloyd’s keen interest in WWII allowed the book to have its history grounded in reality whilst telling an engrossing fictional tale. The plot itself is beautifully wrought as well as intelligent and credible, the writing flows from page to page, the characters are developed soundly and there is a thoroughly convincing atmosphere throughout. Protagonist Detective Giral is an intuitive and tenacious investigator who is determined to get to the bottom of the killings but who also has an edgier side. I'm already eagerly anticipating the next instalment. Many thanks to Orion for an ARC.

[Vaso · Rating 3 out of 5]

Τη μέρα που οι Ναζί εισβάλλουν στο Παρίσι, ο αστυνόμος Εντί Ζιραλ, βρίσκει τα πτώματα 4 προσφύγων από την Πολωνία, οι οποίοι δολοφονήθηκαν στο βαγόνι ενός τρένου, από δηλητηριώδη αέρια. Έχοντας πολεμήσει στον ΑΠΠ, ο Ζιραλ, θέλει να μάθει τι συνέβη. Όμως, το νέο καθεστώς τον δυσκολεύει κι όλοι φαίνονται σαν κάτι να κρύβουν. Μια αναπάντεχη αποκάλυψη στο σπίτι ενός άλλου πρόσφυγα που αυτοκτόνησε, περιπλέκει τα πράγματα.

Με κεντρικό ήρωα έναν αστυνομικό επιζήσαντα ενός πολέμου, με τους δικούς του δαίμονες να τον κατατρέχουν, ο συγγραφέας γράφει ένα αστυνομικό μυθιστόρημα τοποθετημένο χρονικά σε μια δύσκολη περίοδο της παγκόσμιας ιστορίας. Βασισμένο σε ένα πραγματικό γεγονός, μια λίστα ανθρώπων που θα έπρεπε είτε να εξοριστουν είτε να αφανιστούν, το βιβλίο ειδικής δίωξης για την Πολωνία όπως ονομάστηκε, το Ανεπιθύμητοι Νεκροί, είναι ένα βιβλίο, γεμάτο δολοπλοκίες, ίντριγκα μα και την ανάγκη του Ζιραλ να αποδώσει δικαιοσύνη!


3,5 αστέρια

[Tegan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I’ve just overdone WWII fiction, but I really couldn’t get into this book. Nothing against the writing- that in itself was quite good, but I struggled to really get into this. Possibly just not my cup of tea.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant.Great characters, intricate and clever plot,wonderful and oppressive sense of time and place.

[Havers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Am 14. Juni 1940 marschieren die Nationalsozialisten in Paris ein und übernehmen die Kontrolle. Ausgangssperre, massive Eingriffe in das öffentliche Leben, Sanktionen. Fluchtartig verlassen die Einwohner die Stadt, nur wenige bleiben zurück. Unter ihnen Eddie Giral, Kommissar der Pariser Polizei, der sich in seinem aktuellen Fall mit den neuen Machthabern in Gestalt des ambitionierten Major Hochstetter auseinandersetzen muss. Auf dem Gelände des Gare d’Austerlitz werden vier Tote in einem Eisenbahnwaggon gefunden, offenbar polnische Flüchtlinge, vergiftet mit Gas. Kurze Zeit später setzt ein weiterer Pole seinem Leben durch einen Sprung aus dem Fenster seinem Leben ein Ende und nimmt seinen kleinen Sohn mit in den Tod. Beiden Fällen gemeinsam ist die Verbindung zu der polnischen Stadt Bydgoszcz, in der die Nazis 1939 unvorstellbare Gräueltaten begangen haben.

Lloyd arbeitet mit zwei Erzählsträngen. Da ist zum einen die 1940er Gegenwart, die sich mit Girals Ermittlungen und seiner Suche nach Antworten auseinandersetzt. Gleichzeitig zeichnet er das authentische Bild einer Metropole, deren Alltag von vielerlei Einschränkungen, Schikanen und Erniedrigungen geprägt ist. In der die Besatzer unmissverständlich zeigen, wer das Sagen hat. Aber Giral hat seinen eigenen Kopf, schert sich wenig um Befehle und bringt sich so immer wieder in die Bredouille. Er scheut kein Risiko, was wohl auch seiner latenten Todessehnsucht geschuldet ist. Das bringt uns zur zweiten Zeitebene im Jahr 1925. Der Erste Weltkrieg ist vorbei, in dem Giral Soldat war. Zwar hat er überlebt, kann sich aber von den peinigenden Erinnerungen nicht befreien. Sie zerstören seine Familie, nehmen ihm alles, was ihm wichtig ist. Aber vielleicht hat er ja doch noch eine Chance zur Wiedergutmachung.

Ein lesenswerter historischer Kriminalroman zwischen Besatzung und Widerstand, gekonnt mit Fakten und Fiktion spielend, atmosphärisch in Szene gesetzt, der einmal mehr den Fokus auf ein dunkles Kapitel der deutschen Geschichte richtet.

[Maine Colonial · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edouard Giral is a Paris police officer, known as Eddie from his time moonlighting at jazz clubs where many musicians were former US servicemen from World War I. The story begins in June, 1940, as the German army seizes Paris. Paris police are allowed to continue in their jobs, but only subject to oversight and often oppression by the occupiers. Those putting the arm on Eddie might be in the Abwehr, the SD, the SS, or even the Gestapo.

On that fateful day for Paris, Eddie is investigating the death of four Polish refugees in a rail car. Mysteriously, they have been gassed with what appears to be leftover military chlorine and/or phosgene gas. The same day, Eddie also feels compelled to look into the death of another Polish refugee, who apparently committed murder/suicide by jumping out his apartment window with his beloved young son in his arms. Are there connections between these events? Not just because the victims are Polish—there are many Polish refugees in Paris—but because they all seem to have links to a Polish city called Bydgoszcz, where Eddie learns the Germans committed atrocities when they invaded.

Over two decades after his horrific experiences in the trenches of World War I, Eddie still suffers from bad dreams and memories. He left his wife and young son, Jean-Luc, not long after the war, because of his trauma. But that doesn’t mean Eddie is a coward. He’s a little bit like the Mel Gibson character in Lethal Weapon, in that his experiences have made him always barely in control of his rage, and often self-destructive. His attitude means he is beaten up and has his life threatened on a regular basis during his investigations. And it deters him not one little bit.

Even aside from these investigations and dealing with the new German overlords, Eddie’s life is complicated. His estranged son, Jean-Luc, shows up, having had to flee from his army unit. Jean-Luc is burning to fight the Germans, but first he needs to get out of Paris, which means he might have to accept help from Eddie. Eddie also meets a young American reporter, Kate Ronson, who is sniffing around Eddie’s investigations, sensing a story. She, and some refugees Eddie meets in his investigations, also have heard that the Germans committed atrocities in Poland, and want to find confirmation so that the US might be persuaded to enter the war. While trying to help/corral all of those people, Eddie must also watch his back at work, where there are old enemies who are now happy to collaborate with the Germans, and if that means they can mess with Eddie, so much the better.

The book includes flashbacks to Eddie’s World War I experiences and in the years soon after the war. The contemporary story focuses more on how Eddie’s work and life are affected by the new order than on the nuts and bolts of his investigations. His solution to the gassing murders is revealed fairly hurriedly at the end of the book.

Eddie Giral is an intriguing character, and Chris Lloyd depicts the time and place vividly. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series, which has just come out.

[Book2chance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Άρχισα με αρνητική διάθεση να διαβάζω αυτό το βιβλίο θέλοντας να αποφύγω για άλλη μία φορά να ξετυλιχθούν μπροστά μου οι φρικαλεότητες των γερμανών και του Γ' Ράιχ εναντίον της ευρώπης και της ανθρωπότητας. Κάτι όμως με κράτησε κοντά του... Και αυτό ήταν η απόλυτη αφήγηση. Στρωτή, καλογραμμένη, ισορροπημένη , απλή αλλά με εσωτερισμό και σωστή χρήση της γλώσσας.
Η πλοκή εξελίσσεται μέσα από μία άρτια δομή και συγγραφική δεινότητα που σε μεταφέρει με όλες σου τιςς αισθήσεις στους τόπους και τους χρόνους του αφηγήματος.

Ο αστυνόμος Έντι Ζιραλ είναι ο ήρωας αυτού του ιστορικού μυθιστορήματος που είναι βασισμένο σε πραγματικά γεγονότα.
Η ιστορία μας τον βρίσκει στις 14 ιουνίου 1940, ημέρα που οι Ναζι καταλαμβάνουν το Παρίσι, να βρίσκεται αντιμέτωπος με μία οξύμωρη κατάσταση: καλείται να εξιχνιάσει τους φόνους τεσσάρων ανώνυμων προσφύγων ενώ οι φόνοι εκατοντάδων χιλιάδων θυμάτων του γερμανικού ναζισμού μένουν ατιμόρητοι...
Με πάθος και προσήλωση εκτελεί το έργο του προσπαθώντας να ισορροπήσει στις τάξεις του γερμανού κατακτητή.

Ο Ζιραλ είναι απόλυτα ανθρώπινος με ιδιαίτερο χιούμορ ή πιο σωστά καυστική ειρωνεία δημιουργώντας έτσι στιγμές αποσυμπίεσης τόσο για τον ήρωα όσο και για τον αναγνώστη.
Παλεύει με τους δαίμονες και την σκοτεινή του πλευρά ανακαλώντας τις τραγικές αναμνήσεις του από την συμμετοχή του στον Α' Παγκόσμιο πόλεμο.
Ένας πολύ ενδιαφέρον χαρακτήρας που δημιουργεί προσδοκία και για τα άλλα δημιουργήματα του Lloyd.

Ένα γοητευτικό λογοτεχνικά και όχι μόνο μυθιστόρημα που αξίζει τον κόπο να διαβαστεί

"... Αν δεν θέλουμε να καταρρεύσει ο πολιτισμός, πρέπει να συνεχίσουμε να τιμωρούμε τους φόνους ακόμα και όταν χιλιάδες νέοι άνθρωποι σκοτώνονται από τις σφαίρες του εχθρού καθημερινά..."

[Anastasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Unwanted Dead by Chris Lloyd is the first book featuring Detective Eddie Giral. On the day that Germany takes over Paris, Detective Eddie Giral is called to the death of 4 Polish refugees who have been gassed in a railway carriage. The book was well written but not what I enjoy. I found the back and forth between the two wars confusing and I did not like any of the characters. It is a wonder that Detective Eddie Giral is able to carry out his job with all his demons and flaws. It may appeal to readers who have an interest in the wars.

[Wal.li · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Ungewollten

Im Juli 1940 wird Paris von den Deutschen besetzt. Zuvor war der Krieg noch nicht ganz so nah, doch nun muss man bei jedem Schritt Obacht geben. Der noch vom ersten Weltkrieg gezeichnete Polizist Édouard Giral wird zum Gare d’Austerlitz gerufen. Vier Männer sind dort tot aufgefunden worden. Kaum hat er mit den Ermittlungen begonnen tauchen auch schon die ersten Deutschen auf, unter ihnen der Major Hochstetter, der in Giral eine Art Verbindungsoffizier sehen möchte. Doch nicht nur Hochstetter, auch die Wehrmacht, die Gestapo und eine geheime Feldpolizei stecken ihre Nasen in den Fall.

Giral ist schon seit langen Jahren bei der Polizei und immer war es ihm ein Anliegen, Täter zu finden, damit Opfern Gerechtigkeit widerfahren kann. Und so geht er auch hier mit vollem Einsatz an die Untersuchung. Er will wissen, wieso die vier Männer sterben mussten. Und während der Suche nach der Wahrheit geht er seinen eigenen Weg. Dass er sich mit den Besatzern auseinandersetzen muss, stört ihn schon sehr. Angenehmer ist der Kontakt mit Mitgliedern des Widerstands, doch Giral ist nicht sicher, ob er da jedem trauen kann. Und Giral ist auch einer, der mitunter an sich selbst zweifelt.

In diesem interessanten historischen Kriminalroman wird ein Kriminalfall beschrieben, der unter der deutschen Besatzung gelöst werden muss. Der französische Ermittler Giral will sich selbst treu bleiben und wird doch verpflichtet mit den verhassten Feinden irgendwie zu kooperieren. Unklar bleibt lange, wer da welche Ziele verfolgt und wer wem wieso in die Parade fährt. Der eigentliche Fall geht vor den verzwickten halbpolitischen Verwicklungen etwas in den Hintergrund. Doch mit großen Interesse verfolgt man die Spannungen und Intrigen, die vor allem zwischen den deutschen Diensten herrschen. Eddie Giral ist von früheren Erlebnissen, über die teilweise in Rückblenden berichtet wird, gezeichnet. Auch wenn seine Handlungen nicht immer leicht nachzuvollziehen sind, ist er doch ein sehr gewissenhafter und ehrenvoller Polizist, dem seine Familie ausgesprochen wichtig ist. Mal wieder ein Kriminalroman vor historischem Hintergrund, der gleichzeitig lehrreich und fesselnd ist.

[Gunnar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kommissar Edouard „Eddie“ Giral befindet sich in einer heiklen Lage. Just an dem Tag, an dem die deutsche Wehrmacht in Paris einmarschiert, werden vier polnische Flüchtlinge tot - durch Gas erstickt - in einem Güterwaggon auf dem Gare d‘Austerlitz gefunden. Kurz darauf begeht ein weiterer Pole mit seinem kleinen Sohn Selbstmord. Außer ihm scheint sich niemand für die Aufklärung zu interessieren, doch in Giral werden alte traumatische Erinnerungen geweckt. Seltsamerweise lässt ihm der undurchschaubare Major Hochstetter, Verbindungsmann der Abwehr zur Pariser Polizei, verhältnismäßig freie Hand. Offenbar spielt Hochstetter ein eigenes Spiel, das für Giral allerdings sehr gefährlich wird.

Ein historischer Krimi mit interessantem Setting zum Zeitpunkt des deutschen Einmarschs in Paris im Juni 1940. Autor Chris Lloyd vermag es die verschiedenen Facetten der mehrdimensionalen Figuren herauszuarbeiten und legt eine spannende Story vor, bei der es auch um den Machtkampf innerhalb der deutschen Organisationen, französische Kollaborateure und den Versuch geht, Beweise für deutsche Kriegsverbrechen international zu veröffentlichen. Ein vielversprechender Reihenauftakt.

[Katherine Stansfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic historical crime novel. The plot is expertly conceived and occupied Paris brought vividly to life - I was gripped from start to finish!

[Grumpy Old Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Lloyd has succeeded brilliantly on two fronts with this novel, location and character. 


The cover of the book is great in that it truly conveys the situation. It is Paris but it is upside down. It's Paris but not as Eddie (our anti-hero) knows it. The majority of the population has fled, leaving old folks, crooks and refugees. Into this mix add the German occupying army and nazi enforcers and it makes for an explosive cocktail. It's dark, it's empty, it's moody. It has commandeered hotels and sleazy clubs where German Officers and organised crime rub shoulders. It's not a matter of who he can trust, Eddie knows he can trust no-one but he has to distrust some more than others. The author sets the scene beautifully. 


The author has also created a tough, vulnerable, relentless, thug of an honest cop in Eddie Giral. Eddie is a war veteran with all that entails. Eddie is determined to track down the killer of four Polish refugees. His investigations lead him to Wermacht Officers, the Gestapo, the Resistance, corrupt police officers and an  American journalist. The tightrope Eddie has to walk becomes smaller and smaller  Everyone has a dark secret and Eddie's got a couple that he keeps his close to his chest. He is so self destructive that he had to leave the woman and child he loves in case they caught in his explosive perimeter. Another quality that Eddie posseses is durability, the poor bloke has had more pastings than Mike Tyson' s sparring partner. Everyone wants a pop at him.


The author has obviously done his research with regards to the occupation of Paris (also has an interesting piece re research at the end of the book.) and  has slotted the murder mystery neatly into the historical background like a hand into a glove.


This book has got a bit of everything, murder mystery, crime fiction, spy thriller but its driving force is the location, the history and Eddie. 

[David C Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beware the overly “literary” mystery/thriller that tries too hard for artistic effect. Overwritten and floridly repetitive with a mopey hero. If someone is described as looking like Mussolini but with a full head of hair and without the pugnacious jaw they don’t look like Il Duce at all. Genre: honest copper working under the Nazis a la the Philip Kerr “Bernie Gunther”.

[Lill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved the book itself - something I didn't expect to say after the first few chapters. I didn't warm up to Eddie Giral at all; I remember texting my friends that I was surprised to feel sympathy and have actually interest in his character after 90 pages. Until then, I was very much ready to give up.

But I'm glad I didn't. I truly fell in love with the complicated sides of Eddie Giral, and Chris Lloyd managed to surprise me even 300 pages into the book with more and more details of Giral's past. It truly felt like Giral was telling a story - his own story - and started to trust the reader more and more with information about his past. As the trust grows, the reader gets to know him on a deeper level, which explains many of his actions.

And don't get me started on the plot. I had my suspicions where the story would end - Needless to say, my suspicions were more than wrong. There was one twist after the other, and I truly didn't figure out what happened until the last few pages - and even now, I'm not sure about every character's motives.

I am very much looking forward to finally reading the second book.

[Clbplym · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a story about the murder of some unknown Polish refugees in Paris in 1940. It was also about the inspector, his past, WWI and his son. It was also about the German occupation of Paris - the experience of everyday people, the terror of some and the machinations of different German authorities. And all the time it is very readable. Highly recommended.

[Jamie Bowen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Nazis have just invaded Paris, Eddie Giral detective still has cases to solve, his latest is the murder of four refugees. But as the Nazis take control, crime fighting becomes harder and Eddie has to negotiate his way through the politics and the smoke and mirrors that surround the case.

A really interesting historic crime novel, as Paris life changes quite dramatically as the Nazis take control and the horrors of their crimes are starting to leak out.

[Candice Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

This should have been an interesting story. But, I just couldn't get into it. I gave up about 1/3 of the way.

[Steven Z. · Rating 5 out of 5]

On June 14, 1940, the German army marched into Paris beginning an occupation that would last for four years. The arrival of the Germans was the culmination of a six week invasion that saw French forces melt away in defeat and the French government agreeing to an armistice on June 22, 1940. The French government would move to Vichy in the south where they set up a collaborative regime under World War I hero, Marshal Philippe Petain. The new government would defer to the Nazis who set up their occupation regime in the north, beginning a period of limited freedom for Parisians, greatly reduced food supplies, and an overall sense of fear as to what would come next.

With the occupation serving as a backdrop British author Chris Lloyd who held a lifelong interest in World War II, including resistance and collaboration in occupied France has embarked on a series of novels centering on French Investigator Eddie Giral. The first in the series is THE UNWANTED DEAD set in Paris which earned the HWA Gold Crown Award. Giral would spend the war trying to navigate the occupation, seeking a road between resistance and collaboration, all the time transforming himself into becoming who he needs to be to survive.

Lloyd begins the novel with the arrival of the German army in Paris on June 14. Immediately the German High Command orders all French citizens to be disarmed and to remain in their houses for the next few days. Giral, has other concerns as a sealed railway car is discovered with four dead bodies probably killed with chlorine or some other gas. Giral decides it is his obligation as a “French cop” to investigate the deaths and determine who was responsible. The four dead bodies turn out to be Polish refugees, one of which is from the Polish village of Bydgoszcz. The situation becomes even more complicated when Fryderyk Gorecki, another Polish refugee from the same village jumps from the roof of his home with his young son Jan committing suicide as the Nazis enter Paris.

For Giral the smell of the gas returns him to the trenches of World War I and introduces a character reminiscent of the late Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther, oozing with attitude and a conflicted morality that powers a complex, polished plot. At the same time Lloyd develops the Giral character he successfully frames the French experience under the Nazis. The Germans who have just conquered most of Europe in a few weeks mostly are haughty, arrogant, and have little respect for the French. Lloyd accurately conveys the internal politics of the Nazi occupation including the competition between the German army, the Gestapo, and SS for controlling Paris. The duplicity and infighting among the Germans is on full display in Lloyd’s rendition of the early Nazi occupation and it appears quite accurate.

The Parisian ambiance is clear as Lloyd takes the reader into the underside of Paris and the conflicting feeling of the French many of whom are right wingers like Detective Auban who works with Giral that believe the French government was weak and led them astray fostering a deep respect for German efficiency and in some cases racial beliefs leading to French collaborations to the detriment of the French resistance.

The desperation of the French people is evident through suicides, attempts to escape the city, locking themselves in their homes, and abandoning their previous lives by fleeing the Germans. As the Germans arrive 2/3 of Parisians flee the city, leaving only the poor, the old, and the police. As Giral puts it, “Paris was still there, but it was no longer Paris.

Lloyd has created an interesting character in Giral, a man with tremendous personal baggage dating back to WWI. Giral survived the war but did not survive the metal anguish of life in the trenches. Unbeknownst to him he develops post-traumatic stress disorder which will destroy his family as he leaves his wife, Sylvie, and their five year old son Jan-Luc to survive on their own. Giral is also guilt ridden because his parents blame him for his older brother’s death as he joined the French army in 1916 following in his brothers’ footsteps and was killed at Verdun. Lloyd integrates the year 1925, at times alternating chapters dealing with 1940 to dig into Giral’s personal issues which seem to percolate throughout the novel. For Giral, once a respected policeman, his methods and own baggage at times reduce him to a weak figure who in 1925 seeks refuge in an American jazz club and cocaine. Giral manifests his personal issues with a nasty habit of “putting his foot in his mouth” especially when it comes to his son who he is trying to protect from the Germans at the same time he is trying to make amends for deserting his family.

Lloyd’s grasp of history is strongly exemplified by Giral’s conversations with former Black Harlem Hell fighters who fought for the United States in World War I. Giral is shocked that these men do not want to live in their home country, but he understands when they describe the racial situation in the United States and how they were better off in France. Another interesting example is Lloyd’s description of the French surrender to the Germans at Compiegne using the same railway car used by the allies in 1918. This time with Hitler present.

Lloyd’s plot lines are well conceived. What does the gassing of the refugees and the suicide of a man and his son have to do with each other. When American reporters become involved Giral’s eyes are opened to a larger issue – how to get across to the world the atrocities the Nazis have committed in Poland and other areas in order to convince the United States to join the war and for the Soviet Union to break its pact with the Hitlerite regime. More and more Giral becomes obsessed with learning the truth and balancing that truth with the larger goal of defeating the Nazis. In so doing an interesting series of characters become important. Major Hochstetter, an Abwehr Nazi officer who is the liaison to the French police who plays a duplicitous role throughout. Lucja and Janek, members of the Polish resistance whose main goal is to tell the truth to the world. Katherine Ronson, a freelance American journalist looking for a Pulitzer Prize. Hauptmann Karl Weber, an officer in the 87th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht, and a series of others.

How these diverse personalities and storylines come together make the novel an excellent read. For Giral how many sacrifices must he make as he navigates the Nazi obstacle course in his quest for the truth, while at the same time holding onto his moral compass and seeing the larger issues that may be more important than his own murder investigation. For Giral it is a constant question as to who he can trust. Journalists, colleagues, certain Germans, union workers, but in the end he must rely on his own instincts. The next book in the series is PARIS REQUIEM and I look forward to continuing to follow Eddie Giral’s career and life story.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an extremely fast-paced detective story set in Paris in 1949, just as the Germans have invaded Paris and taken control. Our very flawed hero is Inspector Eddie Giral: and he's flawed and deeply damaged thanks to his experiences as a soldier in WWI. His complex character brings grit and substance to this book, as do the vivid descriptions of a city shocked and bruised by the shame and fear engendered by its capture. But as the book moved on, I got increasingly left behind. So many characters. So many plots, sub-plots and characters who were not what they had seemed. I accept that in wartime Paris, it must have been very difficult to know who you could rely upon, but I rather lost the thread. I liked that the characters were not one-dimensional, that Lloyd made clear that there really was no one who was a 'baddie' because he fought for the enemy, or 'goodie' because he was on the side of the angels. In fact it's not simply Giral who's complex, and we, like him, really don't know who to trust. If only the plot hadn't tumbled twist upon twist, I'd have enjoyed it more. Will I read more from this series? I don't know. I need time to digest this one first, that's for sure. And anyway, the next one's not been written - yet.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Nazis role into Paris in WW2 but Eddie Giral is determined
to continue carrying out his role as a police detective in the
city. He feels hindered by an acquiescent police dept and the various conflicting branches of the Nazi machine he encounters. He meets a glamorous American journalist
who helps him enormously and also tries to rebuild bridges with his estranged son

But NB this is not Le Foyle’s War, Eddie is a mess. He has severe PTSD from his time on the front bench in WW1. He has a drink problem and is prone to extreme violence, Relationships are difficult for him. And I found it difficult to form one with him.

A great premise for a book but sadly it didn’t work for me

[Chrissy · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

A "my book club made me do it" book. The writing was pretty good, the characters fully fleshed out, but the story really wasn't for me. Not my kind of genre: the crime fiction part, yes; the historical/WWII fiction part, not so much. Not a time period/setting I feel drawn to, and this book wasn't the book to change my mind about that.

[Janet Rogerson · Rating 2 out of 5]

disappointing

Setting and plot are quite interesting but characters and detail unrealistic. The amount of gratuitous violence the protagonist endures and dishes out is ludicrous. The usual flashback to the compulsory tortured past is clumsy and repetitive. The book is obviously well researched but is very reminiscent of Babylon Berlin.

[Katie Griffiths · Rating 1 out of 5]

I nearly DNF this one but I persevered to the end. I struggled to get into this book and there were too many characters. Could never remember what had happened! It’s a shame as it sounded promising.

[Γιώτα Παπαδημακοπούλου · Rating 4 out of 5]

Διαβάστε το review στο site μας:
https://www.culture21century.gr/2024/...

Το "Οι ανεπιθύμητοι νεκροί", που κυκλοφόρησε πριν από λίγες ημέρες από τις εκδόσεις Μεταίχμιο, είναι το πρώτο βιβλίο της σειράς "Eddie Giral", με πρωταγωνιστή τον ομώνυμο ήρωα, και έρχεται για να προσθέσει έναν ακόμα επιτυχημένο τίτλο στην κατηγορία του ιστορικού θρίλερ, στη μακρά λίστα του εκδοτικού, ο οποίος έχει αποδείξει πολλάκις πως στο συγκεκριμένο είδος έχει τα ηνία και παράλληλα ξέρει πολύ καλά πως να τα διατηρήσει, φέρνοντάς μας κάθε φορά νέες και ιδιαίτερες προτάσεις, που μπορούν να ικανοποιήσουν ακόμα και τους πιο απαιτητικούς αναγνώστες, αλλά και να γοητεύσουν εκείνους που η κατηγορία αυτή δεν βρίσκεται στην κορυφή των προτιμήσεών τους. Και το βιβλίο αυτό, όπως ίσως ήδη να έχετε αντιληφθεί, δεν αποτελεί εξαίρεση στον παραπάνω κανόνα.

14 Ιουνίου του 1940, η ημέρα που ο γερμανικός στρατός μπήκε στο Παρίσι, γεγονός που συντάραξε τον κόσμο και έγινε παγκόσμια είδηση. Ο Εντί Ζιράλ, αστυνομικός και βετεράνος του Α' Παγκοσμίου Πολέμου, με την γαλλική πρωτεύουσα να κατακλύζεται από τα γερμανικά στρατεύματα, στέλνεται να ερευνήσει τον θάνατο τεσσάρων αντρών σε έναν σιδηροδρομικό σταθμό, αλλά και την αυτοκτονία ενός νεαρού άντρα, που έδωσε τέλος στη ζωή του πέφτοντας από ένα μπαλκόνι. Υπάρχει κάτι που συνδέει μεταξύ τους όλους αυτούς τους θανάτους; Κι αν ναι, μπορεί να το αποδείξει, όταν ίσως πίσω απ' όλα αυτά να κρύβονται δυνάμεις πιο ισχυρές από εκείνων, που θέλουν να καλύψουν τα ίχνη τους; Μα πάνω απ' όλα, μπορεί ο ίδιος να κάνει ό,τι χρειάζεται, έτσι ώστε να αλλάξει και να ξεκινήσει και πάλι απ' το μηδέν;

Πρώτο βιβλίο του Chris Lloyd που έρχεται στα χέρια μου και νομίζω πως πρέπει να ξεκινήσω από τα βασικά. Από τα πρώτα κιόλας κεφάλαια, γίνεται αντιληπτή η συγγραφική ικανότητά του, μέσα από ένα κείμενο εξαιρετικά καλογραμμένο, με άρτια δομή, μα και με μια ανάπτυξη πλοκής που δίνει σημασία ακόμα και στις πιο μικρές λεπτομέρειες που ολοκληρώνουν το αφηγηματικό ψηφιδωτό του, βυθίζοντάς μας σε έναν επικίνδυνο, βίαιο και άγριο κόσμο, που όσο περισσότερο τον ανακαλύπτουμε, τόσο περισσότερο νιώθουμε το στομάχι μας να σφίγγεται από την αγωνία, αλλά κι εξαιτίας όλων όσων γινόμαστε μάρτυρες, τα οποία δεν είναι εύκολο να τα διαχειριστείς, ιδίως ψυχολογικά -χωρίς αυτό να σημαίνει, σε καμία περίπτωση, πως δεν αξίζει να περάσεις όλη αυτή τη συναισθηματική σύγχυση.

Κάτι ακόμα που κάνει την ιστορία αυτή να ξεχωρίζει, είναι ο πρωταγωνιστής της, ο οποίος θαρρώ πως αξίζει να συζητηθεί και να του αναγνωριστεί η μοναδικότητά του -και σε αυτό συμβάλλει και η εποχή που δρα. Αστυνομικός της παλιάς σχολής, ο Εντί δεν ακολουθεί πάντα τα πιο ηθικά μονοπάτια, δεν έχει ιδιαίτερα καλή -θα την χαρακτηρίζαμε έως και κακή- αίσθηση του χιούμορ, διαθέτει μια ιδιαίτερη σκοτεινή κι απρόβλεπτη πλευρά, φέρει μέσα του αρκετά κατάλοιπα από την συμμετοχή στον Α' Παγκόσμιο Πόλεμο, όμως, είναι ένας αντισυμβατικός χαρακτήρας, που τολμάει, παίρνει ρίσκα, αντιτίθεται στις εντολές που λαμβάνει από τους Γερμανούς αξιωματικούς, όσο επικίνδυνη κι αν μπορεί ν' αποδειχθεί η περιφρόνησή του απέναντί τους, που δεν σταματάει πουθενά και είναι πρόθυμος να φτάσει στα άκρα, αρκεί να φέρει εις πέρας την αποστολή του, ακόμα κι αν δεν βγει αλώβητος απ' όλο αυτό, γεγονότα που δεν γίνεται να μην σε γοητεύσουν και να μην τα αναγνωρίσεις για το τσαγανό που κρύβουν μέσα τους.

Ο Lloyd αφηγείται μια ιστορία με μυθιστορηματική πλοκή μεν, που έχει τις ρίζες της σε πραγματικά ιστορικά γεγονότα δε, επιτυγχάνοντας ν' απαλύνει τις λεπτές εκείνες γραμμές που χωρίζουν την πραγματικότητα από τη φαντασία, τόσο που δεν είσαι βέβαιος που ξεκινάει η μία και που τελειώνει η άλλη, γεγονός που σου επιτρέπει να βυθιστείς στην αφήγηση ακόμα περισσότερο. Μια εμπειρία που δεν αποδεικνύεται εύκολη, καθώς ο ωμός ρεαλισμός δεν είναι ποτέ εύκολος, ωστόσο δεν μπορείς ν' αφηγηθείς με ειλικρίνεια και ευθραυστότητα μια τέτοια ιστορία, που τοποθετείται σε ένα τόσο συγκεκριμένο χρονικό πλαίσιο, χωρίς να είσαι διατεθειμένος ν' αποκαλύψεις τις πιο σκοτεινές αλήθειες της. Και ο Lloyd το κάνει, προσφέροντάς μας ένα οδυνηρό, σε μεγάλο μέρος του, ανάγνωσμα, αλλά κι ένα ανάγνωσμα που δύσκολα μπορεί κανείς να ξεχάσει.

[Daniel Aubrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I've read in a very long time! Chris Lloyd's first book in a new series has absolutely everything you could want from a crime novel - a captivating and complex protagonist, a vivid setting, an intriguing mystery, dark humour, emotion, and tension by the bucketload. But none of this does justice to what an excellent read it is - it's just good. REALLY good!

Opening on the day the Nazis march into Paris, Inspector Eddie Giral is trying to ignore the city's new occupiers while he investigates the apparent murder of four people in a railway yard as well as the suicide of a fifth man who stepped from a balcony. A connection to an obscure town in Poland links the two cases, but nobody other than Eddie seems keen on getting to the bottom of what happened.

Eddie Giral is a fascinating character who is still suffering the effects of fighting in the last world war and who has no interest in giving in to the occupying forces who are taking control of his city, yet at the same time he knows that fighting them is futile. He finds himself caught between the various factions of the German army, his colleagues in the French police, members of the resistance, and even members of his own family as he stubbornly pushes on with his investigation, never really taking anyone's side. And for me this is what makes this book so gripping - every single character is complex with their own motivations independent of whichever "side" they're on. Chris avoids simplistic black and white distinctions of the German soldiers being the bad guys while everyone else is good - everyone in this story has their demons, not least Eddie, which adds incredible mounting tension to the story but also increases the intrigue as to who is behind the book's central crime. Every single character in this book could have their own spin-off, it's a novel packed with protagonists - even the blind old safe cracker who gets no more than a few pages in the story could have a whole series dedicated to him and it would be a fantastic story.

This complexity and realism to the characters brings the setting and era to life. This is a period in history which features in countless books and films and yet with this brilliant cast of characters Chris somehow manages to make it feel fresh and original, and certainly extremely relevant to the modern day. What it also does is deliver an emotional punch which for me is as good as any book in any genre - we all know the atrocities of the Second World War and what the Nazis did in Poland, and yet somehow Chris manages to make the reader feel as though they are discovering these terrors for the very first time along with the characters. As Eddie learns the awful truth of what happened in this one small town in Poland, I was brought to tears. The touching descriptions of the tiny acts of bravery in the face of the obscene violence which we know took place are what for me sets this book apart from other crime novels and make it not just a brilliant read, but an important one too.

I read a lot of crime fiction and often I see the twists coming, or the endings don't quite live up to the premise of the original hook, but in this case I didn't guess who committed the crime (even though there's a massive clue!) and the only disappointment I had with the ending was that I could have happily read another 400 pages about Eddie. Luckily this is the first in a series so soon I'll be able to - get writing faster, Chris!

[Peter Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

The novel commences with the fall of Paris. Great change is to sweep France as lives are turned upside down. This feeling is captured so well by the author. We see the callous and drunken German soldiers, for whom victory was easy, treating people and the opulent buildings with distain. There is the fear of ordinary people, a first taste for the French but prolonged suffering for the Poles who have already fled once and are central to the plot. Those in power in French establishment face the dilemma of how to react, how much to cooperate with the occupiers, as Eddie soon discovers. It is also a period of adaptation for the Germans as there are territorial and jurisdictional disputes between the Wehrmacht (army), Schutzstaffel (SS) and Sicherheitsdienst (SD) which proves vital to Eddie’s ability to function as an officer.

The plot is one of hidden secrets vital to the war effort. Four Polish refugees trying to escape Paris are gassed in a cattle truck whilst another commits suicide with his young son rather than face interrogation. There is an American journalist keen for the evidence of atrocities necessary to bring the US into the war. The evidence from these events keep pointing back to a small town in Poland. Obstacles are placed in Eddie’s path, but he remains determined to investigate in the name of truth and justice, the only things he has left worth fighting for. These dead people may be unwanted by the Nazi occupiers and by some of the occupied French, but they are individuals, part of humanity, deserving of compassion and respect.

Eddie Giral is a man who has been damaged by events, who survives on a day to day basis but who tries to do the right thing, because his morality is all he has left. Dreams of university were shattered by the First World War and being called up into the army. A war that left him damaged physically and mentally, with a future he is unable to cope in. Hospitalisation from shell shock and remaining disturbed by what he saw, his behaviour is erratic and ultimately leads to estrangement from his wife and son, for their own safety and piece of mind. Taking one day at a time Eddie is looking for something, some internal peace or salvation, but maintains an unhealthy obsession with a Luger and dud bullet. When his now adult son Jean-Luc appears, after fifteen years apart, despising his father and hell bent on finding personal glory at any cost he must confront his past to ensure Jean-Luc’s future. A complex character with clearly more to him than one novel.

The storyline presses on relentlessly, steady rather than fast as there is a lot of incidents packed in along with great descriptions of life in Paris. The tone is sober and sombre, this is not a wisecracking hard-boiled protagonist, though he does get some great lines. The messages are clear, war brutalises and someone needs to stand up against tyranny, a timely reminder, as eighty years on nothing seems to have changed. There are seeds of hope though as the reader will see the totemic power of books. Long may authors write thought provoking books and people read them.

[DoraLupin · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Sterne

Am 14. Juni 1940 marschieren die Navis in Paris ein, am gleichen Tag werden am Gare d'Austerlitz vier Tote gefunden, in einem Eisenbahnwaggon mit Gas getötet. Am selben Tag begeht ein anderer Mann Selbstmord, indem er vom Balkon springt. Es stellt sich heraus, das die vier Toten und den Selbstmörder eine Gemeinsamkeit verbindet. Inspecteur Giral beginnt zu ermitteln was vorgefallen ist, bekommt es aber immer wieder mit Wehrmacht, Gestapo und Feldpolizei zu tun. Dann taucht auch noch Jean-Luc, Girals Sohn, auf und bringt einiges durcheinander...

Anfangs bin ich gut ins Buch reingekommen denn relativ schnell werden die Toten gefunden und auch die Todesart ermittelt. Das fand ich alles spannend zu lesen und ich interessierte mich sehr dafür, wo die Reise wohl hin geht, denn der Fall hatte auf jeden Fall Potenzial!

Nach diesem sehr guten und fesselnden Anfang verliert sich das Buch aber immer mehr. Der Fall ist nur noch ein Randthema am Horizont, es geht dann sehr viel um die Geschichte der ersten Tage nachdem die Nazis in Paris einmarschiert sind und wie das Verhältnis zwischen französischer Polizei, Wehrmacht und Gestapo war. Ich lese sehr gern historische Romane und war deshalb dem historischen Lesestoff nicht abgeneigt aber die Handlung hat mich einfach nicht mitgenommen. Der Autor verzettelt sich von Seite zu Seite immer mehr, es geht immer weiter vom Genre Krimi weg und verliert sich in Wiederholungen, langen aber unwichtigen Dialogen und langatmiger Handlung! Schade aber es war wirklich so, dass ich mich zwingen musste weiterzulesen. Einzig hat mich bei der Stange gehalten, dass ich die Auflösung wissen wollte und die Figur von Giral selbst ganz interessant fand. Die Auflösung hat mich zusätzlich nochmal sehr enttäuscht. Hätte ich das gewusst, hätte ich das Buch wohl abgebrochen.

Positiv hervorzuheben ist, dass man durchaus neue und interessante Dinge über die Besetzung von Paris lernen kann, aber trotzdem konnte ich nicht so gut in die Zeit eintauchen wie bei vielen anderen historischen Büchern. Interessant und aufschlussreich ist das Nachwort des Autors zu lesen und die Geschichte von Hitler in Paris.
Giral war eine interessante Person, ich fand ihn nicht super sympathisch aber er hatte auf jeden Fall was! Auch seine Gedanken zum Krieg fand ich lesenswert. Die Rahmenbedingungen haben also gestimmt, aber leider ist es viel zu sehr vom Kriminalroman weggegangen und die historische Geschichte war durch ausufernde Sätze und Nebensächlichkeiten oft ermüdend zu lesen! So kann ich nur sagen das die Geschichte für mich persönlich leider nichts war.