Murder at the Porte de Versailles marks Cara Black’s twentieth book in the Aimee Leduc Investigations series. If you haven’t read the series, Aimee Leduc owns a detective agency that specializes in computer security in Paris, France. Now that she is the mother of a three-year-old, Aimee tries to avoid field work, turning to consulting and court testimony as an expert witness. This time, though, Aimee is back on the streets investigating.
It’s November, 2001, just two months after the terrorist attack of 9/11, and Paris remains on alert. It’s not an easy month for Aimee, who observes the anniversary of her father’s death on her daughter, Chloe’s, third birthday. But, the birthday party is filled with the people Aimee has grown to love. When Boris Viard realizes he left Chloe’s gift sitting on his desk at the police lab, he insists on retrieving it. As the night goes on, Aimee wonders why Boris hasn’t returned. When she receives a disturbing call from his phone, she heads to the lab, only to discover a scene of chaos. The police lab was bombed. When she insists on calling for Boris, he’s found under rubble, unconscious. Even though he’s later put in a medically induced coma, the police arrest him because there are traces of explosives under his fingernails.
Because Chloe’s father takes her to his farm in Brittany, Aimee is able to concentrate on Boris’ situation. As usual, though, Aimee’s investigation becomes complicated, involving the police, a teenager, a possible terrorist conspiracy, multiple deaths, and even a link to Aimee’s deceased father.
Murder at the Porte de Versailles starts on such a loving note with a birthday party. But, Aimee’s visit on the same day to her father’s grave should have indicated that this story would mix lightheartedness with a somber atmosphere. Of course, in a story of a bombing set that soon after 9/11, the somber tone predominates. Black’s current book is a reminder of the terror and rush to judgement that was part of the atmosphere worldwide after 9/11. How serious was the world? Even a colleague of the police, a man who worked in the police lab, is considered guilty. It takes Aimee Leduc and her small team to find the truth.
Cara Black’s website is http://carablack.com/
Murder at the Porte de Versailles by Cara Black. Soho Crime, 2022. ISBN 9781641290432 (hardcover), 360p.
FTC Full Disclosure – I read a galley for a journal review.
