Capitaine Roger Blanc blows into Provence, and fans flames in the same way the dangerous mistral winds do in the summer. Cay Rademacher’s Murderous Mistral, translated from the German by Peter Millar, loses nothing in the translation. Blanc is a fascinating character in a atmospheric police procedural, sure to capture readers who love Jeffrey Siger’s novels set in Greece.
Blanc was a little too successful as an investigator for an anti-corruption unit in Paris, and was banished to the south of France. His marriage couldn’t stand the strain, and, as a result, he’s alone in a two-hundred-year-old hovel he inherited. Even his assigned partner seems to fit the image of a reject. Lieutenant Marius Tonon made a serious mistake years earlier, and he knows he’ll never rise any higher. As a result, he comes in late, drinks on the job, has a slovenly appearance. But, he knows the streets, and the local politics. And, he’s not happy when the team is called to a murder scene at the local dump, where a man has been shot and set on fire. Tonon’s recognition of the man as a local low-life means they have a murder case on their hands. Since no one will miss the victim, everyone would happily close the case. But, Capitaine Blanc is not known for his politically astute actions. And, a second death means Blanc will just dig in deeper in a case that could have political and career repercussions.
Local big shots, local politics. Blanc and his small team of cohorts are not eager to investigate in the wrong areas, but they are eager to find the killer, and not pin it on the most convenient suspect. As Blanc and Tonon traverse the streets of Provence, a co-worker skillfully searches the Internet, providing them with additional ammunition. Now, Blanc will have to prove to the local juge d’instruction, the local magistrate, that he suspects a connection between the two deaths.
Rademacher’s police procedural is an intriguing story of teamwork by an untested group of gendarmes. The mystery itself is fascinating, as is Blanc. Add the atmosphere, the food, the scents of Provence, set during summer when the mistral winds blow. Murderous Mistral is an enjoyable, complicated story.
Murderous Mistral by Cay Rademacher. Minotaur Books. 2017. ISBN 9781250110701 (hardcover), 288p.
*****
FTC Full Disclosure – The publisher sent a copy of the book, hoping I would review it.
