Olivier Barde-Cabuçon

París, 1759. Apenas un par de años antes, el joven Volnay, pese a su poca simpatía por la monarquía, salvó a Luis XV de la muerte en el atentado perpetrado por Damiens. Agradecido, el monarca creó para él el cargo de `comisario de las muertes extrañas`. Por eso, al ser hallado el cadáver de una mujer sin rostro en París, el caballero de Volnay se encarga del caso. Para empezar, encuentra en el cuerpo una misteriosa carta con el sello del rey, y la presencia del libertino Casanova en el lugar del crimen no deja de intrigarle. A petición del comisario, los restos de la joven no son trasladados al depósito del Châtelet sino confiados a su ayudante, un monje tan erudito como hereje. La autopsia y los primeros elementos de la investigación conducen muy pronto a Volnay a Versalles, al gabinete del rey, a las casas acondicionadas para la marquesa de Pompadour en el Parque de los Ciervos, y al laboratorio del enigmático conde de Saint-Germain.… (lisätietoja)

Paris in the mid-18th Century and King Louis XV is becoming more despotic by the week. Whilst the aristocracy remain in fear, Madame de Pompadour acts as a procuress for her erstwhile lover's increasingly perverse needs. Meanwhile the general populace is plotting revolution. When the body of a young girl is found, horribly mutilated, Volnay is called in to investigate as the clues lead straight to court.
This was such a confusing book. The plot wheels around turns back on itself and in the end isn't really satisfying. there were several too many secret societies and characters whose motivation and loyalties seem to turn in an instance. What could have been a really strong historical detective novel just became far too complicated and confusing for me… (lisätietoja)

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is the first of eight French mysteries featuring Volnay, a man who was made the Inspect of Strange and Unexplained Deaths after saving Louis XV from an assassin. He is called to investigate the murder of a young woman whose entire face had been removed. When his good friend and associate, the Monk, does the autopsy, he creates a death mask that Volnay uses to identify the victim as one of the King’s mistresses.

The novel is full of plot and counter-plot with historical characters. In addition to Louis XV, there are Antoine de Sartine, Comte de Saint Germain, Madame Pompadour, and the famed Casanova. There are also three competing secret societies and all of them have nothing better to do than plot and counter-plot to hold or gain power.

I stuck it out to the bitter end of The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths and wish I had not. As a mystery, though, it is fair. Volnay and the reader had the necessary clues. However, it is simply too convoluted with plots and counter-plots and sheer stupidity. Really, the inane actions of the characters baffled me again and again and far more thoroughly than the mystery.

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths will be published on October 6th. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley.

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths at Pushkin Press
Olivier Barde-Cabicon

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2020/10/02/9781782276234/… (lisätietoja)