M. L. Longworth

I usually really enjoy this series, and was excited to read this one, but this one just didn't do it for me. The mystery was a little convoluted, and there was no clear trail to discover the murderer. And we don't really find out until well into the book whether or not it was even a murder that happened in a little Aix apartment that apparently was previously the home of the great Cezanne. There is art theft involved, but we don't find out whether or not the missing painting was an actual Cezanne.Too many loose ends in this one, although I did enjoy Verlaque and Bonnet and the way they work together to solve cases. I'm not discouraged, and will certainly read the next book.… (mehr)

Warning: this review contains spoilers

****

It did take a while for the murder to happen in this installment of the Verlaque and Bonnet series, but I liked it better than previous installments that had long buildups to the murder. I’m still not entirely clear on why Marine was dressing up and playing a character to get a recording about Alain Sorba’s sleaziness, but perhaps I was reading too quickly and missed it.

Also, to me it was very quickly obvious that Marine was pregnant, but perhaps I’ve watched too many TV shows or read too many books where this becomes a logical plot development, so I am extremely alert to the slightest of hints. Not sure how I feel about them adding a kid to the mix; it might make their crime solving a bit more challenging!… (mehr)

This is the fourth book in the Verlaque and Bonnet series. I love this series set in France so much! As usual, the food and wine are exquisite and the location can't be beat (an isolated island off the Coast of Marseilles). Friends of Marine's have opened up a boutique hotel on the island, and Antoine and Marine have been invited to the inaugural grand opening of this hotel. Things are going well, and then the body of one of the guests is found on the beach and the man had been shot through the head. There is no question it is murder. Who on this island had a reason to see the man dead? As Verlaque investigates, he uncovers 50 year old secrets among the guests, and it looks like more than one person had a good reason to kill. I found the pace terribly slow in this one. It had an unusually long start and the murder doesn't occur until almost halfway through the book. That is why I gave the book 3 stars, but I still really enjoyed Verlaque and Bonnet, and the mystery, when it finally occurred, was a tricky one. I look forward to reading the next book in the series. I did listen to this one on audiobook.… (mehr)