Fast paced but rather confusing--too many characters to feel familiar with and a sort of disappointing ending of the "I just realized that it must have been in the xxx all the time" variety.

Another charming thriller set in Paris by author Cara Black. Aimee Leduc, is suffering still from an injury to her optic nerve from her last case. To hasten healing she has been enjoined by her doctor (and boyfriend) to avoid stress. She has promised everyone that her company, Leduc Detective Agency will avoid criminal matters and concentrate on corporate and computer security. She has even given up cigarettes, drinks herbal tea and taken up meditation classes at the local Cao Dai temple. After a mediation class with her partner, Rene, she is asked to perform a small favor by a Cao Dai nun: deliver an envelope and pick up a package in return. When she tries to demur, Rene pushes her on -- such a simple thing. How hard can it be?

Indeed. Within a few short pages, mostly set in the atmosphere of the Clichy neighborhood, Aimee has met Thadee Baret, only to see him murdered in a hail of bullets, and to find many small carved jade objects in the backpack he'd just slipped to her. With this rollicking start, the mystery races on.

I have been enjoying this series. Black writes in a fast paced, almost cinematic prose. Each of her mysteries has been centered in a different neighborhood of Paris. The telling detail is woven throughout, without that sense of 'Hey, I've done the research, here it all is'. I was unaware of Cao Dai and this has encouraged me to investigate further. I've been reading the series out of order, and have not felt this to be much of a detriment. ( )

I don’t read much fiction and haven’t read a mystery in… who knows how long. I picked this one up because it used Cao Dai as a major drive behind the plot.

The book was fine, I guess. Nothing special. The writing was decent, the ending made sense… about the only part that drove me nuts was the chapter where the lead character jumped on stage with a rock band and the chase that ensued. It felt really, really awkward and out of place, like it belonged in a crappy Hollywood blockbuster.

I also got annoyed at how the main character would always sneak into random places, like through the backdoor of a house to hide from someone, and the people inside the house would never think it odd that a random person (who they always assumed was someone else) was standing there. Contrived.

All-in-all, an alright book, but I doubt I’ll be reading any others in the series. ( )