Murder in the Rue Dumas: A Verlaque and Bonnet Mystery: 2 (Provençal Mystery)

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For the general plot and mystery I can't say I love it because the book is bogged down with too many characters. There are too many changing POVs and the mystery proceeds slowly because so much is going on. We meet the group of Theologians at a grand party being held by Moutte, the man in charge. He has promised to name the recipient of the Dumas fellowship for which there are several competing and hopeful candidates, but instead he drops a bomb that he is not going to retire. His position included deluxe rent-free housing in the best part of Aix-en-Provence in addition to other benefits. Mystery and romance served up with a hearty dose of French cuisine. I relished every word. Longworth does for Aix-en-Provence what Frances Mayes does for Tuscany: You want to be there—NOW!”—Barbara Fairchild, former editor in chief, Bon Appétit Professor Moutte, the Doyen of the School of Theology at the University of Aix, is found murdered in his office. The murder occurred just after he announced that he would not be retiring. His announcement affected three of his colleagues who thought they in the mix for his prestigious position. Also affected were 4 post-graduate students in the competition for the lucrative Dumas Fellowship. Two days later, the professor’s secretary was killed in a hit and run accident. Coincidence or related to the murder? Into this turmoil, another crime is added – art glass forgery. Wel blijf ik ruzie houden met de Franse invloeden in het schrijven en de uitdrukkingen. Doordat Longworth bijvoorbeeld de omgeving best uitgebreid omschrijft, worden er ook vaker Franse woorden gebruikt en hier had ik, net als bij het eerste deel, vaker moeite mee en vroeg ik mij ook geregeld af wat ze nu bedoelde. Dit vind ik toch jammer, want dit haalt de vaart uit het verhaal en nu was ik toch vaker geneigd om het boek aan de kant te leggen.

In Sept. 2011, I first discovered Mary Lou Longworth and her first mystery ( Murder at the Chateau Bremont) set in Aix-en-Provence. I waited, impatiently at times, for her follow up books. It is worth the wait. The mystery is there; witnesses and suspects interviews, clues followed and investigation done. However, it does seem somewhat secondary to the abundance of characters and descriptions. Oddly, this is not a complaint. Longworth was born in Toronto and moved to Aix in 1997. She has been influenced by Barbara Pym, and her mysteries are like "intricate puzzles". Longworth also teaches writing at NYU Paris. [3] Bibliography [ edit ] The book, if anything, was considerably worse. At least the TV adaptation had the sense to move the action from a theology department to medieval history and so saved itself from some of the pitfalls of this dreadfully badly written and incompletely edited tome. The investigation is headed by Verlaque, a judge who maintains good relations with the men he works with as well as benefiting from the helping hand of his girlfriend, Marine Bonnet, a law professor.

When Dr. Georges Moutte is found mudrered, investigator Antoine Verlaque is stumped. Certainly the director of theology at the Université d’Aix had his enemies. Moutte was just about to name the recipient of an elite fellowship as well as his own successor—a highly coveted position—when his lips were sealed permanently. But Verlaque isn't convinced that anyone in the tiny community of academics is capable of murder. The setting is a smallish picturesque town in southern France named Aix-en-Provence. The main characters are Verlaque (a criminal judge) and his assistants and Marine Bonnet, a law professor and his girlfriend. Who is responsible for the murders? Are they related to the art forgeries? Will Judge Antoine Verlaque, his on again/off again lady friend law professor Marine Bonnet and Commissioner Bruno Paulik of the Aix police unravel these mysteries?

Voor mij was dit niet de eerste kennismaking met M.L. Longworth. Ik las een tijdje geleden al ‘Dood op kasteel Brémont‘ van haar hand en had hier nogal wat op- en aanmerkingen op. Maar toch was ik nieuwsgierig naar dit vervolg. Ik was vooral benieuwd of dit verhaal spannender zou zijn. Dat was ‘Moord in Rue Dumas’, gelukkig wel. Bonnet, actually, is not a detective at all. She's Verlaque's girlfriend, who, I presume, he hooked up with in the first book. Their relationship is in that awkward phase where neither is quite sure how serious it is. Bonnet does help some with the case, but is, largely, on the periphery. I do like her, and I like that she isn't his partner, as that changes up typical dynamics a bit. I was not super attached to the characters, but I was entertained by them, which was enough for me. Plot: Dr. Moutte, the director of Theology at the Université d’Aix is found dead with his head bashed in. There are plenty of suspects as he recently retracted his retirement, making a lot presumptive successors angry. He also baited a prestigious fellowship over the heads of anxious candidates, also making them angry. As the investigation proceeded, his secretary was mowed down and killed by a hit and run. As with any respectable police protocol Verlaque and his assistants start the investigation by interviewing and looking into all the possible suspects.

I think this is the first murder mystery I have read with references to Persian Letters by Montesquieu - a discussion I enjoyed so much I plan to read it again very soon. Another egregious plot device which made me want to throw the book across the room was that our hero, a JUDGE, deliberately breaks into premises outside his jurisdiction with his accomplice a LAW PROFESSOR, based on nothing more than a hunch and conjecture. In the real world they would both have been fired and prosecuted, not been invited to dinner. And they aren't even contrite about it. Even so, the whole sequence should have been resolved with a simple telephone call (which, in a way, it ultimately is). Verlaque is, mede door de invloed van Marine Bonnet, iets milder geworden, en hoewel hun relatie nog in een wat aftastende fase zit, zijn ze duidelijk wel gek op elkaar. Marine heeft een kleinere rol, maar zodra zij samenwerken krijgt het onderzoek die sprankeling en de vaart die het nodig heeft, dus meer Marine in een volgend boek, graag! Dit is een licht, sfeervol en vermakelijk mysterie met een leuke setting, interessante personages en soms net iets te veel details, maar ook een mooi afgerond onderzoek en nieuwe vraagtekens die je nieuwsgierig maken naar een volgend boek.