Murder on the Eiffel Tower

June 30, 2008
Fans of quality historicals will welcome Izner's debut, the first of a series to feature an engaging and fallible amateur sleuth. In 1889, Parisian bookseller Victor Legris finds himself in the midst of a baffling series of deaths connected with the newly opened Eiffel Tower. The victims all apparently died from bee stings, but Legris suspects foul play. His inquiry coincides with another role outside his usual occupation, as a contributor to Le Passe-partout
, a new sensationalist newspaper. Almost as soon as the bookman seizes on a promising suspect, that person turns up dead as well, leaving him with a dwindling pool, which, to his chagrin, includes Le Passe-partout
's attractive illustrator, an enigmatic Russian woman with whom he's become besotted. The taut pacing and vivid period detail will have readers eagerly turning the pages.

August 15, 2008
At the 1889 World Exposition in Paris, bookshop owner and photographer Victor Legris witnesses the death of a woman, apparently from a bee sting, atop the new Eiffel Tower. More deaths soon follow, launching an emotional investigation concerning everything that Victor holds dear. Coauthored by two Parisian sisters and booksellers writing under a nom de plume, this debut of a very Gallic series will appeal to Francophiles and fans of historicals. [See Prepub Mystery, "LJ" 5/1/08; a Minotaur First Edition selection; library marketing campaign.]

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.