History Corner / Book Review: The Châtelet Apprentice by Jean-François Parot, Trans. by Michael Glencross
Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge, from Gallic Books,via Edelweiss, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it
Synopsis:
France 1761. Beyond the glittering court of Louis XV at Versailles lies Paris,
a capital in the grip of crime and immorality . . .
LOVED this book! With historical novels, the author has to really set the 'stage', so the reader truly feels like they are in the time period in question, and abandoned the modern world. In this tale, you may feel like waking out of a dream, whenever you leave the streets of Paris and have to go answer the phone, or pick up the kids, the author does such a wonderful job of putting the reader into the historical France. It was so interesting to read about the start of police detection, and to compare it to what we expect from modern police procedurals! Yet, the basic of who, what, how, when, why are eternal in solving any crime! There were so many twists and turns, so many sleights of hand by the author, that when the end comes the reader feels like they owe themselves a head slap, followed by a 'Bravo!' for the author!
If you're looking for something different, but familiar, be sure to check out this translated series! You won't regret it, and might get hooked like I did!
The first in a series of ten historical crime novels,
set in pre-revolutionary Paris featuring policeman Nicolas Le Floch.
Synopsis:
France 1761. Beyond the glittering court of Louis XV at Versailles lies Paris,
a capital in the grip of crime and immorality . . .
A police officer disappears and Nicolas Le Floch, a young recruit to the force, is instructed to find him. When unidentified human remains suddenly come to light, he seems to have a murder investigation on his hands. Le Floch will need all his skill, courage, and integrity to unravel a mystery that threatens to implicate the king and Madame de Pompadour.
Review:
LOVED this book! With historical novels, the author has to really set the 'stage', so the reader truly feels like they are in the time period in question, and abandoned the modern world. In this tale, you may feel like waking out of a dream, whenever you leave the streets of Paris and have to go answer the phone, or pick up the kids, the author does such a wonderful job of putting the reader into the historical France. It was so interesting to read about the start of police detection, and to compare it to what we expect from modern police procedurals! Yet, the basic of who, what, how, when, why are eternal in solving any crime! There were so many twists and turns, so many sleights of hand by the author, that when the end comes the reader feels like they owe themselves a head slap, followed by a 'Bravo!' for the author!
If you're looking for something different, but familiar, be sure to check out this translated series! You won't regret it, and might get hooked like I did!
About the Author:
Parot is a diplomat and historian. He is the author of the Nicolas Le Floch mysteries, which take place in eighteenth century France. The novels, beginning with The Châtelet Apprentice, have been adapted as a successful TV series shown on France 2.
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