A Chateau Under Siege

February 1, 2023

During the reenactment of a French town's liberation from the British during the Hundred Years' War, the actor playing the hero is stabbed, perhaps fatally. What's more, the victim is second-in-command in French intelligence, and this could be an assassination attempt. Bruno, St. Denis's chief of police, must eventually deal with Russia, China, Silicon Valley, and (what's toughest) the French government to solve this case. Prepub Alert.

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July 1, 2023
The sixteenth Bruno, Chief of Police mystery starts in the medieval French town of Sarlat, where something goes horribly wrong during a reenactment of a battle in which the French trounced the British during the Hundred Years' War. A French soldier is stabbed in the heart through a chink in his armor, with no assailant in sight. Among the spectators is Bruno Courr�ges, chief of police for the V�z�re valley, who must determine whether the stabbing was accidental or intentional. Suspense is heightened by the fact that the victim, who is fighting for his life, is very high-up in French intelligence. After Bruno is assigned to protect the victim's family and Silicon Valley friends, he learns that the case may involve international opposition to a nascent French chip industry and they all may be in danger. A bombshell beginning and excellent dives into medieval reenactments run into too much detail about French intelligence. Bruno's cooking, idyllic domestic life, and Dordogne scenery take a secondary role here. Not the usual Bruno feast, but a treat nonetheless.

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September 18, 2023
Benoît “Bruno” Courrèges returns in Walker’s sturdy 16th cozy featuring the soldier turned small-town cop (following 2022’s To Kill a Troubadour). When the French town of Sarlat hosts a reenactment of the Hundred Years War, its main actor, intelligence agent Brice Kerquelin, is stabbed during the performance and ends up in critical condition. Various government agencies scramble to solve the apparent assassination attempt, while Bruno is charged with protecting Kerquelin’s adult daughters, Claire and Nadia. Before long, however, Bruno learns that the performance had not been going as planned, with Kerquelin pulling a series of unrehearsed moves just before the supposed assassination. The detective smells a rat, especially after he establishes a link between Kerquelin, a missing tech mogul, and a Taiwanese group monitoring France’s interest in manufacturing new computer processing chips. As he digs deeper, Bruno uncovers a network of international espionage far more sinister than he first imagined. Fans will be happy to find all the hallmarks of the series: the pacing is brisk; Bruno’s former flame, Isabelle, provides romantic tension; and his dog, Balzac, keeps the detective company while he cooks several decadent and vividly described meals. This is reliable, frothy fun. Agent: Stephanie Cabot, Susanna Lea Assoc.