Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of Murder on the Eiffel Tower (A Victor Legris Mystery) by Claude Izner
Historical mystery hardcover released by St. Martin’s Minotaur 2 Sep 08

While the United States is a publishing powerhouse, there are plenty of books published overseas that might never find an American distributor. Case in point, Claude Izner’s debut historical mystery set in late 19th century Paris was first published in 2003 and is just now seeing the light of day in the U.S in 2008. Given that historical romances haven’t exactly been breaking the mold with fresh, original locales, I find historical mysteries to be a refreshing change of pace when I get burnt out from reading about English dukes or American cowboys. However, while Murder on the Eiffel Tower cleansed my palate when it came to the locale, I can’t say the book was entirely successful for me.

The highlight of the 1889 World Exposition in Paris is Gustave Eiffel’s magnificent tower. It’s causing a sensation around the world, not just with Parisians – some who think it’s marvelous and others who think it’s an eye sore. However the excitement turns to shock when a woman collapses and dies while visiting the tower with her niece and nephews. It’s suggested she died as the result of a bee sting, but then a cryptic letter begins arriving at the newspapers and more dead bodies turn up.

Enter, stage left, bookseller Victor Legris who spends no time over the course of this story actually working at his book shop. He’s either mooning over a beautiful red-headed painter he just met or snooping around for clues. As more dead bodies pile up, Victor finds the bee sting theory completely preposterous. The question is, will he uncover the truth, and get the girl, before the villain targets him next?

Even though it clocks in under 300 pages, this story takes a while to find some footing. One of the biggest issues is the head hopping and the introduction of several characters, all at once. Predominantly in the early chapters, it’s hard to tell if this uneven head hopping is the result of the original text (in French) or the result of the work by the translator. As overseas readers will attest, not all translations are created equal. Normally I enjoy head-hopping, when it’s skillfully employed, but here, compounded by the fact that the author introduces multiple characters in one sitting, it causes some confusion. I’m not a dense person, but it took some time for me to sort it all out.

I also found the character of Victor quite bothersome. For one thing he spends most of the early chapters mooning over a painter he meets and not doing much in the way of sleuthing. Luckily, the author eventually kicks it up a notch and the sleuthing commences with Victor suspecting just about everybody and their dead grandmother. However, I didn’t really care for the guy. Yes, I know men in the 19th century had mistresses. Some of them married. Heck, guys in the 21st century have mistresses. Doesn’t mean I want to read about it. And frankly, I didn’t appreciate the fact that he practically dumps his mistress (even though she’s married) before the sheets are cold when a newer, prettier face catches his eye. I found it unsavory, for lack of a better word.

The setting here is particularly well done, although if readers want some hand holding they’re going to be disappointed. The sister writing duo of Izner doesn’t spell things out for readers not familiar with French history, culture or landmarks. What I know about France can basically be summed up to Napoleon and de Gaulle, but I felt completely comfortable in Izner’s world once I got my feet wet.

Murder on the Eiffel Tower reminds me of the days when mystery novels were a bit more genteel. Even though there is some nondescript sex, this is a book I’d be very comfortable recommending to someone who wants a “cleaner” read without all the unsavory sex and violence mucking up the works. I thought the monologue at the end on the part of the villain was a bit over the top, but the author does explain all the twists and turns to satisfaction. While this first book in the Victor Legris series largely left me unmoved, and I’m not really compelled to continue on with it, it may work for those readers who love 19th century Paris, throwback puzzle mysteries, or just want to escape Regency England for a little while.

Grade: C-

Summary:

The brand-new, shiny Eiffel Tower is the pride and glory of the 1889 World Exposition. But one sunny afternoon, as visitors are crowding the viewing platforms, a woman collapses and dies on this great Paris landmark. Can a bee sting really be the cause of death? Or is there a more sinister explanation? Enter young bookseller Victor Legris. Present on the tower at the time of the incident, and appalled by the media coverage of the occurrence, he is determined to find out what actually happened. In this dazzling evocation of late nineteenth-century Paris, we follow Victor as his investigation takes him all over the city and he suspects an ever-changing list of possible perpetrators. Could mysterious Kenji Mori, his surrogate father and business partner at the bookstore Legris operates, be involved in the crime? Why are beautiful Russian illustrator Tasha and her colleagues at the newly launched sensationalist newspaper Passepartout always up-to-date in their reporting? And what will Legris do when the deaths begin to multiply and he is caught in a race against time?