The man upon the stair : a mystery in fin-de-siècle Paris / Gary Inbinder.

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  • Additional Information
    • Publication Information:
      First Pegasus Books cloth edition.
    • Abstract:
      Summary: "Chief Inspector Achille Lefebvre returns from a much-needed vacation to find that there are assassins on his tail, and, as if that weren't enough, one of France's wealthiest men has gone missing without a trace."--Provided by publisher.
    • ISBN:
      9781681776354
      1681776359
    • Accession Number:
      on1023857707
      1023857707
    • Accession Number:
      lcc.on1023857707

Reviews

Booklist Reviews 2017 December #1

Achille Lefebvre, now chief inspector of the Sûreté, returns in Inbinder's third Fin de Siécle Paris mystery. Baroness de Livet frantically reports her husband missing; then her maid dies, ostensibly of flu, setting off a complex mystery involving suitcases of money, the baroness' diamonds, unidentified bodies, and mysterious connections to the Russian secret police, the Okhrana. Hercule Poirot might solve this puzzle through intuition alone, but Lefebvre uses traditional gumshoe methods, chasing down and teasing out clues and then leisurely gathering the disparate players and events into a logical explanation for the crimes. A dizzying number of details re-create the nineteenth-century Paris of artists, prostitutes, aristocrats, gamblers, and spies. Paris itself and Lefebvre are the most fully developed characters, while others, some of whom we met in The Hanged Man (2016), adhere more to type, making it a little hard to keep them straight. Nevertheless, Achille continues to endear, with his mashed flowers and good heart, much like Louise Penny's Armand Gamache. Fans of fin-de-siècle Paris may also enjoy Claude Izner's Victor Legris series. Copyright 2017 Booklist Reviews.

PW Reviews 2017 November #2

Inbinder's solid third mystery set in fin-de-siècle Paris (after 2016's The Hanged Man) finds the capable Achille Lefebvre, now chief of the Paris Detective Police, dealing with blowback from the arrest and execution of terrorist bomber Laurent Moreau. Moreau's colleagues have vowed revenge, forcing Lefebvre to be circumspect in his movements and to take precautions to insure his safety. Meanwhile, the new police chief must resolve the case of the wealthy Baron Le Noir de Livet, who vanished along with about a million francs after a dispute at a casino. A Russian prince named Papkov accused the baron of cheating at baccarat; a bloodless duel between the two preceded the disappearance. The puzzle deepens after one of de Livet's servants is poisoned. The intriguing plot—Lefebvre must determine whether the baron's whereabouts connect with European power politics—compensates for the less-than-distinctive lead. Agent: Lukas Ortiz, Philip Spitzer Agency. (Feb.)

Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly.