Murdering People All Over Paris

As I write this I’m on the TGV to Nice, catching a network or two using my iPhone’s Personal Hotspot while the high speed train zooms along at such a speed that my ears keep popping. The weather is rainy and while the landscape through Provence is usually stunning, all I can see from the picture window on the train is mist, rain and gray skies. According to the weather app on the phone, it’s raining in Nice as it is here and will be tomorrow as well — not the usual sunny welcome I get, but “c’est la vie en France!”

My stay in Nice will be punctuated by a long weekend in Perugia (Italy), where one of my cousins has just moved. Why she chose Perugia, I’m not really sure, but within seconds of her telling me this, I said, “When you get there, I’m coming to visit!” And here I am, on route to celebrate my birthday in the Umbrian town. The “trajet” (route) is “du gâteau” from Nice: a short plane ride to Rome, via Nice’s easy-peasy airport just minutes from town via bus and soon via tram, with a three-hour bus ride to the center of Perugia, the Piazza Partigiani. It’s been so many years since I’ve visited Perugia, that I hardly remember it except for the pasta dish served up in a local trattoria that still lingers in my mind. On Monday, you’ll hear all about my Italian adventure.

While I’m in Nice, I’ll be seeking two apartments in which we can film a House Hunters International episode, sometime during the week beginning October 29th — a one bedroom in central Nice. The episode is about a search for a rental apartment, but it doesn’t matter if the apartment is rented or for sale, as long as the owner (not renter) will give us permission to film it. If you have one or know of one, please email me immediately at [email protected].

Yesterday at Après Midi, author Cara Black introduced her newest and 18th murder mystery, “Murder on the Left Bank” (an Aimée Leduc investigation) to an SRO audience who couldn’t wait to get to know her. Her first book, “Murder in the Marais,” began as a kind of obsession after hearing a story from a friend about how her mother came home to an empty apartment during World War II, never to find her parents again — they had been shipped off to Auschwitz while she attended school — and how the concierge of the building helped keep her alive until the war ended. The story fascinated her so much that years later she decided to tell a version of the tale in the form of a detective novel, hence the meager beginnings to what is now a major series.

She openly talks about how she has murdered people all over Paris (hypothetically, of course). Once, I was her accomplice, ferreting out a good spot to hide a body in my own district, the 3rd arrondissement. That answer can be found when you read “Murder at the Lanterne Rouge” (2012).

Cara has spoken often at our monthly gathering, and always draws a big audience of aficionados. While I’ve heard her story many times, it always impresses me how a small, but important story was the seed in generating such a profound series of books that has thrilled so many readers across the globe. As almost every Paris arrondissement is represented, Cara asked us if we knew which two were missing in the series. Can you guess? (Try to, but if you can’t get it, the answer is in the P.S.) These two remaining are already in the works, to form a complete 20-book series. What’s next for Cara? She’s already working on her next project, a novel that takes place during World War II.

Cara recently began hosting her own tours to Paris. The first one of its kind starting this coming Sunday, October 14th (sorry, it’s already sold out). Lucky attendees will have an exclusive week in Paris with Cara exploring some of the most memorable scenes associated with the cases that private investigator Aimée Leduc has solved in several of the books. They’ll also have time to spend in some of the small gems of Paris — the lesser-known museums, the spectacular parks, the off-the-beaten-track cafés, hidden passages that are home to specialty boutiques, antiquarian bookstores and other treasures.

For those who wish to take advantage of her next tour, May 11-18, 2019, click here to learn more and sign up. Be sure to tell Cara I sent you.

And btw, you can purchase all her books by visiting our Recommended Reading pages.

A la prochaine…

Adrian Leeds
Adrian Leeds Group

(with Cara Black)

Respond to Adrian

P.S. The two Paris districts in which a dead body has yet to be found in Cara Black’s mysteries are the 15th and 19th. Did you guess right?