10 Best French Mystery Books Set in Paris!
If you're after some tantalizingly intriguing French mystery novels set in the grand old city of Paris, you've clicked on the right guide! We've scavenged the literary landscape to find you the crème de la crème of page-turners where the City of Light itself plays a central role. Picture this - following the shadowy pursuit under the flickering lamplights of the Montmartre, or racing against time down the narrow alleys around Notre-Dame, maybe a high-stakes chase along the Seine and its ever enchanting embankments. Sounds exciting, right?
This curated list keeps you on the trail of some astute detectives, amateur sleuths, and intriguing characters who'll take you through a whirlwind tour of Paris - from its quaint cafes to the mysteries lurking behind its Baroque facades! These stories, filled with beguiling intrigue and suspense, are more than just thrilling reads; they're perfect companions to know the city’s very soul and pulse.
Whether you're a hardcore Francophile, a mystery genre buff, or you just love a good whodunit set in an astonishing backdrop, this guide is bound to be a treat! So, get ready, fellow mystery lover, your tour to the darker side of the luminous Paris starts here. Bon voyage!
『The Da Vinci Code』
#1 WORLDWIDE BESTSELLER • While in Paris, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is awakened by a phone call in the dead of the night. The elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum, his body covered in baffling symbols. “Blockbuster perfection.... A gleefully erudite suspense novel.” —The New York Times “A pulse-quickening, brain-teasing adventure.” —People As Langdon and gifted French cryptologist Sophie Neveu sort through the bizarre riddles, they are stunned to discover a trail of clues hidden in the works of Leonardo da Vinci—clues visible for all to see and yet ingeniously disguised by the painter. Even more startling, the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion—a secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci—and he guarded a breathtaking historical secret. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle—while avoiding the faceless adversary who shadows their every move—the explosive, ancient truth will be lost forever.
Author | Dan Brown |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Vintage |
Release Date | Mar 28, 2006 |
Source | Google Books |
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『Perfume』
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • Set in eighteenth-century France, the classic novel that provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one man’s indulgence in his greatest passion—his sense of smell—leads to murder. In the slums of eighteenth-century France, the infant Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one sublime gift—an absolute sense of smell. As a boy, he lives to decipher the odors of Paris, and apprentices himself to a prominent perfumer who teaches him the ancient art of mixing precious oils and herbs. But Grenouille’s genius is such that he is not satisfied to stop there, and he becomes obsessed with capturing the smells of objects such as brass doorknobs and fresh-cut wood. Then one day he catches a hint of a scent that will drive him on an ever-more-terrifying quest to create the “ultimate perfume”—the scent of a beautiful young virgin. Told with dazzling narrative brilliance, Perfume is a hauntingly powerful tale of murder and sensual depravity. Translated from the German by John E. Woods.
Author | Patrick Suskind |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Vintage |
Release Date | Feb 13, 2001 |
Source | Google Books |
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Source | Google Books |
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Source | Google Books |
『Bruno, Chief of Police』
The first installment in the delightful, internationally acclaimed series featuring Chief of Police Bruno. Meet Benoît Courrèges, aka Bruno, a policeman in a small village in the South of France. He’s a former soldier who has embraced the pleasures and slow rhythms of country life. He has a gun but never wears it; he has the power to arrest but never uses it. But then the murder of an elderly North African who fought in the French army changes all that. Now Bruno must balance his beloved routines—living in his restored shepherd’s cottage, shopping at the local market, drinking wine, strolling the countryside—with a politically delicate investigation. He’s paired with a young policewoman from Paris and the two suspect anti-immigrant militants. As they learn more about the dead man’s past, Bruno’s suspicions turn toward a more complex motive. "Enjoyable.... Martin Walker plots with the same finesse with which Bruno can whip up a truffle omelette, and both have a clear appreciation for a life tied to the land." —The Christian Science Monitor "A nice literary pairing with the slow-food movement.... [It is] lovely...to linger at the table." —Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully crafted novel as satisfying as a French pastry but with none of the guilt or calories." —Tuscon Citizen's Journal
Author | Martin Walker |
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Price | $7.99 |
Publisher | Vintage |
Release Date | Mar 24, 2009 |
Source | Google Books |
『Murder on the Eiffel Tower』
Murder on the Eiffel Tower is painstakingly researched, an effortless evocation of the glorious City of Light, and an exciting opening to a promising series featuring Victor Legris. 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? Winner of the prestigious Michel Lebrun French Thriller Prize
Author | Claude Izner |
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Price | $14.99 |
Publisher | Minotaur Books |
Release Date | Sep 15, 2009 |
Source | Google Books |
『The Missing Italian Girl』
In the third crime novel in the critically acclaimed Bernard Martin mystery series, young immigrant girls are disappearing into the depths of turn-of-the-century Paris. On a sultry night in June 1897, Pyotr Ivanovich Balenov, a young Russian, and two young women transport a dead man through the narrow streets of a working-class neighborhood in northeastern Paris. They throw the body into the canal and the girls flee to the Latin Quarter to hide with one of the Russian’s anarchist “comrades.” They do not realize they, too, are being watched. Their subsequent disappearance and the violent acts that follow will set Clarie Martin, a teacher, and mother of a toddler, and her husband, magistrate Bernard Martin (last seen in Cezanne's Quarry and The Blood of Lorraine) on a dangerous quest to rescue them from a vicious killer.
Author | Barbara Corrado Pope |
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Price | $9.99 |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Release Date | Nov 15, 2021 |
Source | Google Books |
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『Have Mercy on Us All』
"Concerned, Le Guern brings the puzzling notes to the bumbling but brilliant Chief Inspector Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg and his straight-edged, right-hand man, Adrien Danglard. When strange signs that were historically believed to ward off the black death start to appear on the doors of several buildings, Adamsberg takes notice and suspects a connection with Le Guern's warnings. After a flea-bitten corpse with plague-like symptoms is found in one of the marked buildings, Fred Vargas's inimitable genius chief inspector is under pressure to solve the mystery and restore calm to a panicked Paris. But is it a real case of the bubonic scourge, or just a sinister trick designed to frighten as the body count grows and the culprit continues to elude the police?"--BOOK JACKET.
Author | Fred Vargas |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Release Date | Nov 08, 2005 |
Source | Google Books |
Well, there you have it, ma dame et monsieur! Those are the 10 most captivating detective and mystery novels that you absolutely must read if you're a fan of suspenseful intrigue set in the heart of captivating Paris. Whether you're looking to explore intricate crime scenes in the winding alleyways of Montmartre, uncover nefarious conspiracies in the grand halls of the Louvre, or unravel complex mysteries in the bustling cafés of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, these books are sure to transport you to the gritty yet glamorous streets of the City of Light. An enchanting blend of dark, nail-biting mystery and the every day charm of Parisian life, they're masterclasses in suspense and storytelling that'll have you gripping the edge of your seat, cup of café au lait forgotten at your side. In the spirit of French savoir-fair, these aren't just tales of crime and investigation. You'll also get to savour a generous side-serving of French culture, history, and quintessential Parisian flair. Time to get reading, folks! À la prochaine!
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