Paris Requiem by Chris Lloyd

Today it’s over to Mandie who is sharing her thoughts on Paris Requiem, the brand new novel by Chris Lloyd. Thanks to Becca Byrant at Orion for the tour invite and the advance copy of the book. Here’s what it’s all about:

About the Book

‘You have a choice which way you go in this war…’

Paris, September 1940.

After three months under Nazi Occupation, not much can shock Detective Eddie Giral. That is, until he finds a murder victim who was supposed to be in prison. Eddie knows, because he put him there. The dead man is not the first or the last criminal being let loose onto the streets. But who is pulling the strings, and why?

This question will take Eddie from jazz clubs to opera halls, from old flames to new friends, from the lights of Paris to the darkest countryside – pursued by a most troubling truth: sometimes to do the right thing, you have to join the wrong side…

Mandie’s Thoughts

Although this is the second book in the series it is the first one I have read and the first one by its author Chris Lloyd. Anyone that knows me knows that I have a bit of an obsession with history and also historical fiction and am always on the lookout for a books that feed this obsession and also capture my attention and imagination and the blurb for this book had me believing that Paris Requiem would fit that bill. 

Detective Eddie Giral is called to the body found in a closed club in Paris. What is confusing is that the victim is a known criminal who Eddie is certain should still be in prison and added to that is the state that the body is found in. The only sign of anything on the body is that his mouth has been crudely sewn shut. As he digs into what happened he finds that more criminals have been released from prison, but no one is saying on who’s authority or why, in fact there is no evidence that they were ever in prison in the first place. Added to this he is being monitored by German authorities and they do not necessarily want Eddie poking around in what is happening. 

Its been a while since I have read a book that is written in the first person but I found it a refreshing change and it somehow made the book seem like it was flowing at quite a pace. Seeing everything from Eddie’s viewpoint meant that I connected with the story and his investigations as I saw his thought processes and watched as he questioned himself and his actions both past and present. 

Eddie is quite a complex character who doesn’t like working with others and doesn’t trust easily and as the book progresses I can understand why as he is put in situations and has to make snap decisions that not only affect him and his investigations but those that are close to him. It was interesting to watch how he handled the demands of the German Abwehr and those that are intent on ensuring he never gets to the bottom of who is responsible for the murder. Eddie is by no means a perfect police officer and he seems to have no issues playing people against each other if it gets him what he needs especially if it is to help those he cares for or those he feels he has let down in the past. 

Now that I have been introduced to the world of Eddie Giral I think I may have to go back to book 1 and see what I have missed as although you can quite easily pick this book up and read it without having read The Unwanted Dead I want to see how it all started whilst I wait for more.

About the Author

Chris Lloyd is the author of The Unwanted Dead (Orion), winner of the Historical Writer’s Association Gold Crown Award. Paris Requiem is his first novel to be published in America. He lived in Catalonia for over twenty years, falling in love with the people, the country, the language and Barcelona Football Club. Chris now lives in Wales, where he is at work on his next novel. 

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