The Cemetery of Swallows
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
A Paris police detective delves into an inexplicable murder in this “gripping and surprising” literary noir (Shelf Awareness).
One day, mild-mannered Manuel Gemoni travels to the other end of the world to kill an old man in the Dominican Republic. When questioned by police, Manuel can only explain his bizarre actions by saying, “I killed him because he had killed me.”
Unable to comprehend why an ordinary family man with no history of violent behavior would go to such lengths to kill someone he didn’t even know, Police Commissioner Amédée Mallock decides to investigate. In order to save Manuel from death, the misanthropic Mallock must immerse himself in a case that spans from the harsh tropical jungles of the Dominican Republic to the snow-covered streets of Paris.
“A provocative novel that explores such disparate topics as international criminal law, black magic, and personal loyalty . . . Readers will enjoy the rich colonial history and cross-cultural commentary as the motive for Manuel's execution of Darbier gradually emerges.” —Publishers Weekly
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
French author Mallock (the pseudonym of Jean-Denis Bruet-Ferreol) makes his U.S. debut with a provocative novel that explores such disparate topics as international criminal law, black magic, and personal loyalty. Supt. Amedee Mallock, of the Parisian police force, travels to the Dominican Republic, in order to extradite a French national, Manuel Gemoni, who recently shot dead elderly Tobias Darbier in a square outside a Dominican cigar factory. Mallock learns that Darbier was "the most hated man on the island," a tyrant who had survived more than 30 assassination attempts in the past seven years. Since Manuel happens to be the brother of Paris police captain Julie Gemoni, who reports to Mallock, the superintendent must be careful to not only do his civic duty but also uncover any clues or mitigating circumstances that "would keep Manuel from being given the maximum sentence." Readers will enjoy the rich colonial history and cross-cultural commentary as the motive for Manuel's execution of Darbier gradually emerges.
