Folly Du Jour: A Joe Sandilands Mystery

I have enjoyed this whole series. Good writing, good period research, and great stories. I had to buy this one, even before it went to paperback, because I have enjoyed the series so much.

As the seventh of Barbara Cleverley's mystery series starring Joe Sandilands, it must first be said that "Folly de Jour" should *not* be read without first reading Ragtime in Simla. I found that out the hard way, as this latest installment features a character that no doubt played a significant part in that previous mystery, and whose appearance here contains several spoilers for whatever it was that went down in Simla five books ago. Furthermore, although this is an enjoyable read, it's not the best book in this series and probably not one that a newcomer should start with. It is 1927 and detective Joe Sandilands arrives in Paris to attend an Interpol Conference. Meanwhile, his old friend and colleague George Jardine is seated at the Theatre des Champs-Elysees after receiving an anonymous ticket at his hotel. Thinking that it's from his nephew, George is shocked to find himself in the presence of two old acquaintances: in the box across the theatre sits a familiar and unwelcome face from the military; beside him in the box is a beautiful woman that he had assumed dead. He's in for a very strange evening, and not just due to the scandalous performance on the stage. Early the same morning, Sandilands is awakened at his hotel by his superiors, asking him to attend to a diplomatic situation. Jardine is being held in the custody of the overzealous Commissaire Fournier, having been accused of cutting the throat of his old enemy who was found murdered in his box after the performance. Sandilands is convinced of his friend's innocence, and yet is surprised to find Jardine oddly unforthcoming on the subject. He's obviously hiding something, and helped by his French associate Jean-Philippe Bonnefoye, Sandilands eventually stumbles to the idea of a secret assassination bureau who stage elaborate murders for the enjoyment of their clients. "Folly du Jour" provides a bright, colourful look at Parisian culture in the 1920s, for Cleverley's gift is the ring of authenticity in her settings, and every sentence is packed full of a sense of time and place. Furthermore, there is a liveliness to the prose that makes everything seem very real and immediate: "I favour a Luger these days for self-protection. Though I make a point of never going armed to the theatre. Too tempting to express an over-critical view of the performance." There is plenty of humour and humanity to the proceedings that help balance out the darker side of the criminal world. Joe Sandilands is a good, if somewhat bland detective, who in his professional capacity, deals with military, diplomatic and political crimes. The protocol of 1920s policing in both Britain and France seems to be very well researched (though I'm no expert on the matter, it certainly *feels* authentic) and Cleverley manages to capture a very masculine point-of-view in regards to her protagonist. However, as I said before, "Folly du Jour" is not her best. The concept of the "theatre-murder for hire" is a little overbl

Barbara Cleverly gives us another wonderful read with Joe Sandilands. Her delightful character Joe Sandilands is now in France. He is called to the aid his old friend from India and the plot unfolds. Her historical setting is so believable that the reader is transported back to the days of Apollinaire in France. Once you read one you will need to read them all. I hope she is busy writing as I need another Joe Sandilands fix.

In 1927 Scotland Yard Detective Joe Sandilands attends the Interpol conference in Paris, but when he lands at the airport the local police meet him. They take Joe to a prison where they hold a countryman of his charged with murder. Joe is stunned to find the French police accuse his long time friend Sir George Jardine of stabbing Sir Stanley Somerton, another person Joe knew but in this case would prefer not to have ever met the horrid victim. Joe rejects the official position as he knows George would never do such an act except in self defense. He and French detective Inspector Jean-Philippe Bonnefoye investigate together based on the assumption someone else murdered the sleazy Somerton. They start at the morgue where pathologist Dr. Moulin explains the odd M.O. matches several recent homicides in the last three to four years. The two sleuths wonder whether a serial killer is stalking Paris. FOLLY DU JOUR is a terrific 1920s police procedural starring two superb detectives. Joe may be shocked in his latest case (see THE BEE'S KISS, THE PALACE TIGER and THE LAST KASHMIRI ROSE), but gets to work right away while his French partner holds up his end of their joint investigation. Although the resolution can be seen from the French capital to London, historical mystery readers enjoy the two detectives' guided tour of Roaring Twenties euphoric post WWI Paris as this is a superb historical whodunit. Harriet Klausner