I am pleased as punch to have Murder in Saint Germain by Cara Black as the selection this month. In case you didn’t know, Cara Black has written a series of highly entertaining murder mysteries taking place in the different arrondissements of Paris. The common thread throughout the bestselling books is the beloved heroine Aimee Leduc, who revives her grandfather's fading detective agency and makes it thrive again.
The latest book, Murder in Saint Germain, (the seventeenth book in the series), Aimee Leduc has an eight-month-old baby and is asked to take on a case of a woman convinced she is being chased by a ghost, a Serbian warlord.
Cara's publisher, Soho Press has generously offered a free Kindle copy of Murder in Saint Germain. The first person to leave a comment on www.eyepreferparis.com will receive the book.
Click here to order Murder in Saint Germain on Amazon
I have a special treat for you this month: An interview with Cara Black. Enjoy the interview and the book.
Where were you born and where did you grow up?
I was born in Chicago. My family moved to San Francisco when I was five. I grew up in the Bay Area and attended a French school.
What were your favorite books when you were growing up and which of them had a major impact on you?
The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, that my father would read to us on Sunday afternoons, was a vivid influence. The 1930’s editions of Nancy Drew that I found in my grandmother’s trunk with cool illustrations and a book about a raccoon that I won at school.
When did you know you wanted to become a writer?
I come from a family of readers. I’ve loved books ever since I could read them. To me, that’s a prerequisite for anyone who writes. To take the leap and try to do it myself, only happened when I heard a story that I was passionate to tell.
How did the character of Aimee Leduc come to you?
I knew I couldn’t write as a French woman because I can’t tie my scarf the way Parisians do. It’s genetic. But while I’d lived in France, so much felt familiar, yet I was, and am, an outsider. To use that experience was actually an advantage, Aimée’s parents represented both sides; her mother was an American radical, her father a Parisian flic who left the Force in disgrace and joined his father at Leduc Detective. So Aimée had two sides, never fully at home with either, an outsider. She’s like a lot of young women I see and know who wear heels, have the Paris fashion thing down, suffers relationship troubles, an incredible apartment that needs work, a dog, sense of humor and fondness for espresso.
Who are the most appealing heroines you find in fiction?
Characters who I care about, who struggle and overcome obstacles, even at a cost, to do the right thing.
If you could have one fictional character materialize in real life, who would it be and what you say to them?
Commissaire Morbier, Aimée’s godfather and her father’s first police colleague on the beat. Aimée and Morbier have always had a problematic relationship yet they care deeply for each other. I visualize the actor, Philippe Noiret, sadly gone now, when I write Morbier. He’s so much a part of what goes on the page that I really want to sit down with him at the terasse of an outdoor cafe and ask him the truth about Aimée’s father.
When you wrote your first book, did you already know you it was going to be a series?
Not a clue. I was ecstatic when I sold my first book, Murder in the Marais, after working on it for three and half years. To be asked for another and to write a series set in Paris seeming the icing on the cake. I’ve felt very lucky and privileged to write about the stories I find in Paris.
How do you research your books?
Taking the police out to dinner in Paris and hearing about their cases and procedure. Interviewing female detectives who investigate for a living. Having coffee with a medical pathologist asking questions and running a scenario by her. I’ve climbed into the sewers and quarries under Paris and tunnels under Jardin du Luxembourg, explored old train tunnels and le petit ceinture. I walk to know the streets, the life in the quartier, meet locals. I go to the archives, read old newspapers, speak with cafe owners, gardeners, people on the bus basically anyone who will talk to me. I’m a member of two historical associations in Paris, which is incredibly helpful in getting introductions to people in the arrondissement I’m writing about.
What are some of the surprising things you learned during your research and what were some of the odd or quirky encounters you’ve had?
Details are vital and bring authenticity. It’s important to know that the crinkly cover put over a corpse by the crime scene techs is blue. Don’t get those things wrong or a flic will tell you! Before the Brigade Criminelle (homicide squad) moved from 36 quai des Orfèvres at the Prefecture on Ile de la Cité I got a Tour from a detective. Incredible. He took me on the roof and it was amazing to see Paris below us in all directions with the Seine snaking around us. In the attic of this old building, he showed me where they hang up a bloody scene of the crime clothes on a line to dry. The skylights were open and I thought, seriously, what if the wind blew one of my hairs onto a bloody shirt. Would my DNA implicate me in a murder?
Which arrondissement will the next book take place and when shall we expect to see it?
Thank you for asking! The next investigation takes Aimée Leduc to the 13th arrondissement exploring the Buttes aux Cailles and the weaving studio at les Gobelins tapestry in Murder on the Left Bank - it comes out June 19, 2018.
Christmas & New Years in Paris-My Apartment for Rent December 24 to January 3(dates flexible)
How would you like to spend a magical Christmas and festive New Years in Paris?
I am renting my apartment out from December 24 to January 3, (dates are flexible) a total of 10 nights for $2500.
Centrally located in the heart of the Marais near the St. Paul metro station, it's a spacious one-bedroom 750 sq. ft. loft style apartment with 12 ft. ceilings, decorated in chic Mid-Century Modern furniture and sleeps one or two people in a Queen size bed. Amenities include A/C, washer/dryer, 16" flat screen TV, dishwasher, internet connection/Wifi and free long distance calls to the U.S. The apartment is located on the second floor with an elevator.
Photos upon request. Please email me at [email protected] if you are interested.
Come experience Eye Prefer Paris live with Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I personally lead. Eye Prefer Paris Tours include many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes, food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks and gardens and much more. In addition to my specialty Marais Tour, I also lead tours of Montmartre, St. Germain, Latin Quarter, in addition to Shopping Tours, Gay Tours, Girlfriend Tours, Food Tours, Flea Market Tours, Paris Highlights Tours, and Chocolate & Pastry tours.
Tours start at 225 euros for up to 3 people, and 75 euros for each additional person. I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.
Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com
Click here to watch a video of our famous Marais tour
