"They tear you apart... They leave no trace..."
Five years out of the Marseilles Judiciaire, Daniel Jacquot is happily retired, bringing up his two daughters on a beach in the Caribbean. But when an old friend pays an unexpected visit, retirement rapidly becomes a battle for survival...
"The girls didn't see the first shark... They didn't see the second or the third one either..."
"They tear you apart... They leave no trace..."
Five years out of the Marseilles Judiciaire, Daniel Jacquot is happily retired, bringing up his two daughters on a beach in the Caribbean. But when an old friend pays an unexpected visit, retirement rapidly becomes a battle for survival...
"The girls didn't see the first shark... They didn't see the second or the third one either..."
In 1972 a gold bullion convoy is hijacked in Marseilles. The security trucks and hijackers are swiftly rounded up, but a ton of gold has disappeared.
More than twenty years later, Daniel Jacquot receives an unexpected gift from an old fisherman. At the same time, a Marseilles lawyer called Claude Dupont receives an equally unexpected gift from a dying gangland boss.
When the Marseilles police become involved following a series of gruesome murders, the investigation is headed by Chief Inspector Isabelle Cassier. An old friend and sometime lover of Jacquot's, Isabelle discovers that the years haven't lessened her longing for the maverick Marseilles cop, and that her feelings for him are far from professional.
Together they embark on a cut-throat hunt for the gold, with hit-men from the Polineaux and Duclos clans hot on their heels. But after nearly thirty years, is the gold still there? And if it is, who will get to it first?
The Jacquot series is set in the 1990s – the years of Mitterand's and Chirac's presidencies – so there's no real emphasis on technology or advanced forensic science to crack the cases Jacquot finds himself involved in. Rather, it's bloodhound work, and he's the bloodhound – passionate, incorruptible, and often inspired.
It's also France with francs not euros, a golden age when you could smoke in a bar and Calvados didn't come with a health warning. Jacquot is not a drunk, but nor is he the kind of man who counts 'units'. What a horrible word. What a horrible concept. Jacquot would not approve.
MARTIN
BRIEN
O'
JACQUOT & THE ANGEL
When three generations of a wealthy German family are brutally murdered in their Provençal home, Daniel Jacquot heads up an investigation that rapidly turns into one of the most baffling – and personal – cases of his career.
After a local man is arrested for the murders Jacquot cannot shift the feeling that there's something wrong, something they've all missed. His suspicions are confirmed when a mysterious young woman arrives in the village claiming a special insight.
With her help, Jacquot follows a trail that leads back more than half a century – a story of love and betrayal, hatred and blackmail, in which Jacquot's own family had a tragic part to play.
Reviews
Long-listed for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2007
"Martin O'Brien creates a sexually-charged atmosphere that is as chilling as it is engaging."
– The Sydney Morning Herald
"French country life has never been so fraught with sinister atmosphere."
– Barry Forshaw
The Rough Guide to Crime Fiction
"This is a rich, leisurely read. Jacquot's not a cop to be rushing around – he enjoys his food and his cigarettes and the occasional joint. So relax and enjoy what's turning into an impressive series."
– reviewingtheevidence.com
"Only an Englishman could set his detective fiction in France and infuse it with such passion for the place and its people."
– The Daily Mail