The Case of the Black Pearl

A dashing private detective enters the glamorous and grimy world of the Cannes Film Festival to find a missing starlet in this “fast and clever” mystery (Library Journal).   Enigmatic Englishman Patrick de Courvoisier has left his troubled past behind for a life of leisure on a houseboat in the Old Port of Cannes. But for a man known as Le Limier, or The Fixer, leisure is only amusing for so long. Luckily, trouble has a way of finding him—even in the South of France.   As the Cannes Film Festival gets into full swing, the resort town is overrun with Hollywood types and everyone is abuzz about actress Angele Valette’s new movie The Black Pearl—funded by Russian oligarch Vasily Chapayev, owner of the famous pearl for which it’s named. But when Angele disappears, having last been seen at the film’s launch party on Vasily’s yacht, Le Limier is called upon to find her.   As Patrick questions all those involved with the movie, he discovers the dirty truth behind the silver screen. And when he finds a dead body on his boat, Patrick must solve the case—and clear his name—before he’s given a lifetime of leisure behind bars.   “Courvoisier is a dashing, sophisticated hero, and with an action-packed plot, filled with violence and shocking twists, this page-turner will more than satisfy fans of jet-setting suspense.” —Booklist