The Book Artist: A Hugo Marston Novel

The Book Artist by Mark Pryor, the eighth in the Hugo Marson series, is set, once again, in Paris. This time, Hugo, Regional Security Officer at the American embassy, is asked by his boss to escort a beautiful American artist to a party and agrees to be her date the following night at her exhibition opening. When the artist is found murdered at the event, Hugo is quick to offer his services to the local police force having worked along side them on previous cases. Unfortunately, this time, the detective in charge is not as welcoming. This becomes even more true when the number one suspect is none other than Claudia, Hugo’s girlfriend.

Besides the murder plot, Hugo is also keeping up with his friend and colleague, Tom, who is in Amsterdam chasing down a man whom he believes is trying to kill them both.

In typical Pryor style, the descriptions of Paris are mesmerizing. To those of us who have been there, his novels read like a love letter to the city. To the reader yet to visit, the novels are a siren song that should not be ignored. Marry that with a nice dose of murder and mayhem, plus a detective character that is both likable and believable, and this novel, and the others in the series, cannot disappoint.