Baudelaire’s Revenge

Flemish author van Laerhoven makes his U.S. debut with this intense historical crime thriller, winner of the Hercule Poirot Prize in 2007. As 1870 Paris suffers hunger, angry mobs, and Prussian shelling, melancholic police commissioner Paul Lefèvre stumbles upon a murder victim in a brothel. Written on a piece of paper near the body are verses from Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire, who died in 1867. As new corpses appear, Lefèvre and his assistant realize that all the victims once opposed Baudelaire in some way—and that the menacing stanzas accompanying each body are in the poet’s own handwriting. Is an ardent supporter taking revenge, or is Baudelaire’s ghost afoot? Though the journals of an androgynous confidence trickster, who claims a twisted bond with the poet, offer clues, both policemen find their lives imperiled before the truth emerges. Overabundant philosophical exchanges slow the pace, and the explicit pain and perversity will disturb some readers. Still, the intricate plot, menacing atmosphere, and rich evocations of period Paris have undeniable power. Agent: William Clark, William Clark Associates. (Apr.)