Peril in Paris

Set in 1936, Bowen’s middling 16th Royal Spyness mystery (after 2021’s God Rest Ye, Royal Gentlemen) demands even more suspension of disbelief than usual. Though Lady Georgiana “Georgie” Ranoch O’Mara is expecting her first child, she’s still roped into a dangerous assignment by her husband, Darcy, who works for a shadowy branch of the British government. Georgie’s best friend from school, Belinda, has invited her to Paris, where Belinda is assisting fashion designer Coco Chanel. The scheduled arrival in that city of Gerda Goldberg, a Jewish friend of Nazi leader Hermann Göring’s wife, could enable Darcy to get his hands on some valuable microfilm; Gerda’s scientist husband has developed a poison gas detector and has agreed to pass the formula to the British. Georgie, who will attend the same fashion show as Gerda, is to get the microfilm from her and convey it to Darcy. That pregnant Georgie would agree to such a risky assignment will strike many as improbable, as will her suspicions that Darcy might actually be working for Hitler. Sadly absent is the laugh-out-loud humor of the series’ best entries. This one’s for diehard fans only. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (Nov.)