Eyes Full of Empty

Guez makes his English-language debut with this taut crime novel set in Paris. Idir, the 34-year-old son of a middle-class Algerian immigrant, occupies a precarious niche solving problems for the rich, whose language he speaks thanks to his exposure to them at university. Oscar Crumley, “the biggest media mogul in France” with whom Idir once had a violent run-in, hires Idir, who considers Oscar a “consummate asshole,” to look for his missing half-brother, Thibaut Crumley. Meanwhile, Eric Vernay, another wealthy acquaintance, wants Idir to locate his stolen car, an Audi R8. Idir knows neither man is telling him the truth, but he uses force to get a line on Thibaut’s whereabouts and turns to a childhood friend, gentleman car thief Cherif, for clues to who took the Audi. Idir moves between the upper and the criminal classes with a wicked grace that will appeal to American noir fans. (Nov.)