The plot in this book is non existent.
I am unsure whether part of the problem is in the translation.
A huge huge disappointment

Sadly I ended up giving up on this book at 20%. Usually I try read more but this just wasn't working for me.
I think the translation may have been an issue for me here. The premise sounded perfect for me. But I just could not manage it.

Unfortunately the book was a miss for me. I did not get into the story at all, disliked the main character entirely and had to force myself to even finish this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this wonderful book.

There is a saying that one should not concentrate on the destination but enjoy the journey. That describes this book. It is a mystery that takes place in Paris and Versailles twenty years before the French Revolution when the monarchy was Power and all was intrigue, and it was who you knew, and how much you paid them. There were a few honest men and one of them is the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths of this book.

There is so much history in this book and revelations that even a history buff like myself found wondering about. The original of this book was written in 2012 and won a French prize so the English reader like myself must hope that these revelations are based on fact. This is the first of a series of Barde-Cabucon books to be translated into English. Like the Nicolas Le Floch series of books that have been translated into English, this book is full of fascinating characters including Casanova who commands a big share of the intrigue.

So there is the king who is Louis XV and the Pompadour who has power over the king but is really a nice person!! There is Sartine, the Chief of Police who bought his position (and those of us that have read Nicolas le Floch know quite a bit about)--he is not a nice person. Then there are all the underground groups, the Templars that no longer exist but have given birth to...and the Freemasons and on and on. Sounds a lot like American politics, everyone fighting to the death for an advantage for what they believe in. And what they believe in is what will give them the most power. Here and there are definite seeds about the revolution about to come.

I loved this book. I never knew who done it but didn't care, it was fun. The love stories were fun, the intrigue was fun and since I live in Paris, I was picturing the old, dirty, mucky Paris before it became the city we all know and love today.

When a woman's body is discovered brutally murdered in the streets of Paris, the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is called to the scene. Given the title by King Louis XV himself, Chevalier de Volnay is tasked with uncovering who this criminal is and what connection the victim has to the King himself when a letter from him was found among her possessions. After another woman is killed Volnay finds himself tangled up in dangerous conspiracies, assassination attempts and revolutionary factions that want to overthrow the crown. Upon reading the premise of this book I thought this sounded like something I would really enjoy. Mystery, history, old world Paris - what's not to love? Well, this entire book for one. The actual premise takes a full-on backseat to lengthy descriptions, side plots as well as vulgar scenes and dialog that have no relevance to the story. I signed on for a historical murder mystery and ended up with "locker room talk" in a Versailles bordel. Yes, the mystery gets solved along the way but it's almost an afterthought. Having been translated from French I wonder if the writing style has just left this plot literally lost in translation. Maybe it's just me but the book blurb should actually be a fair assessment of what the book is really about, no? In my opinion, the description needs a bit of a rewrite. This was a hard no from me. Thank you to NetGalley and Steerforth Press for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is an unusual and complex historical mystery translated from the French. Set during the reign (and featuring) Louis XV, it's the tale of Volnay, the Inspector, and the mysterious Monk as they solve the mystery of murdered and mutilated young women, Know that it's gruesome in spots and that the politics of the period are critical to the plot. I found myself seeking more info about various characters (who is real? who is a creation?). Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I'm hoping more books in this series will be published in the US.

I started reading this book hoping to be intrigued by a Sherlock Holmes style retelling and that's where I made my first mistake.

Plot: set in the king cannot keep his penis to himself and its resulted in murder which the inspector of strange unexplained deaths is supposed to uncover

Triggers: rape, sexual expression, fuckboy shenanigans

Opinion: I started the book thinking it would be such a wonderful way to get into my 2020 reading list. Sadly this book dropped me down into such a massive book slump. Personally in the beginning there was some good setup of what was going on and the efforts to uncover thee crime, but this took such a twist and now I've read almost 5/10 chapters of fuckboy (Cassanova) wants to take her clothes off and she being a lady is playing mind games with the inspector.

I DNF'd at 75% and I would really need to have a lot more confidence before I attempt one of the writers books again. He/she should keep perfecting their art.

Due to the poor formatting of this e-ARC, I was unable to read it. It was difficult to distinguish paragraphs, among other issues.

Sadly I just couldn't get into this title. I read a few chapters but moved on after this as it just wasn't gripping me. Sorry

a slow paced mystery thriller with a quite unsatisfying ending but also a very well done historical fiction mystery thriller full of texture and nuance which kept me going. This is the first translated of a series and I look forward to the next one!

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is the first in a series by Barde-Cabuçon, but it’s the only one currently translated to English. Hopefully, they’ll get around to the rest soon because I really enjoyed it.

The story takes place in 1759 Paris, somewhere between the shiny halls of Versailles ruled by debauched Louis XV and his cohorts, and the dirty, dangerous hovels of Parisian suburbs inhabited by the desperately poor. The general population of Paris is seething with resentment, misery, and anger, on the brink of revolution, while the elites seem oblivious to both the inequity and the risks.

On the streets of Paris, a horribly mutilated body of a young woman is discovered; the inquiry into her death quickly leads into dangerous territory – to the boudoirs of Versailles, where terminally bored Louis XV is mostly preoccupied with his newest sexual conquests. The detective who has taken on the case is Chevalier de Volnay, named the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths by Louis XV himself as a reward for saving the king’s life two years prior. The case becomes rather complicated. We’ve got Louis XV and his extremely influential mistress Madame de Pompadour, the mysterious Count Saint-Germain, Church fundamentalists, Freemasons, secret societies, desperate prostitutes, and would-be alchemists. Even the famous Giacomo Casanova, famous lover, womanizer, spy, courtier, scammer, memorialist, and adventurer, plays a significant role. He was one of my favorites actually. The Inspector himself seems to be the only honest, moral man in Paris. His partner, a monk, is brilliant and has a fascinating history of his own.

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is not exactly a traditional mystery. Yes, we have a murder and yes the detective goes about solving it, but that plot is almost secondary to the relationships, secrets, and society games. The mystery does get solved in the meantime, right between the romantic drama and the political intrigue. It cares more about characters’ personalities, dreams, and needs than clues. It’s a bit meandering, with detailed descriptions of clothing, food, interiors, and conversations, but for me that was part of its charm.

“Historical mystery” is a genre I love, but don’t read enough of. The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths was a good mystery with plenty of drama and a touch of romance. It was a good way to start my reading year.

A historical thriller set during the reign of Louis XV that shines with detail and description. I was expecting something far more courtly, especially once I realised Casanova was a key character, however it was a much more varied novel than I expected. Whilst the machinations of Madame Pompadour were definitely present, there was also a lot of other motivations present that I did not expect, such as secret societies and religious tensions. If you are looking for immersion in a highly detailed historical novel then this author may just rival Sansom and Mantel for your attention.

Paints a fascinating portrait of Paris in the 18th century - murky and mysterious and full of murder.

An interesting premise but sadly disappointing. The story is difficult to follow, particularly in this layout, causing the reader to loose interest. The book contain se dark and depressing themes.

The full review is available on my blog: https://reenchantmentoftheworld.blog/2020/11/18/olivier-barde-cabucon-the-inspector-of-strange-and-unexplained-deaths-2020/.

The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths, from now on TISUD for the sake of me finishing this review this year and you ever reading it in full, is the first instalment in a 7-book series, a recipient of a Prix Sang d’encre for 2012, and the only Barde-Cabuçon book currently translated to English. Published by Pushkin Vertigo imprint in their series of non-English mysteries and crime novels, it had earlier existed on the market under a probably less sellable but more faithful to the original title, Casanova and a Faceless Woman. So, if you’ve read Casanova, TISUD is not a sequel, but the same exact book, just republished 😉. Ooof. Since this book is about mysterious, mistaken and hidden identities, the whole affair with the English title is simply delightfully ironic.

TISUD is a historical crime novel, and a very peculiar one at that. It takes place in 1759 in decadent Paris, somewhere between the shiny halls of Versailles ruled by debauched Louis XV and his cohorts, and the dirty, dangerous hovels of Parisian suburbs inhabited by the desperate poor. The social climate is the most compelling character in this novel, as the general population of Paris is seething with resentment, misery and anger, and seems on a brink of revolution, while the decadent elites seem oblivious to both the inequity and the inherent risks (and since it’s historical fiction, TISUD gets this part to a t).

On the streets of Paris, a horribly mutilated body of a young woman is discovered; the inquiry into her death quickly leads into a very dangerous territory – to the boudoirs of Versailles, where terminally bored Louis XV is mostly preoccupied with his newest sexual conquests, be they consensual or not, or even adult or not. But since the inquirer in question is Chevalier de Volnay, named the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths by Louis XV himself as a reward for saving the king’s life two years prior, we may hope he’ll get to the bottom of the case. And what a case it is, linking Louis XV, his extremely influential mistress Madame de Pompadour, the mysterious Count Saint-Germain, the Enlightenment philosophers, Church fundamentalists, Freemasons, secret societies conspiring in a very Ra's al Ghul style to topple existing social order and put themselves on top, desperate prostitutes and would-be alchemists, and many, many more – and last, but not least, none other than Chevalier de Seingalt, the famous lover, womanizer, spy, courtier, scammer, memorialist and adventurer Giacomo Casanova.

As I mentioned on GR, this novel seems very French to me. What I mean by it is that TISUD doesn’t concern itself too much with the criminal mystery at its core – it is much more interested in exploring the human relationships, the secrets of human hearts and minds, the social games played by big and small. Blackmail, verbal sparring, double entendres, innuendos – this seems the true forte of Barde-Cabuçon. The mystery gets solved in the meantime, right between the romantic drama and the political intrigue. In that context, TISUD reminded me very much of Theophile Gautier’s novel, Captain Fracasse, via Alexander Dumas’s Count of Monte Christo, or even Gustave Flaubert’s books, where the plot often serves as a background for the true drama of the clash between characters’ personalities, between their dreams, needs and reality. It’s also written in a charmingly old-fashioned style, with long, unusually structured sentences, stilted conversations and much care for social niceties. It might be the style, or the translation - after all, English and French are structurally different enough for it to matter.

TISUD is a meandering affair; many pages are spent on the detailed description of clothing, food, interiors, lazy conversations. Even more – on the intangible tortures of hearts and souls. There’s a bit of a social commentary, a delightful sprinkling of historical figures and events – such as the aforementioned assassination attempt on Louis XV by Damiens, so meticulously described by Michel Foucault in his seminal work, Discipline and Punishment, or the mystery surrounding Saint-Germain.

All in all, The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is an interesting addition to the popular mystery/crime genre. If you’d like something a bit different to the usual American fare, a mystery wrapped in a period drama/romance and tied with a nice ribbon of historical social commentary, this might be just the book for you.

Score: 7.5/10

Paris in the mid-18th Century and King Louis XV is becoming more despotic by the week. Whilst the aristocracy remain in fear, Madame de Pompadour acts as a procuress for her erstwhile lover's increasingly perverse needs. Meanwhile the general populace is plotting revolution. When the body of a young girl is found, horribly mutilated, Volnay is called in to investigate as the clues lead straight to court.
This was such a confusing book. The plot wheels around turns back on itself and in the end isn't really satisfying. there were several too many secret societies and characters whose motivation and loyalties seem to turn in an instance. What could have been a really strong historical detective novel just became far too complicated and confusing for me

this was a great historical mystery, i loved the setting that they used and the characters that were in this story. I enjoyed going through this book.

What an excellent historical mystery! It's well researched, full of twists and turns and it kept me hooked turning pages as fast as I could.
I loved the mix of historical and fictional characters, the vivid historical background and the tightly knitted plot.
It was like travelling to Versailles and discovering court intrigues and mysteries.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

"The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths" is a period piece, set in 1700's France in the Court of Louis XV. The book is full of intrigue, mysterious societies, mysterious 'people', murder, governmental unrest and spies, lots and lots of spies...EVERYONE spies...on everyone else. :D

Multiple historic figures make an appearance. The court of Louis XV, Madame de Pompadour, Le Comte de St. Germain, Casanova, etc. and the book is well researched and gives voice and life to these figures from the past. The actual mystery, the 'strange and unexpected death' of a literally faceless young woman weaves throughout the court intrigue and political maneuverings. Volnay, our protagonist is sublimely unconcerned with all of these shenanigans or so he would like to appear as he attempts to solve the mystery of a faceless young woman, but keeps getting drawn further and further into multiple political, social and religious plots.

I enjoyed the characterizations. The mysterious goings on kept one intrigued. My favorite characters were a suitably mysterious monk and a magpie. My only complaint is that a lot of the time the story changes from one characters viewpoint to anothers unexpectedly and with no warning. The plot line gets jerked around almost as much as poor Volnay does. The strange and unexplained deaths are finally solved in a suitably twisty fashion.

thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this arc. It was greatly enjoyed and I look forward to further translations of Chevalier Volnay's exploits.

First thing, I don’t read much Historical Fiction, because I think they move slow and its tough to keep my concentration! But, I loved this book. I’m not sure why people hated this. Its got everything you expect in a historical novel + the bonus part of fast read mystery!

Its pre-revolution King Louis XV’s 1700 Paris. After a mutilated body shows up, the Inspector of Strange and Unexplained deaths is called in for investigation. The story is straightforward, but it has different focus mediums - mystery, crime & politics. The Inspector, Volnay is more like a vintage FBI crime department officer like character whom I liked! The ending was a bit off, cos HE should have died, but again its fiction!! So cheers 🍻

Thank you Netgalley, author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion!