A DEATH IN PARIS
by Dean Fuller
The author of the sedate suspenser Passage (1983) introduces genteel Chief Inspector Alex Grismolet of the SñretÇ to solve the riddle of who shot aging free-lance diplomat Andrew Wilson. But though Fuller provides an unusually elaborate tour of possible suspects- -Wilson's iron-willed, alcoholic photojournalist wife; his adoring concierge; his ancient war-buddy; a Libyan boy who admits robbing the corpse—the interest swiftly focuses on Wilson's obsession with avenging the death of his brother, shot down by a German flying ace in WW I. Alex's dilemma of what to do with his budding unofficial ward, Phillipa, adds some charm, but the leisurely storytelling—though it includes a contemporary dogfight and a great scene in an airport women's room—reveals all too few twists and surprises. Mostly for Red Baron nostalgia buffs, who'll appreciate the genuine, if minor, stiff-upper-lip virtues of Fuller's civilized prose.