It might help to have a copy of Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises handy as you read this marvelously rich and evocative mystery set among the expatriates in Paris in 1925. That way, you'll know exactly which of Howard Engel's characters are based on Hemingway's cast of thirtysomethings. Hemingway (who narrated his voice through Jake Barnes in The Sun Also Rises) is a cinch to spot in Engel's book--he's Jason Waddington, a tough American from Oak Park, Illinois, who loves boxing and bullfighting. In 1922, his wife lost a suitcase full of his original manuscripts on a train, and she has never quite gotten over the shame. That suitcase becomes a part of the mystery, as does "the Spanish novel," which Waddington wrote about his friends' bad behavior in Pamplona the summer before. Some of these "friends" will go to great lengths to keep the book from being published.

There are several lovely inside jokes, like the ambitious Belgian writer "Georges Sim" who knocks out books quickly and is encouraged to look into the possibility of writing detective stories. And there's enough drinking and snooty literary chatter about real writers and artists to make your head spin. --Dick Adler

From Publishers Weekly
Taking a break from his Benny Cooperman mysteries, Engel (Getting Away with Murder) presents a Parisian mystery involving cafes, romance, murder and lots of wine. In the fall of 1925, Canadian journalist Mike Ward arrives in the City of Light in search of the literary life. Soon he meets Jason Waddington, an expat American writer, and is lured into his circle of fashionable authors, painters, editors and socialites. Among them is the breathtaking Laure Duclos, a "teacher of French"; despite warnings from his friends that "she's poison," Ward is hooked after one look. Their affair is short-lived, however, since Laure is soon murdered, apparently by the notorious Jack de Paris, a serial killer with a penchant for stabbing beautiful women. Ward suspects someone has used Jack as cover to do away with Laure, however, and determines to find the real murderer. Meanwhile, cafe gossip insinuates that Waddington's current manuscript is a character-defaming expos? about his friends. Engel relies heavily on dialogue to push forward his plot, with plenty of intoxicated cafe talk thrown in, and his characters should please fans of the era: Waddington bears a pointed resemblance to Hemingway, and many other players are loosely based on notable writers or their famous fictional creations. Engel's descriptions of Paris in the '20s are charming, adding to the fun of the gambol he provides through the Left Bank and its denizens. Agent, Beverly Slopen. (Aug.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Engel, well known for his Benny Cooperman series, here tries his hand at historical fiction. Canadian Michael Ward, a recent arrival in 1925 Paris, works for a news service agency, translating from French to English. He pals around with an expatriate American couple and their friends, but the threat of a serial murderer, known as the "Jack of Paris," spreads a pall over their historic neighborhood. When one of their group is killed, Michael wonders whether there might be some connection to the expatriate's disturbing roman ? clef. Chilling prose, infused with ambient vitality, historic tidbits, and exotic Paris; highly recommended. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
Paris, 1925. Three years after Hemingway look-alike Jason Waddington lost two years' worth of work when his wife Hadleyer, Priscillapacked his manuscripts into a valise and left it on the platform of the Gare de Lyon, trouble is brewing again among the expatriate artists. A serial killer of artists' models dubbed Paris Jack, after Jack the Ripper, has already claimed six victims when he strikes at French teacher Laure Duclos, a hanger-on of Wad's and sometime lover of several of his friends, including, most recently, infatuated Canadian journalist Michael Ward. But was it really Paris Jack who killed Laure, or was the murderer a copycat, perhaps a member of Wad's own circle? Setting aside the walk-ons who appear under their proper namesJoyce and Pound, Toklas and Stein, Sylvia Beach and Robert McAlmonthe suspect list seems to include both real-life friends of Hemingway (Jazz Age king Wilson O'Donnell and his madcap flapper wife Georgia) and characters from ``the Spanish novel'' his distressed friends are pressing him not to publish (Princeton boxer Hal Leopold, hard-bitten divorce Lady Biz Leighton). The mystery keeps loping back to those missing manuscripts, but the real interest is in watching Engel avoid blemishing the memory of any well-remembered writers or characters when he fingers the killer. When you can't swing a dead body without hitting somebody famous, the air's bound to be thick with the lively, empty chatter of vivacious pretenders. The main break with Engel's Benny Cooperman series (Getting Away with Murder, 1998, etc.) is that this really is set in the period that series evokes. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

It's Autumn 1925, and a killer uncannily like England's Jack the Ripper is stalking the streets of Paris and preying on young women. Michael Ward is a journalist newly arrived to the Left Bank. When he falls in with Jason Waddington, an expatriate American writer who introduces him to the cafe scene and his crowd of writers and artists, Ward soon discovers that Jack de Paris is not the only trouble afoot in the City of Light. Rumor has it that Waddington has written a damaging roman a clef about his friends and tempers are rising as fear of the killer grips the city. When the body of Laure Duclos is found, it seems their circle has finally been touched by Jack. But Ward has his doubts, and begins to wonder whether Laure was truly Jack de Paris's latest victim, or if someone else was using the serial killer as a convenient cover to protect themselves.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Taking a break from his Benny Cooperman mysteries, Engel (Getting Away with Murder) presents a Parisian mystery involving cafes, romance, murder and lots of wine. In the fall of 1925, Canadian journalist Mike Ward arrives in the City of Light in search of the literary life. Soon he meets Jason Waddington, an expat American writer, and is lured into his circle of fashionable authors, painters, editors and socialites. Among them is the breathtaking Laure Duclos, a "teacher of French"; despite warnings from his friends that "she's poison," Ward is hooked after one look. Their affair is short-lived, however, since Laure is soon murdered, apparently by the notorious Jack de Paris, a serial killer with a penchant for stabbing beautiful women. Ward suspects someone has used Jack as cover to do away with Laure, however, and determines to find the real murderer. Meanwhile, cafe gossip insinuates that Waddington's current manuscript is a character-defaming expos about his friends. Engel relies heavily on dialogue to push forward his plot, with plenty of intoxicated cafe talk thrown in, and his characters should please fans of the era: Waddington bears a pointed resemblance to Hemingway, and many other players are loosely based on notable writers or their famous fictional creations. Engel's descriptions of Paris in the '20s are charming, adding to the fun of the gambol he provides through the Left Bank and its denizens. Agent, Beverly Slopen. (Aug.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Engel, well known for his Benny Cooperman series, here tries his hand at historical fiction. Canadian Michael Ward, a recent arrival in 1925 Paris, works for a news service agency, translating from French to English. He pals around with an expatriate American couple and their friends, but the threat of a serial murderer, known as the "Jack of Paris," spreads a pall over their historic neighborhood. When one of their group is killed, Michael wonders whether there might be some connection to the expatriate's disturbing roman clef. Chilling prose, infused with ambient vitality, historic tidbits, and exotic Paris; highly recommended. Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Toby Bromberg - Romantic Times

Murder in Montparnasse brings the Paris of the lost generation stunningly to life. The sights and sounds of the Left Bank, the philosophies of the day and the attitudes of the people are all brilliantly recreated. This is a haunting reading experience that will leave the reader wanting more.

Kirkus Reviews

Paris, 1925. Three years after Hemingway look-alike Jason Waddington lost two years' worth of work when his wife Hadley—er, Priscilla—packed his manuscripts into a valise and left it on the platform of the Gare de Lyon, trouble is brewing again among the expatriate artists. A serial killer of artists' models dubbed "Paris Jack," after Jack the Ripper, has already claimed six victims when he strikes at French teacher Laure Duclos, a hanger-on of Wad's and sometime lover of several of his friends, including, most recently, infatuated Canadian journalist Michael Ward. But was it really Paris Jack who killed Laure, or was the murderer a copycat, perhaps a member of Wad's own circle? Setting aside the walk-ons who appear under their proper names—Joyce and Pound, Toklas and Stein, Sylvia Beach and Robert McAlmon—the suspect list seems to include both real-life friends of Hemingway (Jazz Age king Wilson O'Donnell and his madcap flapper wife Georgia) and characters from "the Spanish novel" his distressed friends are pressing him not to publish (Princeton boxer Hal Leopold, hard-bitten divorcée Lady Biz Leighton). The mystery keeps loping back to those missing manuscripts, but the real interest is in watching Engel avoid blemishing the memory of any well-remembered writers or characters when he fingers the killer. When you can't swing a dead body without hitting somebody famous, the air's bound to be thick with the lively, empty chatter of vivacious pretenders. The main break with Engel's Benny Cooperman series (Getting Away with Murder, 1998, etc.) is that this really is set in the period that series evokes.