On his way to investigate remains discovered at an archeological dig site, Chief of Police Benoit 'Bruno' Courreges gets stuck in a traffic jam caused by a road full of ducks and geese in the fictionalized town of St. Denis in the Perigord region of France. This rural area is noted for its cuisine, and it appears that the liberated fowl strayed from a vandalized farm. A leaflet at the scene reads, "STOP cruelty to animals. Boycott foie gras." This clue points to zealous activist students working at the archeology site. When Bruno finally arrives at his destination, he discovers that the unearthed skeleton is wearing a Swatch and has a bullet hole in the skull--clearly this is no prehistoric find. It is a crime scene.
In The Crowded Grave, as in the three previous installments of Martin Walker's informative, atmospheric mystery series, Bruno--proud, sensible and honest--believes his job is to take care of local matters that don't need the Police Nationale (or gendarmes). "We can settle things among ourselves," Bruno proclaims. This becomes a tall order, though, as the investigation becomes crowded by a complex storyline that encompasses terrorists, Franco-Spanish intelligence sharing, explosives and missing persons.
Walker writes taut, dramatic scenes where the past and present ultimately converge. Bruno's affection for his hunting-companion basset hound, his complicated love affairs with two women and his penchant for gourmet food, wine and cooking fortify the intensity of the suspense. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines