To exonerate a guilty man, that is the new mission of Amédée Mallock, commissioner in Paris, now en route to Saint-Domingue in the Caribbean. A new challenge for this exceptional commissioner, a story told by J.-D Bruet-Ferreol, alias Mallock—the author of *The Cemetery of Swallows*, a must-read novel!
Manuel Gemoni, a young father and brother of Julie, a cop from Fort Mallock, has traveled to the other side of the world to kill an old man. “I killed him because he killed me…” With this confession, there is no doubt for the local police, Manuel is guilty. But how could this university professor end up here? He neither knows the Dominican Republic nor the victim. But more importantly, how can they get him out of this mess and achieve the impossible, to prove his innocence?
*The Cemetery of Swallows* by Mallock proudly represents French thrillers. This story of murder, beginning with the arrest of the culprit, conceals much more. The incredible density of this multifaceted narrative, a sort of matryoshka blending a 21st-century detective story with historical narrative, is a triumph. Mallock, with his brilliant writing, takes us through the footsteps of Manuel Gemoni, of Jean-François Lafitte, his writing flirts with all styles: humor, darkness, fantasy, history. With a no-nonsense style, Mallock unravels his story, a yarn that will go back in time and offer the reader an incredible jolt. First, through the plot, of course—why did Manuel go to kill Darbier whom he had never seen?—and through his well-developed characters. Mallock—the commissioner—is at the forefront, a sort of unkempt bear, misanthropic yet secretly in love with Queen Margot and touched by his team members: Jules and Julie, the Fort’s couple, Bob Daranne, the veteran, Ken, the IT genius, and the newcomer, Jo. Mallock is inclined to flirt with the edges of legality, everything is fair game to uncover the truth, he is also a fine gourmand and a man weakened by the loss of his son. A rich and endearing personality: *A refined bear, he has frail wrists with, at the end, as if grafted, butcher’s hands. Feverish eyes like gemstones illuminate a face half Nick Nolte and half Depardieu, with the same mass of blond hair, an undefined nose, and a fine mouth. His body, at 1.80 meters and 100 kilograms, closer to that of the American, won’t be too much to solve this unbelievable story. A man who likes to control his environment and the course of his investigations prepares for grueling days. The incredible puzzle that Manuel Gemoni is about to pose will need two or three commissioners to solve. Thankfully, Mallock is several.* – p.25/26
*The Cemetery of Swallows*, despite its intense and dramatic passages, is often funny, mainly thanks to Mallock (the commissioner), and poetic, literary, subtle, and well-written thanks to Mallock (the author). Sarcasm is present *You know, if we keep calling the blind non-seeing, the deaf non-hearing, we might as well call fools non-understanding, and heterosexuals non-sodomizing, and why not call Black people non-Whites?* – p. 310, as much as romantic description *During lunch, he listened to Margot recount her latest peregrinations. She was pretty when she spoke. When she listened too. All the time, in fact. Her mouth was like an incredible animal, red pulp that sucked and smiled, revealing white pearls and a pink tongue from which phrases and images took off. A word, a bite, an idea, a mouthful, a burst of laughter. She exuded a disturbing mental and physical strength.* – p. 192
*The Cemetery of Swallows* is a true heartbreaker, a hit to the heart, through the incredible story it tells and the love and beauty of words.
