The Paris Directive

For the travel-hungry reader whose wish list says "France," but whose wallet says "stay-cation," this tantalizing and skillfully written thriller is just the ticket.

In a Berlin hotel room in the late 1990s, two former French intelligence agents hire Klaus Reiner, a ruthlessly effective hit man, to eliminate an American industrialist vacationing in the Dordogne, in southwestern France. Reiner easily locates his target in the small village of Taziac, but the hit is compromised when three innocent people are in the wrong place at the wrong time. Enter Inspector Paul Mazarelle, formerly of Paris but now living in Taziac, charged with bringing his experience and record of success in the capital to bear on the gruesome quadruple homicide at the height of tourist season.

Both Mazarelle's investigation and Reiner's assignment become complicated when Molly, a New York City district attorney and daughter of two of the victims, arrives to identify the bodies and begins asking questions. All evidence points to Ali Sedak, a local Arab handyman, but Mazarelle and Molly have doubts, forcing Reiner to return to Taziac to ensure they see things as he arranged them.

Gerald Jay delivers a perfect vacation read that's also like going on vacation: delicious food and wine, lush countryside, and characters with panache to spare. And the wonderful cat-and-mouse game between the suave, ice-cold killer and the earthy, engaging French detective is the icing on the "gâteau."