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Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.92
EAN num: 9781569475133
ISBN number: 156947513X
Label: Soho Constable
Manufacturer: Soho Constable
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 288
Printing Date: August 01, 2008
Publishing house: Soho Constable
Sale Popularity Level: 129322
Studio: Soho Constable
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Praise for Barbara Cleverly:
'Spectacular and dashing, spellbinding.'-The New York Times Book Review
'Smashing . . . marvelously evoked.'-Chicago Tribune
'A historical mystery that has just about everything.'-Denver Post
'Cleverly maintains the high standards set by earlier Sandilands tales, blending a sophisticated whodunit with full-blooded characters and a revealing look at her chosen time and place.'-Publishing houses Weekly (starred)
'Atmospheric . . . intricately plotted.'-Kirkus Reviews
'Evocative narrative, sensitive characterizations, artful dialogue, and masterly plottings.'-Library Journal
'Cleverly combines a colorful historical setting with a complex plot and well-developed characters.'-Booklist
'Delightfully surprising.'-Mystery News
This seventh book in the Joe Sandilands murder mystery series is set at the Folies-Bergre, Paris, in December 1926. Joe hurries to the assistance of an old friend who has been arrested for murder there. In a cell at the Quai des Orfvres, he meets with Sir George Jardine, still in the evening clothes stained with the blood of the dead man. The only other witness, a blonde who was sharing the victim's box, has vanished. Joe receives assistance from an entirely unexpected quarter-Francine, a young usherette, clawing her way into the world of the Paris Music Hall. She becomes Joe's guide through this treacherous place, where Joe is sure the killer is lurking.
Barbara Cleverly was born in northern England, graduated from Durham University, and now lives in Cambridge. Her debut, The Last Kashmiri Rose, was a New York Times Notable Book of 2002.
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Rated by buyers 
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This was my very first Joe Sandilands mystery. Although I enjoyed the historical setting of early Paris--I have to agree with an earlier reviewer and encourage you to read another Barbara Cleverly murder mystery first.
The strong point for me was that I did not determine who the killer was--that doesn't happen to me often!
If you are a fan of the series--read it. Others might want to explore her other titles first.
Rated by buyers 
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Barbara Cleverly gives us another wonderful read with Joe Sandilands. Her delightful character Joe Sandilands is now in France. He is called to the aid his old friend from India and the plot unfolds. Her historical setting is so believable that the reader is transported back to the days of Apollinaire in France. Once you read one you will need to read them all. I hope she is busy writing as I need another Joe Sandilands fix.
Rated by buyers -
If you're new to the series, don't start with this one. You might not read any of Cleverly's other Sandilands novels. Look for one of the books set in India (e.g. The Last Kashmiri Rose) or Tug of War (set in the French countryside). Skip The Bee's Kiss (which also rates only 3 stars). The Indian novels are strengthened by their exotic locales, and Tug of War, while not in an exotic setting, is a richly-textured and satisfying tale, carefully crafted and driven by characters rather than action.
Folly du Jour, set in Paris, tries to rely on fast pace and violence. The author attempts to glamorize things with Lindbergh's arrival in Paris and with Josephine Baker--but these are not successful. There's a sense of confusion, a patching in of elements from previous novels. The Paris underworld, the Apaches, play a major part. It's not quite as corpse-strewn as Hammett's Red Harvest, but it comes close. So what you get seems minimally different from a thousand other pulp-fictionish crime novels, which is sad, since Cleverly has proven herself capable of much better work.
Contrast this with Tug of War, which had one long-dead corpse. There was no action, no violence--which seemed a bit odd, but only at first. That novel was carefully written, and had a beautiful quiet strength. It didn't need shootings, killings, and car chases to achieve its power. The India novels have more action and violence, but it never gets out of hand, and if you pruned out the action and violent episodes, the stories would still have been powerful. Unfortunately, The Bee's Kiss wandered away from these strengths, and Folly du Jour has gotten even further away. So try instead Tug of War or The Last Kashmiri Rose.
Rated by buyers -
In 1927 Scotland Yard Detective Joe Sandilands attends the Interpol conference in Paris, but when he lands at the airport the local police meet him. They take Joe to a prison where they hold a countryman of his charged with murder. Joe is stunned to find the French police accuse his long time friend Sir George Jardine of stabbing Sir Stanley Somerton, another person Joe knew but in this case would prefer not to have ever met the horrid victim.
Joe rejects the official position as he knows George would never do such an act except in self defense. He and French detective Inspector Jean-Philippe Bonnefoye investigate together based on the assumption someone else murdered the sleazy Somerton. They start at the morgue where pathologist Dr. Moulin explains the odd M.O. matches several recent homicides in the last three to four years. The two sleuths wonder whether a serial killer is stalking Paris.
FOLLY DU JOUR is a terrific 1920s police procedural starring two superb detectives. Joe may be shocked in his latest case (see THE BEE'S KISS, THE PALACE TIGER and THE LAST KASHMIRI ROSE), but gets to work right away while his French partner holds up his end of their joint investigation. Although the resolution can be seen from the French capital to London, historical mystery readers enjoy the two detectives' guided tour of Roaring Twenties euphoric post WWI Paris as this is a superb historical whodunit.
Harriet Klausner
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