Ten corpses are discovered in a mansion in 19th-century Paris and a gold statuette of the Indian god Shiva is discarded nearby. Is there a connection? That's the question that dashing Russian sleuth Erast Fandorin, hero of Akunin's '03 hit The Winter Palace, pursues with the help of a nosy Paris police chief. In a splendidly atmospheric story set on the maiden voyage of the luxury ship Leviathan, the two neatly unravel the murders. The second in an ongoing series, this tale is as stylish as it is suspenseful.
MYSTERY
