Set in the pastoral ambiance of 1960s France, Detective Lauriant Investigates contains two hardboiled novellas."Death in a Ditch" delivers Lauriant to Saint Sauveur where he begins the nasty task of piecing together the grisly death of an antiques dealer whose body has been found in a ditch."Murder in the Vendee" finds Lauriant disgraced and banished to a small, sleepy province, where he must solve the mystery of a count's murder. The obvious murderer is the count's son. However, Lauriant senses a deeper, political cause hidden beneath the tranquil surface of this village."Soothing, stylish prose, low-key but persistent action, and deft character descriptions are nicely blended."-Library Journal
