Maxime Chattam is a master of dark and suspenseful narratives, delving into the depths of the human psyche and the nature of crime. His works are characterized by intricate plots, surprising twists, and a chilling atmosphere that immerses readers in a world of tension. Chattam skillfully blends thriller elements with a profound exploration of character motivations, often blurring the lines between good and evil. His writing style is sharp and engaging, establishing him as a prominent voice in contemporary French crime fiction.
Detective Lamar investigates a series of school massacres in New York, starting with a shooting in Harlem and followed by similar incidents in Queens. As he gathers evidence, he suspects a disturbing pattern behind the three sets of killings, all involving student perpetrators who commit suicide.
British-occupied Cairo, 1928: Several young children have disappeared and were then found, horribly mutilated, in the tombs just outside the city. Panic is spreading among the locals after a cloaked giant is sighted. Has a ghoul from One Thousand and One Nights been brought to life? British inspector Jeremy Matheson follows the trail of the monster, which takes him into the depths of underground Cairo as well as deep into his own tortured past. Mont-Saint-Michel, 2005: Marion has taken refuge in the wind-swept and remote monastery located on a spit of land on the west coast of France. In the wake of a scandal, caused by her own revelations, that is now reverberating through the French capital, she has been spirited away from Paris and brought here by the Secret Service for her own protection. When she finds a diary dating from 1928 in the monastery library, penned by Jeremy Matheson and hidden inside the jacket of an Edgar Allen Poe book, she is inexorably pulled into the past as she is being watched, and taunting notes and riddles urge her to give back what is not hers. . . ‘One of the best contemporary thriller authors’ Le Monde