Herve Jubert, Devil's Tango

Devil's Tango

Herve Jubert

Eos, October 2006, $16.99

ISBN: 0060777214

A hundred years or so have passed since the pandemic Great Flood devastated the world. Few places survived its destruction, as well as Basle, a city in which air particles created by sorcerers prevent crime from happening due to the particles "keeping" a check on citizens. There are no major crimes until now. The city is suddenly inundated by homicides. Murder should not have occurred because of the air, yet killings did, and they are becoming frequent.

In that atmosphere of fear, the election for mayor has taken a nasty spin, as Candidate Foulk claims outsiders, the Gypsies, and are using outlawed alchemy to circumvent the crime prevention system, and they are the killers, though he offers no evidence or motive. As he stirs hatred to enhance his election possibilities, Criminal Investigation Department Chief Major Gruber knows he has no in-house capabilities to solve the murders, as no crime had occurred in three years since the Killer's Quadrille incident. He assigns criminal investigative reservists Witch Roberta Morgenstern and her police officer associate Clement Martineau to uncover the identity of the culprit. They search for genetic markers that lead them to the Queen of the Gypsies; not understanding that the Baron of the Mists has used bureaucratic bungling to rig the investigation.

DEVIL'S TANGO brilliantly mixes elements from science fiction, fantasy and mystery into a delightful thriller. Roberta is terrific, as she follows clues that place her and her associate in danger from a seemingly known adversary, yet her instincts say otherwise. Fans of a wild way out police procedural will enjoy the sequel to DANCE WITH ASSASSINS.