"First published in the UK in 2014 by Contraband, an imprint of Saraband, Glasgow."--Colophon.

This novel is touted as being written by Raymond Brunet and translated by Graeme Macrae Burnet. However, Graeme Macrae Burnet is the real author and there is no translation involved. 'Raymond Brunet' is a stylistic artifice employed to enhance the work's authenticity.

"Manfred Baumann is a loner. He has always lived in the nondescript French town of Saint-Louis. Shy and awkward, a man of habit, he spends his days working in the local bank and his evenings in the drab Restaurant de la Cloche where he can surreptitiously observe Adèle Bedeau, its sullen but alluring waitress. Until, one day, Adèle vanishes. Georges Gorski, a detective haunted by his failure to solve one of his first murder cases, is called in to investigate. Manfred is rattled, and the careful routine of his life starts to crumble around him. And that?s when he meets Alice Tarrou."--Back cover.