Brittany, its beaches, its fest-noz… and his murders. Here is the surprising program of the summer on the island of Bréhat in this book published by Glénat.
A police investigation in Brittany
While many couples think they are spending a peaceful holiday on the island of Bréhat, everything changes when a man is found dead in the pool of a house. However, this stranger did not drown, he was stabbed. Screenwriter Patrick Weber and cartoonist Nicoly build an Agatha Christie-style whodunit in Deadly Hide-and-Seek in Bréhat . This island is behind closed doors and an investigator organizes several interrogations to discover the secrets of each. The revelation of the culprit will come at a meeting of all the protagonists.
As with Hercule Poirot, there are also touches of humor : the corpse disappears because the policeman in charge has gone to eat. This tone is reinforced with the arrival of Inspector Rose Le Ploedec'h. She is probably a great lover of crime novels and continues to identify the codes in her investigation to play them. However, this detachment does not prevent her from being very stubborn and insightful. Her methods go beyond convention because she uses legends to push suspects out of their verse. Moreover, Nicoly does not make a top model but an ordinary woman. She discovers small clues at the beginning and causes an acceleration of the action that leads to a surprising final outcome. Nicoly's drawing contrasts with the dark subject with a naïve style and handmade lines without a straight line.
Indeed, like most detective stories, Deadly Hide-and-Seek in Bréhat works through the rich gallery of characters. The book begins in 2000 as shown in the games Pokémon on Game Boy and Fort Boyard on TV. An ordinary couple is on vacation but a son hears disturbing noises. The rest takes place in the present day. A family discovers Bréhat for the first time: Father Luigi Rocchi is a restorer, mother Marcelline is an illustrator and is expecting a child. They already have a son, Nathan. On a walk, they meet Hervé, an eccentric roadman dressed as an old sea wolf and shortly before on the boat Audrey Lesueur who turns out to be their neighbor of lodging. This actress in love with the island suffers a declining career but keeps her pride. The next house belongs to Tristan Lannoy. This Parisian made a fortune in lingerie and he is proud of it. He is the single father of three young women. Joy, Kim, and Mel spice up their neighbors' days while being hated by all the locals. The wealth of this family displeases the islanders. In addition, his first wife, an American, died under unusual circumstances. It doesn't take more to make Lannoy the number one suspect. Throughout Deadly Hide-and-Seek in Bréhat, these characters cross paths and secrets come to light, sometimes too close to a TV movie.
A discovery of Bréhat
The two artists are already authors of three books about the Breton islands. Deadly hide-and-seek in Bréhat focuses this time on the island of Bréhat. It can be seen by the sets but also as a bonus by a six-page photo report around the particularities of Bréhat. The steps of the characters lead them to the remarkable places of the island: a tidal mill, the semaphore. Throughout the dialogues, the police investigation mingles with a guide to discover an island popular with stars since the nineteenth century with Pierre Loti, Paul Gauguin or Emil Cioran. A dinner is both a way for the inspector to discover the tales and legends of the island and for the reader to discover a local historian. Cars are prohibited but a tractor serves as a bus to reach the rural cottage. There are even the steps on the road to get there.
The description of three neighboring houses is an opportunity to make a sociology of the island: a rural cottage representing the change of activity of the island from agriculture to tourism, a farm with thatched roof that serves as a second home and a modernist villa with swimming pool showing the gentrification of Bréhat.
As summer approaches, deadly Hide-and-Seek in Bréhat could both motivate you to discover this island full of mysteries and worry you. But, rest assured, the culprit will be discovered at the very end of the book.
Other chronicles on the site will introduce you to different countries with Redemption and La terre vagabonde.
