"The Crimes of Paris" Book Review & Giveaway-5 Winners – US only (Ends 4/25)

Okay so I am a True-Crime addict. I do have some favorite Fiction titles, but something about Non-Fiction, especially True Crime always sparks my interest. Well I just read “The Crimes of Paris” by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler and I was not disappointed. Not only is this book a True Crime book but it is also Historical.

The book begins with Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa painting was stolen and goes on as an account of several sensational crimes that occurred in Paris in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The book goes through Paris and how crimes were solved back then. It is like CSI in the 1900’s, but only the beginning. It is interesting to see how much technology has advanced since then and what police had to do back then.

My favorite part though of the book was about the Mona Lisa painting. Did you know the case was actually never solved by the Paris police, despite their best crime solving efforts. Also, Pablo Picasso was actually considered a suspect!

It was an unexpecting novel as the history throughout the book was fascinating and not something I ever learned in History class! I hate to go into too much detail because I don’t want to give away anything, but it covers so much that you will not be disappointed. It was a refreshing book and I highly recommend it!

Here is the description from Hachette Book:

Turn-of-the-century Paris was the beating heart of a rapidly changing world. Painters, scientists, revolutionaries, poets–all were there. But so, too, were the shadows: Paris was a violent, criminal place, its sinister alleyways the haunts of Apache gangsters and its cafes the gathering places of murderous anarchists. In 1911, it fell victim to perhaps the greatest theft of all time–the taking of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre. Immediately, Alphonse Bertillon, a detective world-renowned for pioneering crime-scene investigation techniques, was called upon to solve the crime. And quickly the Paris police had a suspect: a young Spanish artist named Pablo Picasso….

“The Crimes of Paris” is a History-True Crime Hardcover that is 384 pages long and is being released 4/27/2009. Are you dying to read the book now?

WIN IT: 5 Lucky Readers will win a copy of “The Crimes of Paris” Check out the Hachette Book website and tell me what other New Release sparks your interest.