Cast Iron (Enzo Files Series #6)

by Peter May

Overview

THE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE LEWIS TRILOGY AND THE CHINA THRILLERS
AWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021

'Enzo MacLeod is one of the most unusual crime solvers I have ever met.' BookBrowse
'No one can create a more eloquently written suspense novel than Peter May.' New York Journal of Books

A decade-old body exposed by a heat wave drives the explosive next chapter in the Enzo Files

THE GIRL IN THE LAKE

In 1989, a killer dumped the body of twenty-year-old Lucie Martin into a picturesque lake in the West of France. Fourteen years later, during a summer heatwave, a drought exposed her remains.

THE MAN ON THE CASE

No one was ever convicted of her murder. But now, forensic expert Enzo Macleod is reviewing this stone-cold case - the toughest of those he has been challenged to solve.

THE SKELETON IN THE CLOSET

Yet when Enzo finds a flaw in the original evidence surrounding Lucie's murder, he opens a Pandora's box that not only raises old ghosts but endangers his entire family.

LOVED THE ENZO FILES? Try Peter May's China series, beginning with THE FIREMAKER
LOVE PETER MAY? Order his new thriller, THE BLACK LOCH.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781784299767
Publisher:	Quercus Publishing
Publication date:	01/12/2017
Series:	Enzo Files Series , #6
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	61
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Peter May was born and raised in Scotland. He was an award-winning journalist at the age of twenty-one and a published novelist at twenty-six. When his first book was adapted as a major drama series for the BBC, he quit journalism and during the high-octane fifteen years that followed, became one of Scotland's most successful television dramatists. He created three prime-time drama series, presided over two of the highest-rated serials in his homeland as script editor and producer, and worked on more than 1,000 episodes of ratings-topping drama before deciding to leave television to return to his first love, writing novels.

In 2021, he was awarded the CWA Dagger in the Library Award. He has also won several literature awards in France, received the USA's Barry Award for The Blackhouse, the first in his internationally bestselling Lewis Trilogy; and in 2014 was awarded the ITV Specsavers Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read of the Year award for Entry Island. Peter now lives in South-West France with his wife, writer Janice Hally.

Editorial Reviews

★ 08/21/2017
Set in France in 2011, May’s excellent sixth and final mystery featuring forensic expert Enzo Macleod (after 2011’s Blowback) finds Enzo looking into another cold case, the strangulation of 20-year-old Lucie Martin, who went for a walk on the estate of her well-to-do parents one day in 1989 and never returned. That night, her parents found a letter in her room from Régis Blanc, a recently released convict whom she was helping readjust to society at a charity in Bordeaux. Blanc was revealed soon after to be a serial killer, but no evidence ever linked him to Lucie’s murder. Enzo sets out from Paris for Bordeaux, where he picks up the thin trail of clues at the Martin family home. As time passes, the investigation spins out into a web that enmeshes members of Enzo’s family, all distinctive characters. May expertly plants nicely misleading red herrings; every time the reader thinks the plot will fall into predictability, the ground shifts and the direction changes. The end comes as a satisfying surprise, built as it is on clues that were subtly in place all along. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"The last book in this series, and it ends Macleod's quest with a flourish."—Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times

"May expertly plants nicely misleading red herrings; every time the reader thinks the plot will fall into predictability, the ground shifts and the direction changes. The end comes as a satisfying surprise, built as it is on clues that were subtly in place all along."—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

"A totally engrossing thriller . . . Peter May's name on the cover practically guarantees a first-class reading experience. This book comes together in a satisfying way . . . with a great deal of exciting action. Enjoy the ride."—Deadly Pleasures Magazine

"The loose strings of Enzo's personal and professional life are neatly tied together at the story's end, and his compelling character, with all of his strengths and weaknesses, will be missed. Bonne chance, Enzo. Recommended for tartan noir fans, including the works of Christopher Brookmyre and Stuart MacBride, not to mention Enzo's personal favorite, Val McDermid."
—Booklist

"Enzo is an irascible, complex protagonist, with more than his share of personal loss, often masked by bravado. This is the sixth and final book in May's gripping series-and one of the best."—Library Journal

"Cast Iron is shot through with the dark legacy of the past."
—The Guardian

"Even though this book is the end of a monumental series, it is still one that is strong, frightening, and can stand alone. Although, if you skip the other tales of Enzo, you will be missing out on a tremendous amount of incredible writing and an unforgettable character."
—Suspense Magazine

"Peter May has written a suspenseful and detailed story with a plethora of suspects."
—New York Journal of Books

Praise for Peter May's The Enzo Files


"Oenophiles and fans of CBS's Cold Case will relish [The Critic] . . . a full-bodied, satisfying read."—Publishers Weekly on The Critic

"Rich with the traditions of this southern France winemaking region, this is a mystery with Gallic flavor to be savored."—Mystery Scene Magazine on The Critic

"A finely crafted and surprising mystery."—Kirkus Reviews

"Action-packed . . . [with] a thrilling denouement in the catacombs of Paris."—Entertainment Weekly on Extraordinary People

"Brisk and thrilling. . . the layers of complexity bode well for future installments."—The Baltimore Sun on Extraordinary People

"A fun and fascinating book."—The San Jose Mercury News on Extraordinary People

"A thoroughly engaging puzzle mystery."—Library Journal on Extraordinary People

"From the first page I knew I was in safe hands. I knew I could trust this writer"—Sophie Hannah, bestselling writer of The Monogram Murders

"Peter May is an author I'd follow to the ends of the earth."—Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times

"The impressively rendered sense of place and the keen character ensigns author May has shown in his books set in the Hebrides and in China are rich in evidence in this novel...Plays out against sharply sketched scenes of Paris and Bordeaux in late fall. The last shall be best."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

09/01/2017
Years ago, forensic scientist Enzo MacLeod made a bet to solve a series of French cold cases highlighted in a colleague's book. Now only two chapters remain, and an aging Enzo cakes on the 1989 case of Lucie Martin, whose body was dumped in a lake in western France. No one was charged with her murder since the prime suspect, a former convict Lucie knew through her work at a rehab center, had a cast-iron alibi. Enzo soon spots a clue that will shed new light on the case but will also impact his family and friends. Enzo is an irascible, complex protagonist, with more than his share of personal loss, often masked by bravado. VERDICT This is the sixth and final book in May's gripping series-and one of the best. It is helpful but not necessary to have read the previous books. Fans of forensic mysteries will prefer following Enzo through all his cases.—ACT

Library Journal

2017-07-17
Forensic detective Enzo Macleod solves a challenging cold-case murder that dates back more than 20 years.The impressively rendered sense of place and the keen character insights author May has shown in his books set in the Hebrides and in China are richly in evidence in this novel set in France. In what is billed as the last case in the Enzo Files series, the reader follows Enzo Macleod, aging (56) and sometimes weary, as he determines to find the killer of Lucie Martin, who was strangled and dumped into a lake in the west of France at age 20. Although the killer was never found, evidence pointed to Régis Blanc as the culprit even though this pimp had a "cast-iron" alibi for his whereabouts at the time of the murder. Lucie had met him while working at a rehab center for ex-convicts after he served nine months for assault, and her spurned boyfriend suggested that Lucie and Régis become lovers. Régis' subsequent murder of three prostitutes, for which he was sentenced to life in prison, cast further suspicion on him as Lucie's killer. But Macleod has doubts that Régis killed Lucie. His misgivings come into sharp focus during a powerful scene in which Macleod interviews Régis in prison. Macleod is on the case, but he realizes someone wants him off it: a man attempts to kill him as he searches a dark château. Meanwhile, in a suspenseful subplot, thugs kidnap Macleod's daughter and her lover, Bertrand, threatening their lives unless Macleod gets off the case. Struggling to maintain equilibrium, Macleod reminds himself that he deals with "real people, with real lives and real sorrow," an observation that also befits May's full, insightful rendering of Macleod's ex-wife, his current paramour, and his family. Though some early scenes with Macleod's family seem extraneous, they tie perfectly to the surprising reveals that come in the book's swift second half. All this plays out against sharply sketched scenes of Paris and Bordeaux in late fall. The last shall be best.

Kirkus Reviews