A Well-Timed Murder

Near the start of De Hahn’s intriguing sequel to 2017’s Swiss Vendetta, Swiss-American police detective Agnes Lüthi receives a call from aristocrat and growing love interest, Julien Vallotton. Legendary watchmaker Guy Chavanon, a friend of Julien’s, has died from anaphylaxis-induced heart failure while attending a reception at the Moutier Institut de Jeunes Gens—the boarding school where Chavanon’s son is a student. Chavanon’s grown daughter believes her father’s death wasn’t an accident. He had invented something that would revolutionize the watch industry, and she thinks he was murdered because of it. Lüthi’s investigation brings her to the institute, where she learns about a number of strange happenings. When she unearths a series of threats against student Koulsy Haroun, the son of a suspected war criminal who has a peanut allergy, she wonders if Koulsy was the killer’s intended target—not Chavanon. The dynamic setting and fascinating glimpse into the Swiss watchmaking world make up for some of de Hahn’s loosely drawn conclusions. Agent: Paula Munier, Talcott Notch Literary Services. (Feb.)