Scene of the Crime

“Scene of the Crime, evocatively translated by Mark Polizzotti, unravels in a bygone Paris enveloped in a fog of déjà vu and vertigo. . . . Modiano, whose writing is heightened by elisions and silent pauses, is a master at creating mood. His Paris is aglow with noirish menace, a perfect palimpsest for [narrator] Bosmans’s memories.”—Anderson Tepper, New York Times Book Review

“Elegiac, bittersweet, ghostly, Modiano’s books are like black-and-white photographs from another century, suggestive of all that’s been lost and the vague traces that remain. . . . Scene of the Crime [is] gracefully translated by Mark Polizzotti. . . . Modiano’s prose is hypnotic, pregnant with mystery, full of dialogue that contains more than it shows.”—Frank Lawton, Telegraph

“Polizzotti’s crisp and evocative translation keeps the reader hooked.”—Publishers Weekly

“Elegantly translated by Mark Polizzotti . . . atmospheric and hypnotic . . . thrilling . . . beautiful. . . . A wonderful book.”—Andrew Martino, World Literature Today

“An interrogation of the past and of time itself. . . . Modiano’s prose is mesmerizing as ever. . . . The story plays out with the intrigue of a good noir, with an unsurpassed depth of feeling and curiosity.”—Dwyer Murphy, CrimeReads