“The Assassins of the Dawn” is a thriller set in Guadeloupe. Via the latest work by bestselling author Michel Bussi, the reader is immersed in an investigation into the traces of a serial killer. We see that local history is not forgotten…
The latest novel by one of the French’s favorite authors, Michel Bussi, was released in bookstores this month, on Thursday October 10, 2024. The Norman author returns with a thriller set in the Guadeloupean archipelago : “The Assassins of the Dawn“, published by Presses de la Cité. It is a police investigation, in the footsteps of a serial killer who attacks tourists, which is told to us there. At the same time, the work evokes a Guadeloupe of yesteryear, while exploring historical sites linked to slavery.
It was after a trip to Guadeloupe that Michel Bussi knew that this archipelago would one day be the scene of one of his novels. And so it is in “The Assassins of the Dawn” that the author portrays his characters there today.
Here is the story that the territory inspired: in April 2024, a series of crossbow murders began to worry the local population. Tourists are killed and three investigators are responsible for leading the investigation, while a quimboisseur (a “take care of things” as they say locally) predicts murders.
In his new novel, Michel Bussi, a trained geographer, does not just describe the fabulous landscapes, the scenes of his story. The author goes further; it documents the history of Guadeloupe, that of slavery, but also the psychology of our population.
Under the cover of an investigation that seems insoluble, the writer tells the story of a country far from postcards. A socially agitated Guadeloupe, prey to “profiteering” and questions related to identity.
Michel Bussi presents us with solid characters, anchored in a complex country.
In this thriller with a humid atmosphere, Guadeloupe is told like a character and it is the rhythm of the country which nourishes the intrigue. Each place visited is documented, linked to history.
During his preparatory work, the writer took the time to understand the country. He does not fantasize about a dream tourist Guadeloupe, from France. It highlights colonial memory, without complacency and, as the chapters progress, the reader is immersed in a real, beautiful and sometimes fragile Guadeloupe.
Michel Bussi tried to stick to reality in a hyper-documented novel.
The investigation is gripping and the novel can be read with delight.
“The Assassins of the Dawn“, or one of the faces of a complex territory.
