Paris Noir

When art turns to crime, three young painters must solve mysteries and murders.

• A series of cases related to the art world: in each book, a painting that evokes the adventure being told.

• Mystery, humor, and the birth of an unbreakable friendship.

VOL. 1 – THE SELF-PORTRAIT

Paris, 1856. Claude (Monet), a rebellious and reckless young man, Pierre (Renoir), penniless, and Berthe (Morisot), an aspiring painter in a world of male artists, are eager for life and still searching for their style when they first meet in front of their teacher Maurice Arnaud’s studio. But, behind the door, the teacher lies on the floor among his brushes; dead under mysterious circumstances while working on his final masterpiece, a self-portrait. From that moment on, the three young people, who will later become monumental figures of Impressionism, find themselves involved in the most incredible adventure of all.

VOL. 2 – THE HEADLESS MAN

Berthe, Claude, and Pierre are standing on the railing of the Pont d’Arcole when they see it floating on the Seine: the body of a man. Headless. Needless to say, shortly afterward, the young painters are already investigating. Who could have the strength to commit such a murder, and most importantly, what was the motive? Following the teachings of Monsieur Dupin, the three leave no detail unchecked. They visit the morgue at La Morgue, the slums of Montmartre, attend the Franconi Circus, and even sneak into the women’s prison… But what if it was all an illusion? A false painting above the picture of truth? No one better than the three young artists will be able to find out.

VOL. 3 – THE ORANGE SEED MURDERS

Just when it seems that the Bain-Mergnac wedding reception is about to end, a chilling scream echoes from one of the more secluded rooms of the villa. A maid runs away horrified, and Berthe finds a beautiful woman lying on the floor, lifeless. A few hours later, the young artist is with Claude and Pierre in the apartment on rue Sarrazin, determined to get to the bottom of things: the girl’s name was Eloise, and she was a model. Who could have stabbed her in the middle of the celebration? But what the future masters of Impressionism still don’t know is that this is only the first in a series of murders linked by a mysterious detail. On the victims’ bodies, there are always white, elongated seeds. Orange seeds.