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Death at the Château Bremont by M. L. Longworth

• Travel Destination: Aix-en-Provence, Provence, France
  
• Genre: Mystery / Crime Fiction
  
• Author: M.L. Longworth
  
• Pairs Well With: A Provençal-inspired cheese board, crusty French bread, olives, a glass of chilled rosé, and dreams of long lunches beneath the South of France sun.
  
• Buy / Learn More: Amazon
  

Set in the historic town of Aix-en-Provence in the heart of Provence, Death at the Château Bremont begins when local nobleman Étienne de Bremont falls to his death from the window of his family château. What initially appears to be an accident quickly raises questions for Antoine Verlaque, the chief magistrate of Aix, who suspects there may be far more to the story.

When Verlaque learns that his former love, law professor Marine Bonnet, was once close friends with the Bremont family, he turns to her for help. Together, they begin looking more closely at Étienne's death—and at the people surrounding a family with plenty of secrets of its own.

As their list of suspects grows, another death changes the investigation entirely. What began as questions surrounding a suspicious fall becomes a murder investigation filled with complicated relationships, money troubles, hidden motives and plenty of reasons to keep turning the page.

But this isn't simply a mystery with Provence as its backdrop. The cafés, meals, wine and leisurely rhythms of life in southern France are woven throughout the story, giving Aix-en-Provence almost as much personality as the characters themselves. Author M. L. Longworth has lived in Aix-en-Provence since 1997, and her familiarity with the region comes through in the book's strong sense of place.

It's exactly the kind of mystery I love for Wanderlust Reads: a crime to solve, a destination you can practically picture yourself walking through, and enough food and wine along the way to have you contemplating a trip to Provence before you've even reached the final chapter.