Minotaur
Published April 21, 2026
Reviewed by Meredith Frazier
Eleventh in Jean-Luc Bannalec’s Brittany Mystery series, The Secrets of the Abbey takes Commissaire Georges Dupin and his team to the Côte des Légendes when Second Inspector Kadeg’s aunt passes away and Kadeg is attacked.
While this is a police procedural in the sense that the police and all their resources are on the case, it feels much more like a cosy for most of the book: there’s a small, closed circle of suspects; the location is—or feels—somewhat isolated; and there’s a decided emphasis on food. In this case, that doesn’t mean cosy recipes, though, but just the sheer enjoyment of delicious dishes. This is, after all, set in France. Setting also plays a significant role in the novel and is enticingly depicted. Dupin himself takes moments to enjoy the views, as well as coffee and the local dishes, and First Inspector Riwal provides a great deal of local history and lore, capturing the atmosphere and character of the place and immersing the reader in the autumnal French countryside.
Being immersed in the setting is almost reason enough to enjoy The Secrets of the Abbey (and is definitely enough to encourage thoughts of planning a trip to the region), but the mystery itself is also interesting and includes enough red herrings and lines of enquiry to keep the reader guessing to the end, although motive may be apparent to the reader earlier than it is to Dupin. Nevertheless, the puzzle is complex enough to keep the pages turning without being overly complicated.
The Secrets of the Abbey works well as a standalone novel, and there’s no need to have read others in the series to find your footing here, although the characters—particularly Dupin—are definitely in the midst of ongoing life events, so those familiar with the series will be particularly interested to see how certain minor subplots develop. None of that is distracting to a reader new to the series, though, and overall, the nice pace of the action, the delightful evocation of the setting, the interesting mystery, and Georges Dupin add up to a quick, thoroughly enjoyable read.