Sharko stood up quickly then, shielding the sun, his body frozen as he looked at the seawall.
“Franck, do you see the girls near the ice cream wagon?”
A breath between them.
“Franck! Franck, tell me you see them…”
Wind floated over the waves, carrying distant sounds of laughter.
Praise for Syndrome E:
“Compulsively readable… An eerie psychological mystery with a truly stunning resolution.”
“A crackerjack story that most readers will devour in one sitting… Spare evocative prose propels French author Thilliez’s stellar U.S. debut.”
“Blending science and neurology into the intrigue of his excellent thriller, Thilliez takes us into the maze of the human brain, with all the evils it can unleash.”
“With a fascinating blend of noir procedural, espionage flavor, and an eerie set up that makes the video from *The Ring* seem harmless, it is no surprise that Syndrome E has already been an international sensation. Beneath its dazzling, byzantine plot are menacing questions of what lurks at the intersection between the new and chilling capabilities of neuroscience and the ancient but more-chilling capabilities of human evil.”
“This terrific French thriller… boasts distinctive characters you want to spend time with, a lively plot, evocative settings, fun film references and, icing on the cake, an enjoyable offbeat romance. Having achieved bestseller status in Europe, Thilliez is poised to do the same in the U.S.”
“Detective Lucie Henebelle is an overwhelmed single mother who doesn’t need more trouble. Then she gets the call from a friend who has gone blind after watching an obscure film embedded with heinous images. It’s her colleague, a profiler for the Paris police department, who makes the connection between the movie and the five men murdered at a construction site. Twisty neuroscience! Who can resist?”
“A tour de force… A captivating plot that keeps the reader in his seat until the final moments.”
About the Author
Franck Thilliez is the author of several bestselling novels in his native France. This is his first novel to be translated into English in the United States. He lives in Paris.
Mark Polizzotti is the translator of more than thirty books from the French. His articles and reviews have appeared in The Wall Street Journal and The Nation. He lives in New York City.
Copyright
Published by the Penguin Group
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Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published in 2012 by Viking Penguin, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Copyright © Editions Fleuve Noir, Department d’Univers Poche, 2010
Translation copyright © Mark Polizzotti, 2012
All rights reserved
Originally published in French under the title Le Syndrome E by Editions Fleuve Noir, Department d’Univers Poche, Paris.
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION DATA
Thilliez, Franck.
[Syndrome E. English]
Syndrome E / Franck Thilliez ; translated by Mark Polizzotti.
p. cm.
ISBN: 978-1-101-60117-4
1. Detectives—France—Fiction. 2. Evil in motion pictures—Fiction. 3. Subliminal perception—Fiction. 4. Violence—Fiction. 5. Murder—Investigation—Fiction. I. Polizzotti, Mark. II. Title.
PQ2720.H58S9613 2012
843’.92—dc23
2012004718
Printed in the United States of America
Set in Minion Pro
Designed by Francesca Belanger
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic
form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted
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