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Marthe, the 70 year old former prostitute, was introduced in passing in Vargas's previous 'Three Evangelists' book  Un peu plus loin sur la droite , but she is such a figure with a long background hinted at that it is no surprise that she reappears in Sans feu ni lieu ( The Accordianist in English translation). It's more of a surprise that Louis Kehlweiler has a key role again, as it seemed his work and larger purpose had been achieved in the previous book. Both figures however were clearly too good to let go, particularly when Vargas can make so much more of them before she moves on to Adamsberg and other things. For Louis, the long years of examining reports in newspapers and looking for clues means that he can't easily avoid looking into the latest crime that currently has everyone's attention in Paris; the shocking murder of two young women. Marthe, one of Louis' old observation team, is now a bouquiniste , running a book stall on the banks of the Sein...