Mystery

The Night Gate

The Night Gate

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-04 00:51:07
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Peter May
  • ISBN：1784295086
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Summary

In a sleepy French village， the body of a man shot through the head is disinterred by the roots of a fallen tree。 A week later a famous art critic is viciously murdered in a nearby house。 The deaths occurred more than seventy years apart。
 
Asked by a colleague to inspect the site of the former， forensics expert Enzo Macleod quickly finds himself embroiled in the investigation of the latter。 Two extraordinary narratives are set in train - one historical， unfolding in the treacherous wartime years of Occupied France; the other contemporary， set in the autumn of 2020 as France re-enters Covid lockdown。

And Enzo's investigations reveal an unexpected link between the murders -the Mona Lisa。

Tasked by the exiled General C harles de Gaulle to keep the world's most famous painting out of Nazi hands after the fall of France in 1940， 28-year-old Georgette Pignal finds herself swept along by the tide of history。 Following in the wake of Da Vinci's Mona Lisa as it is moved from château to château by the Louvre， she finds herself just one step ahead of two German art experts sent to steal it for rival patrons - Hitler and Göring。

What none of them know is that the Louvre itself has taken exceptional measures to keep the painting safe， unwittingly setting in train a fatal sequence of events extending over seven decades。

 Events that have led to both killings。

The Night Gate spans three generations， taking us from war-torn London， the Outer Hebrides of Scotland， Berlin and Vichy France， to the deadly enemy facing the world in 2020。 In his latest novel， Peter May shows why he is one of the great contemporary writers of crime fiction。

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Reviews

Inez ，

Always enjoy Enzo and company。 This book was really interesting， the art and war made interesting bedfellows。 However I felt it all ended a bit abruptly and I am sorry it is the last of Enzo。 Let’s hope Peter changes his mind！

Sherry McReynolds ，

History and art make for great crime novelPeter May finishes the Enzo series with a story or the Mona Lisa， World War 2 ， and touching images of the characters we learn to love during the series。 A great way to end a seven book series featuring one of his best criminologists！

Laura JC ，

3。5 stars。 I've read this seventh of the Enzo series before any of the others。 It's the first book I've read that is set in the current times of the Covid pandemic （2020）， so that lends an interesting aspect to the story。 As usual， with May books （I've read the Lewis trilogy）， there is more than one timeline; indeed， at first there appear to be five timelines， which is a bit much。 It's an interesting tale about keeping famous artworks safe during WWII。 I suspected a （view spoiler）[betrayal would 3。5 stars。 I've read this seventh of the Enzo series before any of the others。 It's the first book I've read that is set in the current times of the Covid pandemic （2020）， so that lends an interesting aspect to the story。 As usual， with May books （I've read the Lewis trilogy）， there is more than one timeline; indeed， at first there appear to be five timelines， which is a bit much。 It's an interesting tale about keeping famous artworks safe during WWII。 I suspected a （view spoiler）[betrayal would come， and it did （hide spoiler）]。 May gets a bit carried away with words。 I appreciate learning new words， but really， "tenebrosity" to mean darkness？ That's over-the-top。 Maybe May does such things just for fun。 Surely not to show off！ He mentions "pewtery" skies （grey） a couple of times。 I liked his "A gibbous moon was veiled。。。" （p。 151）。 I think p。 76 "chaffing" should be "chafing。"This book shows Enzo in retirement。 I should at least read the first book of this series， Extraordinary People， to see how he began his detective career。 。。。more

Sheena ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The first novel I’ve read that is set in the Covid-19 reality of 2020/2021。 I wonder what future readers will think。SpoilerI would have liked to have seen Enzo reunite his namesake with his bicycle。

Shirley Mckinnon ，

I really enjoy the Enzo Macleod series！ However， he is now ageing and I thought some of his escapades were a little unbelievable for a man his age。 But still enjoyed it。Another Peter May book which is partly current times （yes， masks and all） and part historical。 If you love history， world war 2 books， stories on stolen art， then this is your book。 All combined in a sweeping great story。 As usual， his characters have great depth and I do like to feel like a book has taken me on a trip through a I really enjoy the Enzo Macleod series！ However， he is now ageing and I thought some of his escapades were a little unbelievable for a man his age。 But still enjoyed it。Another Peter May book which is partly current times （yes， masks and all） and part historical。 If you love history， world war 2 books， stories on stolen art， then this is your book。 All combined in a sweeping great story。 As usual， his characters have great depth and I do like to feel like a book has taken me on a trip through a country， in this case its France。 You know when you've read a compelling book， you go back through his list to see which ones you've missed。 Very excited to have picked up three more Enzo Macleod books waiting to be read！！ 。。。more

Kim ，

3。5 stars In the last book I read in this series， Enzo's off and on again girlfriend Charlotte was pregnant， now the baby is 11 and Charlotte is in prison。 Feel I missed a few crucial books in the series！Good dual timeline story。 3。5 stars In the last book I read in this series， Enzo's off and on again girlfriend Charlotte was pregnant， now the baby is 11 and Charlotte is in prison。 Feel I missed a few crucial books in the series！Good dual timeline story。 。。。more

Buff ，

Good， but not as good as the Hebrides books。

Hornthesecond ，

This was a very good yarn indeed with some intriguing links to historical events。 It was a bit random that I happened to read the seventh book in this series first， having bought it without having been aware of the series， but this was certainly enjoyable and interesting enough to motivate me to have a read of the start of the series。

Kathleen Cook ，

I'm perplexed by the positive reviews of this book。 I never would have guessed it was written by the author of The Lewis Trilogy which I found to be an engaging series。 To me， this was just a tourist guide to the Dordogne with a layer of thriller。 I had to wade through the description of too many little villages， churches， alleys， cathedrals and meals to get to the meat of the story。 Peter Mayle meets Peter May。 While I enjoyed the narrative timeline， I found the characters so annoying and one d I'm perplexed by the positive reviews of this book。 I never would have guessed it was written by the author of The Lewis Trilogy which I found to be an engaging series。 To me， this was just a tourist guide to the Dordogne with a layer of thriller。 I had to wade through the description of too many little villages， churches， alleys， cathedrals and meals to get to the meat of the story。 Peter Mayle meets Peter May。 While I enjoyed the narrative timeline， I found the characters so annoying and one dimensional。 Did Enzo have an affair with every woman he's met？ Did the author have to linger on descriptions of how each woman is beautiful？ And the "I'm getting too old for this" refrain made me mutter "Clearly you are！" And Georgette could apparently only glare， giggle or whine。 Lastly， the motive for the murder was just too far fetched。 I thought it was one of the worst books I've read in a long time。 I only finished because I was stuck waiting in an ER for 9 hours。 。。。more

Helena ，

A thoroughly enjoyable thriller。 WWII， France， Art， intrigue。 What's not to like。 A thoroughly enjoyable thriller。 WWII， France， Art， intrigue。 What's not to like。 。。。more

Barbara ，

One of the best books I've read in a long while！ Full of intrigue， history and sub-plots。 It is so well written。 Can't wait for another adventure for Enzo！ One of the best books I've read in a long while！ Full of intrigue， history and sub-plots。 It is so well written。 Can't wait for another adventure for Enzo！ 。。。more

Lars Stuyts ，

Peter May writes wonderfully traditional Murder Mysteries， and this the seventh Enzo MacLeod is one of the best。 Wonderfully pieced out between a compelling past of Second World War France and today。 The pieces all come together masterfully， but maybe not all the missing pieces？

Cathy Powell ，

Not as good as others in Enzo series。 Almost didn’t read this one。 Put it down for a couple of days … was not enjoying going back in history and Hilter as the novel started。 As it turned out I loved the character Georgette and could of read a whole book with her as the protagonist。 Disappointing ending for me。

Beth Kloes ，

Another Enzo book that keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time。 Peter May brings Enzo back as a retired cop and weaves one story after another into this book。 A must read if you have read the Enzo book series！

Anthony Dalton ，

A fantastic crime thriller。 Apparently this is number 7 in the series， and had I realised this upon picking it up I would not have bought it。 That being said， this is an exceptional read as a stand alone novel。 The writing was top notch， the characters were well developed and nuanced， and the plot engrossing as it traversed two time periods。 A crime thriller steeped in historical fiction， that maintained my interest throughout。 This was a great read。

Joe ，

This was my introduction to Peter May， and I'm sure I'll be reading more of his material。 This was my introduction to Peter May， and I'm sure I'll be reading more of his material。 。。。more

lynn williams ，

Loved the way the story tied together the generations。 The story of occupied France and the struggle to save the Mona Lisa was excellent 。 As the novel progressed， I Had to read On and On to see how the present day murder would be solved。 Interesting。 The surprising revelations made for a satisfying conclusion。 The author also gets good marks for including the Covid pandemic into the storyline。 Highlighting another element to the unpredictably of life， be it World War or Pandemic。 And yet， love Loved the way the story tied together the generations。 The story of occupied France and the struggle to save the Mona Lisa was excellent 。 As the novel progressed， I Had to read On and On to see how the present day murder would be solved。 Interesting。 The surprising revelations made for a satisfying conclusion。 The author also gets good marks for including the Covid pandemic into the storyline。 Highlighting another element to the unpredictably of life， be it World War or Pandemic。 And yet， love and betrayal is timeless。 。。。more

Joanne ，

（Review by my husband）The Night Gate by Peter May is part of the series featuring the investigator Enzo Macleod。 Bored with retirement， like all of us he is struggling with the restrictions placed on society dealing with the COVID19 pandemic。 He finds himself drawn back into investigation work and is soon trying to piece together clues from a crime scene that has long gone cold。 May develops two parallel stories of present and past with tremendous skill and dexterity teasing the threads and link （Review by my husband）The Night Gate by Peter May is part of the series featuring the investigator Enzo Macleod。 Bored with retirement， like all of us he is struggling with the restrictions placed on society dealing with the COVID19 pandemic。 He finds himself drawn back into investigation work and is soon trying to piece together clues from a crime scene that has long gone cold。 May develops two parallel stories of present and past with tremendous skill and dexterity teasing the threads and links between the two with the promise of a conjurer – the reader knows the links are there and can sense how they might join， but has no idea how they will form until the very end！ How can a dead body found in 2020 be linked to the fate of an art masterpiece in the 1940s？ It is May’s effortless style building on wonderful characters and drama that really brings this book to life and makes it an exceptional read。 Set in the second world war， our heroin， Georgette Pignal is a feisty young woman who immediately lights up the page with a strength and determination to do her duty for France。 There are some wonderful early scenes as she is posted to a remote camp in Scotland， where she takes on a rough sergeant， and then later whilst undercover in France， a fascinating perspective on the war as the Nazi officers interact with the people of occupied France with the tension and terror brought vividly to life。 One of the most unsettling scenes at the beginning of the story is when the reader first meets Hitler – he oscillates between a sincere love and interest of art and those involved with it to an unbridled unhinged rage and anger with a force that is deeply troubling。 May captures the tension and intensity of the characters so well that the reader almost feels bruised by the encounter。 To explore the wider plot further would be to begin to give away the clever development of the storyline and risk spoiling the many twists and turns。 The development is carried by powerful characters – Lange， Bauer， Wolff – clever， complex， surprising and so instantly vivid and real that the story seems to unfold with a life of its own。 The Night Gate is a fantastic read with a clever fun storyline set on a common World War 2 canvas。 The painting of this story is unforgettable。 A clear 5 star book。 。。。more

Katherine ，

I've waited a long time for this to be published and it was a satisfying read。 Peter May has a way with words and sentences that is beyond the usual。 Wonderful read。 I've waited a long time for this to be published and it was a satisfying read。 Peter May has a way with words and sentences that is beyond the usual。 Wonderful read。 。。。more

Rose Wilkinson ，

Loved reading this final Enzo tale。 Set in France again and with a largely historical plot of WW2 and with familiar character Enzo and his family， the pace was perfect。 My only difficulty was remembering who was who in his family and a glossary would have been great！ I got there in the end though。This book was such a relief to read after struggling with a new NZ crime novel set in my home town。 I realised that the difference with this Peter May story was that I could be confident I wasn't going Loved reading this final Enzo tale。 Set in France again and with a largely historical plot of WW2 and with familiar character Enzo and his family， the pace was perfect。 My only difficulty was remembering who was who in his family and a glossary would have been great！ I got there in the end though。This book was such a relief to read after struggling with a new NZ crime novel set in my home town。 I realised that the difference with this Peter May story was that I could be confident I wasn't going to get any nasty violence shocks。 Instead， I got an interesting story of suspense in which crimes are committed。 So I guess I fit the demographic who want a detective story but not gratuitous violence！ 。。。more

Ross Flowers ，

WonderfulAnother great Enzo story from Peter May。 Wish they would never end but I guess this may be the end

Jill ，

I always enjoy Peter May's novels because of his superb evocation of place。 'The Night Gate' is the latest in his Enzo series and， although I haven't read one for a while， it was easy to immerse myself into his life again。 In fact， you don't really have had to read any of the previous books to enjoy this one。 It was a bold move to have a plot around saving the Mona Lisa from German hands （much has already been written about the efforts made to keep the painting protected）， but it worked for me。 I always enjoy Peter May's novels because of his superb evocation of place。 'The Night Gate' is the latest in his Enzo series and， although I haven't read one for a while， it was easy to immerse myself into his life again。 In fact， you don't really have had to read any of the previous books to enjoy this one。 It was a bold move to have a plot around saving the Mona Lisa from German hands （much has already been written about the efforts made to keep the painting protected）， but it worked for me。 This is a dual narrative （a device I am never that comfortable with） but I easily slipped between the present and occupied France in the 1940s。 The fact that many of the events presented here actually occurred gives the story more credence。 Intriguing。 。。。more

Karen ，

Moves between the present time and the Second World War in France。 It’s about looking after the Mona Lisa during the war and there are lots of twists and turns。 Involving。 The author just expects you to know which time you are in。 No mollycoddling

Sally ，

3。25。 I liked the other Enzo books but I found this one hard going。 It was partially interesting but not enough to keep my attention or make me want to sit and read。 Since it took place during Covid， the masks and the social distancing was interesting。

Donna McEachran ，

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review。An interesting mix of modern day crime/murder mystery and WW2 France。 Enjoyable read。。。 I'll have to check out the rest of the series！！ Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review。An interesting mix of modern day crime/murder mystery and WW2 France。 Enjoyable read。。。 I'll have to check out the rest of the series！！ 。。。more

Larry Fontenot ，

Peter May returns with an Enzo Macleod book。 It's a welcome return， since I've enjoyed all the previous novels in this series。 There were times when this book just appeared to be haphazardly constructed with too many moving parts。 But I liked the story and the characters， especially Georgette。 It's a better written books than some of the more recent May books and those parts all come together in an interesting ending。 But one of the tactics he uses here is the "found diary" and what has always a Peter May returns with an Enzo Macleod book。 It's a welcome return， since I've enjoyed all the previous novels in this series。 There were times when this book just appeared to be haphazardly constructed with too many moving parts。 But I liked the story and the characters， especially Georgette。 It's a better written books than some of the more recent May books and those parts all come together in an interesting ending。 But one of the tactics he uses here is the "found diary" and what has always annoyed me is when dairies are discovered and read and the entries never really look like diary entries; they look like a novel within a novel。 I've never thought that diary entries with long streams of quoted dialogue are realistic。 Perhaps a famous diarist might have the memory and the tenacity to write down exactly what might have occurred。 But these diary entries， although a wonderful mechanism for providing the background of the story， are not really authentic。 Was there another way to make the plot move along？ Or perhaps a way to make the diary entries more authentic？ I doubt that May gave much thought to it having invested so much in the foundation of the novel to a mechanism such as this。 But perhaps I nitpick over personal peeves when I should rejoice that May has returned Enzo to us in a very entertaining story。 So let's rejoice and hope that May and Macleod have more of the same for us in coming years。 。。。more

Susan Aldridge ，

I don't usually enjoy thrillers set in World War Two with lots of military detail。 However， The Night Gate soon had me engaged with its back and forth narrative between the present day and wartime France。 The Enzo of this series is Enzo McLeod， a retired detective， living in the south of France who is called in by the local force to consult over the discovery of the body of what turns out to be a German soldier。 A week later， an art critic is murdered in the same village， and there seems to be a I don't usually enjoy thrillers set in World War Two with lots of military detail。 However， The Night Gate soon had me engaged with its back and forth narrative between the present day and wartime France。 The Enzo of this series is Enzo McLeod， a retired detective， living in the south of France who is called in by the local force to consult over the discovery of the body of what turns out to be a German soldier。 A week later， an art critic is murdered in the same village， and there seems to be a connection。 At the heart of the story is a struggle over the Mona Lisa in the early 1940s， with both Hermann Göring and Adolf Hitler wanting to acquire the iconic painting from the Louvre – both of whom employ rival art experts （who also have some personal history between them） to accomplish the task。 Much of the wartime story is about a young French woman Georgette Pignal is approached by de Gaulle when in exile in London and asked to help protect the Mona Lisa from the Germans。 We follow the story of her training， in outer Herbrides， and her involvement in the art world in occupied Paris。 She becomes involved with Peter Werner Göring's man， as well as having encounters with Hitler's man， Karlheinz Wolf， who turns out to be the body Enzo is investigating。 So there is complicated action in the wartime part of the story - with the desperate race to get hold of the Mona Lisa， talk of a replica and a fair amount of double-crossing and betrayal。 Meanwhile， in the present day， Enzo talks to an elderly lady who relates Georgette's story and slowly the links between the past and the present are revealed。 The main suspect is Wolf's grandson – but whether he is guilty or not is the subject an interesting final twist。 I thought The Night Gate very atmospheric with a cast of interesting and engaging characters。 It's my second 'pandemic' novel， because the present day narrative starts off in lockdown Paris - masks， shuttered restaurants and so on - and moves to lockdown southern France and it made an interesting and moving contrast with occupied France。 。。。more

Deb ，

Enzo comes out of retirement to consult on a murder of an art gallery owner in a house in a small village。 This coincides with the discovery of the body of a murdered nazi soldier in the same village。 Enzo delves into discovering the identity of the nazi and the murderer。 The book vacillates between 1940-1945 and present day with the art world being the prime subject that brings it all together。 This mystery is centered around the Mona Lisa。 I’ll leave it at that。

Stephen Pegler ，

Very enjoyable with a lot of twists along the way。

Ed Shields ，

Made it to 65% but couldn't go any farther。 Just not interesting。 DID NIOT FINISH Made it to 65% but couldn't go any farther。 Just not interesting。 DID NIOT FINISH 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Night Gate

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Night Gate&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Night Gate&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0