Pruská modř – Villaró Albert (2024)

Andreu Boix, a member of the Andorran criminal police, is recovering from the loss of his wife, who died in a car accident as his passenger. The widowed Andreu is brought back to life by a murder case of a young restorer that has been assigned to him. Her body was found at a dump near the Catalan town of La Seu d'Urgell, where only Andorran trucks go for unloading. During the investigation, in which he collaborates with Catalan policewoman Alícia, he deduces that the main suspect is the wealthy Maurici Vilanova, but a motive for his act is still lacking. Commissioner Andreu continues his search on his own and unexpectedly finds himself delving into his own past, when as an eight-year-old he witnessed a church fire in Meritxell. Since then, everyone has justifiably assumed that the Romanesque statue of Our Lady of Meritxell, the patroness of Andorran valleys, does not exist. A key piece of information for solving the entire case may suggest that the statue is not so lost after all. However, the book is not just a detective quest for the supposedly lost statue or the motive for the murder; it also offers insight into the inner life of a person going through a severe life crisis and is also an original, humorous exploration of Andorran society.