A French television producer putting together an affectionate documentary series about famous show business blondes hires a detective agency to track down one of his personal favorites--a singer named Gloria Stella, whose brief burst of fame was cut short when she was jailed for pushing her lover off a roof. Now Gloria has changed her name and her appearance, she hides out in seedy seaside town and is quietly going crazy. That's the endearing premise of this wry and offbeat thriller written by popular French author Jean Echenoz and translated with perfect pitch by Mark Polizzotti. If you'd like to see what thriller readers in other countries are getting excited about these days, here's an easy way into another culture. Other books by Echenoz available in paperback: Cherokee, Double Jeopardy.