In this installment in the delightful, internationally acclaimed series Chief of Police Bruno works to connect the tangled threads of past and present. He nonetheless finds time, naturellement , to enjoy the wine, food, and beauty of the Périgord region. When a woman’s body is found at the foot of a cliff near the idyllic French town of St. Denis, chief of police Bruno Courrèges suspects a connection to the great ruin that stands above: a long-ago Knights Templar stronghold. With the help of Amélie, a young newcomer to the Dordogne, Bruno learns that the dead woman was an archaeologist searching for a religious artifact of incredible importance. And her ties to Islamic terrorists—not to mention the return of an old flame of Bruno’s, who is assigned to work with him on the case—only heightens the pressure to unravel the centuries-old mystery. “Enchanting.” — The New York Times Book Review “Rich in atmosphere and personality, with characters bound by the tenacious strictures of history and memory. And almost without fail, everything stops for lunch. It’s impossible to read a Bruno novel without getting hungry and thirsty.” — The New York Times “Fast-moving, totally engaging. . . . The joy of Mr. Walker’s Bruno series is the way the reader becomes immersed into [a] little-known corner of the world.” — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette   “ The Templars’ Last Secret brings back [the] immensely appealing, sharp-witted Inspector Bruno. . . . Walker likes to mix rural France’s pleasures with surprising themes. . . . [But] none of this negates Bruno’s daily life—including his inability to resist good food.” — The Seattle Times “Another feast for mystery and food lovers. . . . Walker’s Bruno, chief of police, mysteries are like the ideal European vacation: loaded with inspiring sights, good companions, and memorable meals (and there’s murder, too!). Spend time with Bruno, his dog, horses, friends, and farmhouse in the tiny village of St. Denis in the Périgord region of rural France, and you feel as if your own life has been enhanced. . . . [ The Templars’ Last Secret ] features a complicated but enjoyable plot, a rich knowledge of archaeology, and the reliable pleasures of Bruno’s region, including scenery, Bergerac wine, and knockout dining.” — Booklist (starred review)   “The ubiquitous atmosphere of the books is of undisguised affection for the towns, villages, their people, their wine and their food. . . . Its procurement, preparation and joyful consumption, is never more than a few pages away.” — Forbes   “Just the thing for readers hungry for a banquet of epicurean pleasures, ancient history, international terrorism, and holy matrimony.” — Kirkus Reviews   “Of all the police inspectors in all the precincts around the world, Bruno, chief of police of tiny St. Denis, France, is the one I would most like to hang out with. . . . It’s not often that a village police chief must match wits with Israel’s Mossad as well as splinter groups of radical Islamic terrorists. Still, Bruno takes it in stride—as he does everything, with a mixture of bumbling and panache, scarcely missing a beat.” —Bruce Tierney, BookPage   “A simmering stewpot of intrigue.” — The Fresno Bee   “Deftly plotted. . . . Fans will happily note Walker’s customary appreciation for local wines, food, and culture, and his bemused explanations of French bureaucracy.” — Publishers Weekly MARTIN WALKER, after a long career of working in international journalism and for think tanks, now gardens, cooks, explores vineyards, writes and travels. His series of novels featuring Bruno, Chief of Police, are bestsellers in Europe and have been translated into more than fifteen languages. He divides his time between Washington, D.C., and the Dordogne. Chapter 1 Bruno Courrèges, chief of police of the small French town of St. Denis, awoke a few seconds before six, just as the dawn was breaking. His cockerel, Blanco, named for a French rugby hero, greeted the new day as Bruno donned his tracksuit and running shoes. The morning jog through the springtime woods around his home in the Périgord countryside was a delight as the sun cast long beams through the pale green of the new buds and leaves on the trees. The temperature was exactly as he liked it, not cold enough for gloves but crisp and fresh enough for him to enjoy warming up as he ran, his basset hound, Balzac, bounding along at his side. Back at his home, its old stone walls glowing in the early light, Bruno fed his geese and chickens, watered his vegetable garden and took a look at the seedlings in the new greenhouse he had built from a kit. He placed his kettle on the stove for coffee and put one of his fresh eggs into a saucepan to boil while he checked his e--mails, then turned on the radio, tuned to France Bleu Périgord. He grilled the last half of yesterday’s baguette, shared it with Balzac and sliced his toast thin so he could dip it into the egg yolk. The national radio news ended and sh