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Jane’s Unlikely Adventures in France— a caper series.

A mystery man hires Jane Lafayette to travel to the South of France, find her way into the villa of the Contessa, an aging star of B movies, and persuade the Contessa to give her letters written by Cary Grant. Love letters? Perhaps. The Contessa responds to Jane’s questions obliquely or not at all. And Jane is not the only new denizen of the villa: one after another strangers show up and insinuate themselves into the capacious house. Are any of them rivals for the letters? Are any of them potential love interests for Jane? Will she succeed in her mission.

Cary Grant Slept Here

  Chaim Soutine, an expressionist painter of the early 20th century, spent several years living and painting in the vicinity of the Contessa’s villa. Jane, still in residence at the villa, spots one of his paintings on the wall of the Contessa’s bedroom. Or is the painting a forgery? Does the sketchy stranger who appears at the villa have designs on the painting? Jane dives in to unravel the questions. She suspects the Contessa of indulging her habit of playing games with her array of visitors. Meanwhile, romantic entanglements proliferate and threaten to obscure the drama of potential larceny. Can this possibly end well?

    Jane and the Contessa travel to Paris– of course the Contessa has an apartment there– ostensibly to help an obscure nonprofit track down forgotten films of female directors. In particular, the films of Albertine Moreau, said to have been a brilliant shooting star who disappeared without a trace years ago. Her films disappeared too. Clues to the whereabouts of Albertine and her films are scanty, and, as is so often the case, rivals may lurk nearby. New characters enter the stage and familiar ones find their way to Paris to join the crew. Jane is a film fanatic and enters into the quest enthusiastically, but success appears elusive.