Black Diamond Police

Mouthwatering mix of savory suspense

(CNN) -- In "Black Diamond," best-selling author Martin Walker uncovers the trouble behind truffles. Before you crack open the pages of Walker's new novel, make sure and pour yourself a glass of red wine. Better have some cheese with a baguette close at hand too, because this book is deliciously good.

The title, "Black Diamond" refers to France's highly-prized truffles of the same name. They're knobby, round, roughly the size of a golf ball and so sought-after that a pound will cost you several thousand dollars. Set in the south of France, specifically the Perigord region, this is Walker's third mystery featuring Bruno Courreges, chief of police in the sleepy town of St. Denis.

This time out, Chief Bruno must investigate a price-fixing scandal involving the international multimillion-dollar truffle market. There's a murder -- two of them, in fact -- arson and a conspiracy, Asian thugs and some unsavory secrets from France's colonial past.

While the plot is a page-turner, the real allure of this novel lies with the author's other ingredients: the rich French food, the historical detail of the picturesque region and the eccentric cast of characters, including a truffle-hunting basset hound named Gigi.

It's an enticing mix of the savory and suspenseful, a recipe for a great read. Besides his career as a novelist, Walker is also a senior director of the Global Business Policy Council, a private think-tank based in Washington, He is a historian, an award-winning journalist and editor emeritus at United Press International.

CNN spoke to him recently from his home in France. The following is an edited transcript.

CNN: For new readers, tell me more about Chief Bruno and how he became the hero of your series?

Walker: When we bought a holiday home in the Perigord region of France, I joined the local tennis club and met a wonderful man, our village policeman, who became my tennis partner, my good friend and my guide and teacher on French cooking, hunting, how to train dogs, make jam and enjoy the splendidly relaxed and convivial way of life.

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