On a return trip from Germany, Monk and Natalie stop over in Paris. They visit the catacombs, a vast, underground cavern in the center of the city lined with millions of human bones. Monk picks up a skull and announces that the person was murdered. Most of the bodies came from a battlefield, but Monk believes the wound that killed this man came from a modern weapon made in the last few years. He thinks someone hid a recent murder victim among the ancient bones. As Monk starts to investigate the crime, he uncovers another murder that involves a society of "dumpster divers," people who live commerce-free off the waste of society. It might just be the last straw in Monk's visit to Paris.
Lee Goldberg, a New York Times bestselling author, is a two-time Edgar Award and two-time Shamus Award nominee and the recipient of the Poirot Award from Malice Domestic in 2012. He has written more than thirty novels, including the Fox & O’Hare books cowritten with Janet Evanovich. He has also written and/or produced many TV shows, including Diagnosis Murder, SeaQuest, and Monk, and is the co-creator of the Hallmark movie series Mystery 101. As an international television consultant, he has advised networks and studios in Canada, France, Germany, Spain, China, Sweden, and the Netherlands on the creation, writing, and production of episodic television series.
Laura Hicks is an Obie Award–winning actress who has appeared on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater, film, and television. A native New Yorker and a Juilliard graduate, she has performed throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Australia, Austria, Italy, and Ireland.