Murder In Paris ’68

Synopsis

Longlisted for The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-fiction 2026

One of the Sunday Times Best Non-Fiction Books to Read in Summer 2026

From the author of A Waiter In Paris…

In 1960s Paris, the high-life and the low-life go hand in hand. It is a time of glamour, sports cars, casinos and night clubs with a cast of actresses, petty criminals, high-level gangsters and compromised politicians. And with French cinema taking the world by storm, the man at the dark heart of it all is an enigmatic film star dubbed ‘the most beautiful man in the world’.

With a shady past and a taste for bad company, Alain Delon lives on the edge. But when a dead body turns up in the outskirts of Paris that turns out to be his associate, Stevan, questions begin to be asked. That Delon shot to stardom playing the stylish and murderous Tom Ripley does not go unnoticed. Is art imitating life or is life imitating art? And who killed Stevan Marković?

Edward Chisholm, author of the acclaimed A Waiter In Paris submerses the reader into the city’s demimonde and draws us intimately into events as they unfold. And as we inhabit the lives of the players in this extraordinary true-life drama, we witness what became to be known as The Marković Affair from the inside, as it spirals out of control and not only pulls down Alain Delon but everyone in his orbit.

For fans of Patrick Radden Keefe, David Grann and Philippe Sands, A Murder In Paris ’68 may be the best non-fiction you read this year.

Author

Edward Chisholm was born in Dorset, England, and moved to Paris in 2012 where he worked all manner of low-paid jobs, from waiting and bar work to museum security and market hand, while trying to build a career as a writer. His memoir, A Waiter In Paris has sold over 100,000 copies and has been translated into several languages. Now, Chisholm makes a living as a creative director, author and screenwriter, based in Switzerland. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian and the Financial Times magazine.