Despite his high-culture credentials, the work of Nobel Prize laureate Patrick Modiano is some ways comparable to crime fiction. His novels, including Dora Bruder, frequently revolve around mysteries from the past that an investigator, usually the narrator, attempts to solve. Dora Bruder uses this approach to engage with the Holocaust and Holocaust memory, while also using the genre to consider the ethical implications of Holocaust representation. The novel follows the narrator’s investigation into the life and disappearance of the titular character, who vanished from Nazi-occupied Paris in 1942. However, unlike traditional detective fiction, Modiano’s work lacks a clear resolution, reflecting the limits of Holocaust representation. The narrator’s investigation is marked by gaps in knowledge, speculative conclusions, and acknowledgements of the challenges of uncovering historical truth. The novel ultimately emphasizes the ethical imperative to respect the privacy of Holocaust victims, thus using the conventions of detective fiction to explore the limits of memory and representation.