A Question of Motive, by Roderic Jeffries

Inspector Alvarez is a Mallorcan detective, and A Question of Motive (2009) is the latest book in the series. Alvarez is unmarried, straight, who enjoys drinking (but not to excess), and, while slow to get started on an investigation, invariably finds his man (or woman) once he gets on the scent.

Some sample paragraphs:

Alvarez drove slowly through the streets of Llueso, made even more narrow by badly parked cars, to his normal parking space. It was occupied by a car with French number plates. In an alternative space was an English-plated car. Foreigner's money might be necessary to the economy, but they weren't. He finally found a space, but this left him with a fifteen-minute walk through streets whose buildings trapped the breathless heat.

At the Guardia Civil post, the duty cabo pointed at the wall clock. Alvarez ignored the unnecessary indication that his siesta had been prolonged. He climbed the stairs, went into his office and slumped down on the chair behind the desk. Man was not made to work in such heat. Man was not made to work.

Author Roderic Jeffries lives in Mallorca. Here's his bio from Fantastic Fiction:

RODERIC JEFFRIES was born in London in 1926 and was educated at Southampton's School of Navigation. In 1943 he went to sea with the New Zealand Shipping Company and returned to England in 1949 where he was subsequently called to the Bar. He practiced law for a brief period before starting to write full time. His books have been published in many different countries and have been adapted for film, television, and radio. He and his wife live in Mallorca, and have two children.

His Inspector Alvarez novels
1. Mistakenly in Mallorca (1974)
2. Two-Faced Death (1976)
3. Troubled Deaths (1977)
4. Murder Begets Murder (1979)
5. Just Desserts (1980)
6. Unseemly End (1981)
7. Deadly Petard (1983)
8. Three and One Make Five (1984)
9. Layers of Deceit (1985)
10. Almost Murder (1986)
11. Relatively Dangerous (1987)
12. Death Trick (1988)
13. Dead Clever (1989)
14. Too Clever by Half (1990)
15. Murder's Long Memory (1991)
16. A Fatal Fleece (1991)
17. Murder Confounded (1993)
18. Death Takes Time (1994)
19. An Arcadian Death (1995)
20. An Artistic Way to Go (1996)
21. A Maze of Murders (1997)
22. An Enigmatic Disappearance (1998)
23. An Artful Death (2000)
24. The Ambiguity of Murder (1999)
25. Definitely Deceased (2001)
26. Seeing Is Deceiving (2002)
27. An Intriguing Murder (2003)
28. An Air of Murder (2003)
29. A Sunny Disappearance (2005)
30. Murder Delayed (2006)
31. Murder Needs Imagination (2007)
32. An Instinctive Solution (2008)
33. Sun, Sea and Murder (2009)
34. A Question of Motive (2009)

Mallorca

Majorca (Spanish and Catalan: Mallorca) is the largest island of Spain. It is located in the Mediterranean Sea and part of the Balearic Islands archipelago, one of the autonomous communities of Spain. The name derives from Latin insula maior, "larger island"; later Maiorica.

The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca (in the municipality of Palma). The anthem of Majorca is La Balanguera.

Like the other Balearic Islands of Ibiza, Formentera, and Minorca, the island is a popular tourist destination. In Germany, the United Kingdom and to a lesser extent, Ireland, where package tourism to the island started in May 1952, Majorca has remained a popular destination.

Majorca's own language is Catalan. The two official languages of Majorca are Catalan and Spanish. The local dialect of Catalan is Mallorquí, even though the dialects are slightly different in most villages. Typically, young Majorcans are bilingual in Catalan and Spanish, with some knowledge of English.

(from Wikipedia)