Maigret in Vichy by Georges Simenon, 1968

 

About the author: Georges Joseph Christian Simenon ( 1903 –  1989) was a Belgian writer, most famous for his fictional detective Jules Maigret. One of the most popular authors of the 20th century, he published around 400 novels, 21 volumes of memoirs and many short stories, selling over 500 million copies. (wikipedia) 

Major characters:

• Mlle. Hélene Lange "The Lady in Lilac"
• Mlle. Francine Lange, her sister
• Lucien Romanel, Francine's boyfriend
• Louis Pélardeau, an industrialist
• Chief of C.I.D. Jules Maigret
• Madame Maigret
• Superintendent M. Désiré Lecoeur

Locale: Vichy, France

Synopsis: Chief Jules Maigret is advised by his doctor to take a vacation to Vichy to "take the waters". (Vichy is known for its mineral baths, which people can drink, bathe in,  or both) Maigret and Madame Maigret travel there, and he begins his prescribed regimen of drinking several glasses of hot mineral water throughout the day.

He and Madame fill the remaining time with walking around the city and observing people, giving them descriptive names for convenience. One woman they encounter regularly they name "The Lady in Lilac" for her preference in clothing color.

One morning Maigret is shocked to see her photo in the local paper, and a news story that she has been found murdered. Maigret visits the scene, and finds his old friend Superintendent M. Désiré Lecoeur in charge. Lecoeur has found her name is Hélene Lange, an introverted loner. Her sister, Francine Lange, is called to  identify the body and make arrangements. Francine is just the opposite of Hélene, a loud party girl who arrives in a sports car, complete with gigolo Lucien Romanel. As Maigret looks into Hélene's past, he finds she is surprisingly wealthy, with regular cash payments coming in; but from where?

Review: This story is as comfortable as an old slipper. Maigret and Mme. Maigret are enjoying growning old together in each other's company. I had heard about "taking the waters" but never knew exactly what that entailed, and here it is described fully. I found it amusing how they gave people descriptive names, as my wife and I have done the same. I enjoyed seeing Maigret slowly piece together details of Hélene's life, and slowly backtracked his way to the killer. There is a surprising twist at the end, and the story winds up with a suprising compassion by Maigret.

Maigret and the Toy Village by Georges Simenon, 1942

 

Sorry, no review. Image needed on blog for Vintage Scavenger Hunt challenge. RM 

The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien by Georges Simenon, 1931

 

AbeBooks

(no review)

The Late Monsieur Gallet by Georges Simenon, 1931

 

This is Inspector Maigret #3.

About the author: Georges Joseph Christian Simenon ( 1903 –  1989) was a Belgian writer, most famous for his fictional detective Jules Maigret. One of the most popular authors of the 20th century, he published around 400 novels, 21 volumes of memoirs and many short stories, selling over 500 million copies. (wikipedia) 

Major Characters:

• M. Emile Gallet, the deceased; a.k.a. M. Clement
• Mme. Aurore Gallet, the widow
• M. Henry gallet, the son
• Eleonore Boursand, Henry's girlfriend
• Tiburce de Saint-Hilaire, neighbor to the inn
• M. Tardivon, innkeeper
• M. Jacob, a newspaper seller
• Inspector Jules Maigret
• Joseph Moers, a police technician

Locale: Saint Fargeau and Sancerre, France

Synopsis: Inspector Maigret is called to investigate the death of M. Emile Gallet, who was shot and stabbed in quick succession in an inn. Maigret informs the widow, Mme. Aurore Gallet. 

Maigret finds Gallet had been living a double life. He was pretending to still be employed as a commercial traveler (salesman) for a flatware company, when in fact he had not worked for them for many years. He had arranged for postcards to be sent home from his supposed sales stops to support this story to his wife, when in fact he was staying in a hotel in Sancerre under the name of M. Clement.

Maigret spends time in the crime scene room, trying to put himself into the character of Gallet. He finds the shot came in through the window. He interviews the innkeeper, M. Tardivon, and adjacent property owner, Tiburce de Saint-Hilaire. He calls in a police technician, Joseph Moers, to reconstruct some ashes found in the fireplace; and while he is doing so, two shots come in the window and injure him. 

Review: This was an interesting read as Maigret slowly ponders the character of M. Gallet, and tries to reconstruct his final day. I found it interesting how he arranged the clothes of the deceased on the floor and even stuck the knife into them to try to re-enact the murder. 

There is a long episode dealing with Tiburce de Saint-Hilaire which delves into the history of his name, and it  is not relevant to plot and stalls the story quite a bit.

I did feel cheated at the end. Without giving it away, I will just say a murderer is not brought to justice and the case is 'written off'. The murder method turned out to be a mechnical contrivance like something from John Dickson Carr.