Series
Publication
Livre de Poche (2000), 192 p.
Original publication date
1958
Collections
Genres
Subjects
Description
While at this time the previous day he had never heard of the Martons, the train set specialist was beginning to haunt his thoughts, and so was the elegant young woman who, he admitted, had boldly stood up to him when he had done everything he could to unsettle her. When a salesman from a Paris department store confides his secret fears to Maigret, the Inspector soon becomes caught up in a treacherous feud between husband and wife that is not as clear cut as it seems.
User reviews
LibraryThing member Eyejaybee
Another well crafted story from Georges Simenon. It opens with Maigret and his colleagues in a state of torpor in the first week of the New year. No-one seems to have any energy or drive, and even the criminals seem to be suffering from post-Christmas inertia. In the midst of this Maigret is
The plot thinkens when maigret is visited shortly afterwards by Mme Marton, Xavier's wife, who tells a similar story to her husband. Maigret is left to wonder which, if either, is telling the truth.
As always, the plot is well thought through, and the story is beautifully written (or, translated by a writer with a flair for gripping prose. There is relatively little exciting action,but the tension develops inexorably. More than fifty years on from its original publication this book has scarcely dated at all.
Show More
visited by Xavier Marton, head salesman from one of Paris's leading toy stores. It takes M. Marton (an expert (perhaps even a connoisseur) of electric trains) a long time to tell his story, but it eventually transpires turns out that he is convinced that his wife is trying to kill him. He even produces a wrap of paper containing a hazardous chemical preparation that he has found hidden in his house. However, at this point Maigret is summoned away to speak to the Chief of Police on another matter, and when he returns to his office M. Marton has gone.The plot thinkens when maigret is visited shortly afterwards by Mme Marton, Xavier's wife, who tells a similar story to her husband. Maigret is left to wonder which, if either, is telling the truth.
As always, the plot is well thought through, and the story is beautifully written (or, translated by a writer with a flair for gripping prose. There is relatively little exciting action,but the tension develops inexorably. More than fifty years on from its original publication this book has scarcely dated at all.
Show Less
LibraryThing member hardlyhardy
Some mystery novels are just different from all the others, and one of these is Georges Simenon's “Maigret’s Doubts,” published in 1958 and still a page-turner.
As the relatively brief novel begins, it may be the reader who has the doubts. Maigret, the Paris police inspector, is so distracted
But then Marton's wife enters his office with another version of the story. What neither spouse tells him, but which Maigret discovers through a little investigation, is that both parties are involved in affairs, she with her boss and he with his wife's sister, who is living with them. On a second visit, Marton tells him that if his wife does poison him, he plans to kill her with his gun before he dies.
The case troubles Maigret greatly because he fears something terrible is about to happen, but to whom? How can he make an arrest before there is a crime? His doubts are about what he can do to stop it. The murder, when it finally does happen, turns out to be a bit more complicated than one might expect.
Early in the novel Simenon refers to his detective's "professional apathy," which seems an apt descriptive phrase for the man, who asks few questions, displays few emotions and often seems not to care about his cases or much of anything else. Distracted by his own marital concerns in that first chapter, he really didn't care. But later he does, and his mind is always at work even when his behavior suggests otherwise.
As the relatively brief novel begins, it may be the reader who has the doubts. Maigret, the Paris police inspector, is so distracted
Show More
when a man named Xavier Marton enters his office that he only half pays attention. He doesn't even remember the man's name after he leaves his office while Maigret is called away. Still he remembers enough to be troubled later. Marton believes his wife plans to poison him.But then Marton's wife enters his office with another version of the story. What neither spouse tells him, but which Maigret discovers through a little investigation, is that both parties are involved in affairs, she with her boss and he with his wife's sister, who is living with them. On a second visit, Marton tells him that if his wife does poison him, he plans to kill her with his gun before he dies.
The case troubles Maigret greatly because he fears something terrible is about to happen, but to whom? How can he make an arrest before there is a crime? His doubts are about what he can do to stop it. The murder, when it finally does happen, turns out to be a bit more complicated than one might expect.
Early in the novel Simenon refers to his detective's "professional apathy," which seems an apt descriptive phrase for the man, who asks few questions, displays few emotions and often seems not to care about his cases or much of anything else. Distracted by his own marital concerns in that first chapter, he really didn't care. But later he does, and his mind is always at work even when his behavior suggests otherwise.
Show Less
Language
Original language
French
ISBN
9782253142300
Physical description
192 p.; 4.3 inches
Other editions
Maigret Has Scruples by Georges Simenon (Paperback)
Pages
192