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Barcelona: Aymá (Imprenta Moderna), 1952; 191, [1] p.; 15 cm (Maigret en acción; 32)
Description
Set in the in the atmospheric and squalid streets of Paris, Maigret sets out to prove the innocence of a man condemned to death for a brutal murder. In another one of Maigret's unconventional and audacious plans, he arranges the escape of the condemned man in an attempt to prove his theory. The presumed murderer goes on the run across Paris and its suburbs, dropping misleading clues along the way and leading Maigret into the labyrinthine twists of the mystery. Maigret is in for more than he bargained for, as he encounters rich American expatriates, dangerous foreigners and their hidden motives.
User reviews
LibraryThing member stubbyfingers
Perhaps I just wasn't in the right frame of mind for a mystery, but I found this book to be terribly dull. It was rather obvious who was behind the murder, but it didn't matter because I didn't care. Thank goodness this was only 150 pages long!
LibraryThing member dougwood57
Although not strictly speaking one of Georges Simenon's "psychological novels", Maigret's War of Nerves nonetheless explores the psychology of several characters. Detective Maigret arranges the `escape' from prison of a convicted killer that he helped put away in the first place. Maigret had become
Maigret slowly unravels the mystery behind the true killer, but will it be enough to save the wrongly convicted man or Maigret's own reputation? Simenon leads the reader through an examination of the most basic and most extreme human motivations. Simenon wrote dozens of Maigret mysteries as well as other `romans durs'. Maigret's War of Nerves is one of his better efforts.
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convinced of the defendant's guilt, but the evidence at trial had been overwhelming. In this 1940 work, Maigret places his well-established career at risk. Maigret slowly unravels the mystery behind the true killer, but will it be enough to save the wrongly convicted man or Maigret's own reputation? Simenon leads the reader through an examination of the most basic and most extreme human motivations. Simenon wrote dozens of Maigret mysteries as well as other `romans durs'. Maigret's War of Nerves is one of his better efforts.
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LibraryThing member leslie.98
This book has also been published under the titles "A Battle of Nerves" and "Maigret's War of Nerves"
I am loosely following this series in publication order as given by the Fantastic Fiction website so I label this book as #5 in the series - different people might place it someplace else in the
I loved the way this book starts, especially since I neglected to read the blurb before diving into the book so didn't realize the prison break was engineered by Maigret! The book was, as was common in the Golden Age of mysteries, fairly short so it was a fast read - I like this style but people who want to know the detailed personalities of their detective and/or criminal might not care for it as much.
I am loosely following this series in publication order as given by the Fantastic Fiction website so I label this book as #5 in the series - different people might place it someplace else in the
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series since Simenon published all his first 10 or 11 books in the series in 1931!I loved the way this book starts, especially since I neglected to read the blurb before diving into the book so didn't realize the prison break was engineered by Maigret! The book was, as was common in the Golden Age of mysteries, fairly short so it was a fast read - I like this style but people who want to know the detailed personalities of their detective and/or criminal might not care for it as much.
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LibraryThing member franoscar
OK. Spoilers are here. I think I will reconsider my plan to reread the Maigrets, all in order. I've read a bunch but I don't remember which ones and I want to get credit for reading them, but I don't think I can do it. He does have a limited number of characters & plots I think. This is a better
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one. This is a murder that Maigret can't solve but the murderer decides to help him. A man has been framed for the murder and Maigret gets the powers that be to let him go for a while to see what happens; Maigret promises that he'll be able to re-arrest the man if necessary. Maigret is led to a Czech nihilist-type who leads him to the answers. Show Less
LibraryThing member mmyoung
A comparatively disappointing outing for Maigret after the high quality of the last two books. Simenon continues his exploration of Paris life but in a manner less convincing, or compelling than his recently published books. The conceit behind the opening two chapters of the book is surprising and
Like almost all Simenons this book is worth reading if only for the detailed and loving portrait of the different ways that Parisians of different classes live their lives although it does not rate among the “must reads” or even more so, the “must rereads” of the Maigret books.
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the reader looks forward to a fresh insight in the ways in which Maigret himself, as opposed to the system in which he works, comes to conclusions as to guilt and innocence. Unfortunately that opening promises more than the book delivers.Like almost all Simenons this book is worth reading if only for the detailed and loving portrait of the different ways that Parisians of different classes live their lives although it does not rate among the “must reads” or even more so, the “must rereads” of the Maigret books.
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LibraryThing member thorold
There are some very good scenes in this early Maigret, especially the very neat little sketch of café society at La Coupole, but it’s spoilt a bit by the implausible stunt Maigret pulls in the opening chapter and by a somewhat over-complicated solution. The conceit at the heart of the story,
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that Maigret cannot be satisfied by mere physical evidence and needs to get into the murderer’s mind, is a strong one, and it would have supported a better book. Knowing Simenon, it’s pretty safe to say that he must have used it again somewhere or other, so it probably wasn't wasted. Show Less
LibraryThing member ecw0647
A short Maigret in the classic Simenon tradition wherein Maigret solves a baffling mystery. An old woman and her maid is killed by a man to whom all the evidence points, yet even though he was the arresting officer, Maigret cannot reconcile the psychology of the man with the evidence. He arranges
The Maigret novels are addictive.
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for the convicted killer to escape, risking his reputation and job discovering the identity of the true murderer while drawing on his pipe and sipping at his Calvados.The Maigret novels are addictive.
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LibraryThing member BooksForDinner
Can't stop reading these.
LibraryThing member smik
Maigret puts his career on the line when he arranges the escape from prison of a convicted murderer on the night before his execution. The prisoner has been not able to tell the authorities anything other than protest his innocence. Maigret is hoping he will lead them to the real murderer.
But it is
But it is
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one thing finding the possible murderer and quite another to get him to confess, or to discover why the murder was committed. Show Less
LibraryThing member ffortsa
A nice reminder of the series, in a new somewhat square-shaped printing. Simenon puts his career on the line to tempt a confession from an unusual murderer. I think this was a fairly early title, because some of the regulars are described repeatedly as young men.
Subjects
Language
Original language
French
Original publication date
1931-09
1940 (in English)
Physical description
192, 1 p.; 15 cm