Maigret Afraid

by Georges Simenon

Maigret (42)

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The mood of the town was still jittery. It was all very well for people to go about their day-to-day activities as usual, there was a certain anxiety in people's eyes and they seemed to be walking faster, as if they were afraid the murderer would suddenly appear. Maigret would have sworn the housewives didn't normally stand around on the doorsteps talking in hushed tones.

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11 reviews
It took a while to get in to this one, a case that takes place outside Paris while visiting a friend, a device Simenon uses more than once. Atmosphere of a provincial town is really good as are the observations about provincial life where rumour spreads and public opinion is stirred up and draws the wrong conclusions. Tension mounts as the end approaches and Maigret looks on . Maigret's sympathy with victims who get themselves into difficulties but no sympathy for those who display greed and power.
How much do people change as they age? Detective Chief Inspector Maigret is about to find out when he goes to visit an old schoolmate in Fontenay-le-Comte in France’s Loire region. By coincidence, Maigret arrives right after a member of the local elite has been bludgeoned to death. Soon two more people are killed, and Maigret’s old friend, Julien Chabot, now the local magistrate, is perplexed. Maigret doesn’t want to get drawn in, but….

Another wonderful novel by Georges Simenon. Listening to Gareth Armstrong on the Audible edition was icing on the cake.
Perhaps it's the translation, but I didn't love this. I didn't hate it either, but it was not memorable. I do like the way the author sets the scene and puts you into the world, but the people of the world don't live for me. The mystery was O.K., though not earth-shaking.
Frankrig, Fontenay-le-Comte, ca 1950
Indeholder kapitlerne "1. Et tog i regnvejr", "2. Kaninskindssælgeren", "3. Skolelæreren, som ikke kunne sove", "4. Italienerinden med det blå øje", "5. Bridge-selskabet", "6. Højmessen", "7. Louises dyreste eje", "8. Invaliden ved Gros-Noyer-krydset", "9. Et glas cognac".

Politikommisær Maigret har været til en international politikongres i Bordeaux. Han har følt sig lidt gammel (der er tre år til han skal gå af) og der var heller ingen han kendte, som fx Pyke fra England, så han er i lidt skidt humør og har drukket lidt for meget vin i de tre dage, så han beslutter sig for at tage et par dage fri på hjemrejsen og besøge en gammel ven, forhørsdommer Julien Chabot, som bor i Fontenay. show more Uheldigvis dukker han op lige midt i en mordsag. Allerede i toget har en fin gammel herre, Hubert Vernoux de Courçon, udspurgt ham. Og på hotellet bliver han også antastet af først en fotograf Lomel og senere en journalist fra avisen Ouest-Éclair. Affæren er startet med mordet på Robert de Courçon (svoger til Vernoux de Courçon), senere blev Madam Gibon myrdet og mest Maigret og Chabot taler sammen bliver et tredje mord opdaget. Den lokale drukkenbolt Gobillard bliver fundet død på fortovet. Han er død af et kraniebrud ligesom de to andre og det er forårsaget af et voldsomt slag mod toppen af kraniet. Sagen efterforskes af en politikommisær Féron.
Maigret fornemmer med det samme at der er en klike af veletablerede borgere i byen. Forhørsdommeren, de to læger og folk, der spiller bridge sammen. Hubert Vernoux har en søn Alain, der er læge, men som ikke praktiserer, men er levende optaget af psykiatri. Familien Courçon hed i virkeligheden Courçon-Lagrange og før det Lagrange, men de købte slottet Courçon og føjede det til navnet. Den myrdede Robert de Courçon havde to søstre, Isabelle og Lucile. Isabelle giftede sig med Vernoux, som så begyndte at bruge navnet Vernoux de Courçon. Og familien Courçon manglede penge, så det. Hubert Vernoux er ejendomshandler og har foruden konen Isabelle også hendes søster Lucile og sønnen Alain at føde på. Alain har kone og tre børn. Og Hubert har også en gift datter Adeline, der af og til kommer på besøg og formentlig lokker penge ud af faderen.
En overbetjent Chabiron finder mordvåbnet tæt ved det sidste mordsted og Chabot føler sig presset af folkestemningen til at udstede en arrestordre på Alain. Denne er i mellemtiden gået hen til sin elskerinde Louise Sabati og betjentene finder ham død og Louise bevidstløs, da de ankommer. Maigret tolker det som fortvivlelse fra Alains side, da han har fået at vide at Féron har afhørt Louise og at det sikkert ender med at hun bliver anklaget for prostitution. Maigret slår sig ikke til tåls med Alains selvmord, men opsøger Robert de Courçons hushjælp og hendes mand og viser dem mordvåbnet. Det er en stump blyrør som manden genkender og siger at han sidst har set på Roberts bord i stuen. Maigret går videre til Hubert Vernoux, som har drukket mere end rigeligt. Det var Hubert, der som den eneste i familien havde penge, men han har lidt store tab på det sidste og pengene er slut.
Maigret tager hjem til Paris og Hubert forsøger på skrømt at begå selvmord.
Maigret refererer til sin kone charmerende lidt af hvad Chabot har skrevet til ham i et brev.

Udmærket krimi, hvor man føler Maigrets ubehag ved at blive rodet ind i sagen.
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How much do people change as they age? Detective Chief Inspector Maigret is about to find out when he goes to visit an old schoolmate in Fontenay-le-Comte in France’s Loire Valley region. By coincidence, Maigret arrives right after a member of the local elite has been bludgeoned to death. Soon two more people are killed, and Maigret’s old friend, Julien Chabot, now the local magistrate, is perplexed. Maigret doesn’t want to get drawn in, but….

Another wonderful novel by Georges Simenon. Listening to Gareth Armstrong on the Audible edition was icing on the cake.
½
Jan 5, 2026English (UK)
Tras asistir a un congreso de la policía en Burdeos, Maigret decide visitar a un antiguo compañero de estudios en la pequeña ciudad de Fontenay-le-Comte. Durante el trayecto en tren, un pasajero se le acerca y le pregunta si su presencia allí tiene alguna relación con los brutales asesinatos que han sacudido a la población recientemente y una de cuyas víctimas era su cuñado, hallado sin vida con un fuerte golpe en la cabeza. La estancia, que se auguraba apacible, guarda aún más sorpresas para Maigret: apenas ha llegado a la ciudad cuando se produce un nuevo asesinato, y los principales sospechosos son dos aristócratas de una de las familias de mayor raigambre en el lugar. Para resolver el caso, el comisario deberá show more familiarizarse con los viejos rencores que dividen a la comunidad y lidiar con un clima de sospecha que sólo él podrá disipar. show less

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1,313+ Works 62,658 Members
The prolific Belgian-born writer Georges Simenon produced hundreds of fictional works under his own name and 17 pseudonyms, in addition to more than 70 books about Inspector Maigret, long "the favorite sleuth of highbrow detective-story readers" (SR). More than 50 "Simenons" have been made into films. In addition to his mystery stories, he wrote show more what he called "hard" books, the serious psychological novels numbering well over 100. The autobiographical Pedigree, set in his native town of Liege, is perhaps his finest work. The publication of Simenon's intimate memoirs also attracted considerable attention. Simenon himself once said that he would never write a "great novel." Yet Gide called him "a great novelist, perhaps the greatest and truest novelist we have in French literature today," and Thornton Wilder (see Vol. 1) found that Simenon's narrative gift extends "to the tips of his fingers." The following are some of Simenon's novels, exclusive of the Maigret detective stories, that are in print. (Bowker Author Biography) Georges Simenon was born on February 13, 1903 in Liege, Belgium. He wrote more than 200 fiction works under 16 different pseudonyms. His first book, The Case of Peter the Lent led to 80 more of the like including the main character, Inspector Maigret. He published over 400 books that were translated into 50 different languages and sold by the millions. He also wrote psychological novels, including The Man Who Watched the Train Go By. He died on September 4, 1989 in Lausanne. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Some Editions

Cantini, Roberto (Translator)
Daverio, Rossella (Translator)
Mäkeläinen, Osmo (Translator)

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Common Knowledge

Canonical title
Maigret Afraid
Original title
Maigret a peur, 1953
Original publication date
1953
People/Characters*
Jules Maigret
Important places*
Fontenay-le-Comte, Pays de la Loire, Frankreich
Related movies*
The Fontenay Murders (1963 | IMDb); Maigret a peur (1976 | IMDb); Maigret a peur (1996 | IMDb)
First words
Zwischen zwei kleinen Bahnhöfen, deren Namen er nicht hätte sagen können und von denen er im Dunkeln fast nichts sah - nur eine dicke Kugellampe, an der der Regen herunterstrich, und ein paar schattenhafte menschliche Gest... (show all)alten, die Karren schoben -, fragte sich Maigret plötzlich, was er hier eigentlich wolle.
All of a sudden, between two small stations whose names he didn't know and of which he could see almost nothing in the dark, apart from the slashing rain in the beam of a large lamp and human shapes pushing carts, Maigret won... (show all)dered what he was doing there.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Es wäre besser gewesen, er hätte geheiratet", sagte sie.
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"He should have married," she declared.
Blurbers
Banville, John; Knight, India; Barnes, Julian; Spark, Muriel; Wilson, A. N.; Gray, John (show all 9); Brookner, Anita; Faulkner, William; Gide, André
Original language
Französisch; French
Disambiguation notice*
In the French original, Maigret a peur (1953).

Variously published in English as:
(i) Maigret Afraid (trans. Margaret Duff) (1961);
(ii) Maigret is Afraid (trans. Ros Sch... (show all)wartz) (2017).
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.

Classifications

Genres
Fiction and Literature, Mystery
DDC/MDS
843.912Literature & rhetoricFrench & related literaturesFrench fiction1900-20th Century1900-1945
LCC
PQ2637 .I53 .M255113Language and LiteratureFrench, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese literaturesFrench literatureModern literature1900-1960
BISAC

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