Reviews for The Friend of Madame Maigret

The average rating for The Friend of Madame Maigret based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-03-26 00:00:00 David Clark One large reason that I so enjoyed The Madman of Bergerac and Maigret's Holiday is that patient, insightful Louise Maigret plays a larger role than usual in those novels. That's once again true in this novel, the 34th in this wonderful series. First released in English in 1959 with the more accurate title Madame Maigret's Own Case, this 34th novel in the Maigret series is one of the best for Madame Maigret fans like myself. The current title is a bit of a misnomer. You know how it is: You strike up an acquaintance with someone you see regularly in the park ' you never even learn each other's names, it's so casual. So it is with Madame Maigret, who regularly meets a woman dressed in a tailored blue suit with a fine white hat. The woman speaks near-perfect French, but the pretty 2-year-old boy with her speaks something else. All of a sudden, the woman hands over her child to Madame Maigret and vanishes not for a few minutes, as promised, but for two hours. By that time, Madame Maigret is frantic! The mother returns in a taxi, takes the child and leaves without explanation. Madame Maigret never even learned either the woman's or her child's names. Meanwhile, an anonymous call alleges that the best and most expensive bookbinder in Paris has been burning a body in his furnace. Police do find two teeth and a bloodied blue suit, but the bookbinder, Frans Steuvels, insists that he's completely innocent. So Maigret, assisted by the very young Lapointe, sets out to find out. A very intricate mystery, and highly, highly recommended.

Review # 2 was written on 2008-12-04 00:00:00 Carmelo Spitale In an odd way sort of a quiet mystery book. Mixing happenstance and some methodological police procedure, things eventually come together. Not my favorite read, was curious to see how things turned out but not much suspense or intrigue. One side note, if you are learning or working on your French these are good books to read; well-written and direct, the writing is not overly ornamented.