When a wealthy wine merchant is shot in a Paris street, Maigret must investigate a long list of the ruthless businessman’s enemies before he can get to the sad truth of the affair.
Review
Another Maigret novel, I have been on a roll with reading Maigret books but now I have run out so this will be the last one until I get some more and I will definitely be getting some more.
I was surprised at the lack of alcohol in this book in comparison to the two previous books but Maigret still drank more than the average human being.
This book was a little different to the previous two books, instead of Maigret finding all the pieces of the puzzle the puzzle appeared in front of him instead. However, what Maigret did piece together was the true nature of the murder victim and I must admit he was not a very nice man and it was understandable why someone had decided to kill him.
There were some interesting characters in this book and one of my favourites was the one nicknamed Grasshopper, she was a real character and I really liked it when she was in the book. This book really showed the class differences and how the very rich seemed to have very loose morals and the lower classes a much higher moral standard and to be honest the characters who weren’t made of money were the better people to be friends with in this book.
I really enjoyed this book and found it rather different to the two previous books I had read. Maigret is such a good character and I just love reading about him solving cases. I give this book 4 out 5 Dragons.
Georges Simenon (1903-1989) was a Belgian writer who published nearly 500 novels and many short stories. Simenon is best known as the creator of the Maigret stories.
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First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!
Happy Friday!
I hope everyone has had a good week so far. I thought I would join in with First Line Friday this week as I do enjoy guessing other people’s First Line Fridays. As usual the answer is below the cats!
I believe that a well-known anecdote exists to the effect that a young writer, determined to make the commencement of his story forcible and original enough to catch and rivet the attention of the most blase of editors, penned the following sentence:
‘”Hell!” said the Duchess.’
Strangely enough, this tale of mine opens in much the same fashion. Only the lady who gave utterance to the exclamation was not a duchess.
Get Guessing!
Any idea?
and the answer is…
The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie
Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is summoned to France after receiving a distressing letter with an urgent cry for help. Upon his arrival in Merlinville-sur-Mer, the investigator finds the man who penned the letter, the South American millionaire Monsieur Renauld, stabbed to death and his body flung into a freshly-dug, open grave on the golf course adjoining the property. Meanwhile the millionaire’s wife is found bound and gagged in her room. Apparently, it seems that Renauld and his wife were victims of a failed break-in, resulting in Renauld’s kidnapping and death.
There’s no lack of suspects: his wife, whose dagger served as the weapon, his embittered son, who would have killed for independence, and his mistress who refused to be ignored. Each felt deserving of the dead man’s fortune. The police think they’ve found the culprit. But Poirot has his doubts. Why is the dead man wearing an overcoat that is too big for him? And who was the impassioned love-letter in the coat pocket for? Before Poirot can answer these questions, the case is turned upside down by the discovery of a second, identically-murdered corpse.
Did anybody guess correctly?
Please drop me a comment with your First Line Friday and I will head over for a visit.
Happy Reading
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Maigret and the Saturday Caller by Georges Simenon
Blurb
A man visits Inspector Jules Maigret at his home to tell him he wants to kill his wife and her lover. Although it is not an official case, Maigret is interested, particularly when the man later disappears.
Review
My second Maigret book and yet again I was shocked by the amount of alcohol that Maigret consumed. I also loved how Maigret was convinced he had a cold brewing so he kept drinking lots of hot rum as a remedy to prevent it.
This book started off very mysteriously with the man nicknamed by Maigret’s colleagues as ‘the Saturday Caller’. This strange ‘Saturday Caller’ has been appearing at the police station like clock work every Saturday but the man never says anything and runs away before anyone speaks to him. However, one evening when Maigret walks through his door he finds ‘the Saturday Caller’ in his living room.
Maigret eventually manages to get the ‘Saturday Caller’ to tell his story, with the help of several glasses of plum brandy. The story unfurls that ‘the Saturday Caller’ wants to kill his wife and the wife’s lover who lives with them. I must admit I felt so sorry for this man as he tells his story to Maigret and you can tell that Maigret also feels the same. Even though there is no crime committed Maigret takes an interest in this man’s story and so agrees with him that they will talk on the phone everyday.
As soon as Maigret goes back to work he starts his investigations into the non-existent crime and things start to unfold. Maigret does what he does best, he gathers every little scrap of information and builds the picture up.
I really enjoyed this book and I loved seeing the little tricks that Maigret got his men to use to get the information required even if they were a little underhand. I also loved that the police have a new forensics man who helps them with some signatures and Maigret finds these modern techniques very interesting. I finished this book in less than 24 hours and loved it. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.
Georges Simenon (1903-1989) was a Belgian writer who published nearly 500 novels and many short stories. Simenon is best known as the creator of the Maigret stories.
If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you
The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you will read next?
Hello!
I have actually been doing rather well on the reading front this week so far. Sadly, it is mainly due to being ill so I’m spending all my time studying and reading but It is rather nice to have time to really get into a book.
So here is what I have been up to on the reading front.
What I am Currently Reading
My third Maigret book and I must admit I am getting a little bit addicted to this wonderful detective. I will definitely be buying more Maigret books. The other advantage of these books is that they are short and snappy and just perfect for when your brain is full of stuff to do with assignments.
What I have Recently Finished Reading
I have finished two of these books from the Folio Society set this week.
Firstly, my apologies for not posting this yesterday. I will be honest I have been struck down with my asthma and I haven’t been up to much apart from wheezing and coughing. However, the doctors have put me on a course of steroids today so fingers crossed things improve soon. Now I just have to deal with a very foggy brain that I get when on the steroids.
Anyway, here is what happened on the blog last week.
Goodreads Monday is hosted by Lauren’s Page Turners. All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.
Happy Monday!
I hope everyone has had a good start to the week so far.
My chosen book this week is one that I have recently bought and I am very excited to read it.
Lore by Alexandra Bracken
Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality. Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family’s sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt’s promises of eternal glory. For years she’s pushed away any thought of revenge against the man–now a god–responsible for their deaths.
Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.
The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore’s decision to bind her fate to Athena’s and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost–and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.
I’m really looking forward to this book because I love the blurb and it just sounds like my type of read. I also love anything to do with the Greek Gods.
Please drop me a comment if you have also taken part in Goodreads Monday or you have read this book, I love a chat.
Summer, 1540. Matthew Shardlake, believing himself out of favour with Thomas Cromwell, is busy trying to maintain his legal practice and keep a low profile. But his involvement with a murder case, defending a girl accused of brutally murdering her young cousin, brings him once again into contact with the King’s chief minister – and a new assignment . . .
The secret of Greek Fire, the legendary substance with which the Byzantines destroyed the Arab navies, has been lost for centuries. Now an official of the Court of Augmentations has discovered the formula in the library of a dissolved London monastery. When Shardlake is sent to recover it, he finds the official and his alchemist brother brutally murdered – the formula has disappeared. Now Shardlake must follow the trail of Greek Fire across Tudor London, while trying at the same time to prove his young client’s innocence. But very soon he discovered nothing is as it seems . . .
Review
I was so excited to read another story about Matthew Shardlake as I thoroughly enjoyed the first book Dissolution. This book is set three years after the first book and finds Shardlake no longer in the employment or favour of Cromwell but quietly working as a lawyer in London.
Shardlake is defending a girl who is accused of murdering her cousin and must work quickly if he has any chance of saving her. However, during this time Cromwell throws a spanner in the works by giving Shardlake another case and not an easy one. Cromwell also gives Shardlake a rather uncouth assistant to help him called Barack who likes to call people he doesn’t like a rather rude name.
Shardlake and Barack have to work on the two cases at the same time but the one for Cromwell is hampered constantly. People are trying to kill Shardlake and Barack and the people involved that could help the investigations are killed before they can help. The other problem is that Shardlake and Barack always seem to be one step behind the bad guys.
This book really kept me on my toes and I never worked out who was guilty for either crime until it is revealed until the end. I also enjoyed reading about how the Tudors considered humours to be the source of health and illness as I have just finished an assignment on health in ancient Greece and Rome and their health and treatments also relied on the balance of humours.
There are so many twists and turns in this book and it never stopped for a moment. I couldn’t put this book down and throughly enjoyed it, in fact I think I enjoyed it more than the first book in the series. I can’t wait to read more about Shardlake and I give this book 5 out of 5 books.
(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)
About the author
C. J. Sansom was educated at Birmingham University, where he took a BA and then a PhD in history. After working in a variety of jobs, he retrained as a solicitor and practised in Sussex, until becoming a full-time writer. He lives in Sussex.
My latest book from Willoughby Book Club has arrived and I must admit I really miss the old wrapping paper, this new book sleeve is just not the same.
Anyway, the book I received was Invisible Women by Sarah Long. Another new author for me, I’m getting the opportunity to read so many new authors due to the book club, I love it!
Isn’t it about time we talked about YOU?
Tessa, Sandra and Harriet have been best friends through first crushes, careers, marriage and the trials of motherhood. After twenty years of taking care of everyone else’s every need, they’ve found themselves hitting the big 5-0 and suddenly asking themselves: ‘what about me?!’
Sandra has a sordid secret, and Harriet is landed with her ailing mother-in-law. Tessa is looking for something to fill the gaping hole left by her youngest daughter’s departure for uni, where it seems she’s now engaged in all sorts of unsavoury activities, if Tessa’s obsessive late-night Facebook stalking is anything to go by.
When Tessa impulsively responds to an online message from an old flame, she soon finds herself waiting at Heathrow Airport for The One That Got Away.
But what will the plane from New York bring her? The man of her dreams, or a whole heap of trouble?
And could this be the long-awaited moment for Tessa to seize her life, for herself, with both hands?
Drop me a comment if you have read the book.
Here is a voucher code for 10% if you would like to join Willoughby Book Club. VOUCHER
I have discovered some more books that I am looking forward to this year and will be preordering these very soon. I love preordering books, I just wish I could afford the books! I have just found a very nice edition of The Lord of the Rings that comes out in October just before my birthday so I have already started dropping hints to the husband.
So here are the next instalment of books that I really want to buy and read…
Spearheaded by The Duchess of Cambridge, Patron of the National Portrait Gallery, Hold Still was an ambitious community project to create a unique collective portrait of the UK during lockdown. People of all ages were invited to submit a photographic portrait, taken in a six-week period during May and June 2020, focussed on three core themes – Helpers and Heroes, Your New Normal and Acts of Kindness. From these, a panel of judges selected 100 portraits, assessing the images on the emotions and experiences they conveyed.
Featured here in this publication, the final 100 images present a unique and highly personal record of this extraordinary period in our history. From virtual birthday parties, handmade rainbows and community clapping to brave NHS staff, resilient keyworkers and people dealing with illness, isolation and loss. The images convey humour and grief, creativity and kindness, tragedy and hope – expressing and exploring both our shared and individual experiences.
Presenting a true portrait of our nation in 2020, this publication includes a foreword by The Duchess of Cambridge, each image is accompanied by an extended caption and further works show the nationwide outdoor exhibition of Hold Still.
I’m really looking forward to this book as it looks really interesting. I know it is more pictures than words but I think the pictures will speak louder than words.
SAVE THE WORLD OR END IT…
A strange darkness is growing in the Ward. Even Corayne an-Amarat can feel it, tucked away in her small town at the edge of the sea.
Fate knocks on her door, in the form of a mythical immortal and a lethal assassin, who tell Corayne that she is the last of an ancient lineage – with the power to save the world from destruction.
Because a man who would burn kingdoms to the ground is raising an army unlike any seen before, bent on uprooting the foundations of the world. With poison in his heart and a stolen sword in his hand, he’ll break the realm itself to claim it. And only Corayne can stop him.
Alongside an unlikely group of reluctant allies, Corayne finds herself on a desperate journey to complete an impossible task, with untold magic singing in her blood and the fate of the world on her shoulders.
A new author for me but I just love the sound of this book. It looks like my kind of perfect read.
Mercia, 788 AD
In the grand Saxon halls of Mercia, King Offa rules with cold ambition. His youngest daughter Eadburh is destined for an arranged marriage, but with reckless spirit her heart is taken by a Welsh prince, a man she can never be matched with and who is quickly and cruelly taken from her.
Eadburh inherited her father’s ruthless ways but it’s the gifts passed down from her mother that are far more dangerous. She is determined to carve her own place in the world, yet her path could cause war.
Offa’s Dyke, 2021
In a cottage hidden amongst the misty Welsh hills of Offa’s Dyke, Bea Dalloway is called to help Simon Armstrong, who is searching for peace. Instead he finds himself disturbed by unsettling noises and visions.
It isn’t long before Bea is also swept up by haunting dreams. The past is whispering to them, calling out for the truth to be told at last. And as dreams and reality weave closer together, Bea and Simon must be strong to resist the pull of the past – and its desire for revenge…
I love a historical fiction book and I really do not mind what time period it is from as I will happily research the time period before reading the book.
Very excited to get ordering these books!
Please drop me a comment with any books you are excited about reading.
