Maigret's Madwoman

Inspector Maigret, Book 72

By: Georges Simenon

Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong

Length: 3 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's Summary

'He hadn't seen her arrive. She had stopped on the pavement a few steps away from him and was peering into the courtyard of the Police Judiciaire, where the small staff cars were parked.

'She ventured as far as the entrance, looked the officer up and down, then turned round and walked away towards the Pont-Neuf.'

When an old lady tells Maigret someone has been moving things in her apartment, she is dismissed as a fantasist - until a shocking event proves otherwise.

©1970 Georges Simenon (P)2020 Audible, Ltd

Maigret

Maigret has never failed me yet. Sometimes, though I do worry about Madame Maigret, I’d like to know if she has hobbies or interests of her own..

Simenon is magnificent

There's not much more needs said than if it's Simenon's Maigret, it's worth listening to and will never let you down. Just another classic story, beautifully read by Gareth Armstrong who makes the great detective relatable. Little wonder that Maigret is one of literature's most beloved characters, as evidenced in Simenon's continuing sales.

one of the best of

one of the best of a great bunch, deeply moving, clever, subtle and so very human, a Maigret case to remember.

Novella length, good story, poor value.

I’ve been eyeing the Maigret books for a while, but having never read/listened to one and them being around the 3-4 hour length, I’d chosen to not risk it. In the recent £3 each sale I finally took the plunge. This was probably helped by watching the Rupert Davies/BBC adaptations on TPTV recently.
The story here was quite engaging and decently enough read. The brevity of it (more like a novella length) doesn’t really allow the listener to ‘get lost’ in the story as I would in something two or three times longer. It captures an atmosphere of Paris in the Sixties (I wasn’t there, so have no idea how realistic) and of a more relaxed era. I would say that the tv series’ that I’ve seen, with Davies and Michael Gambon as the hero, have captured the tone of this book, certainly.
I bought another novella of Maigret in the same sale, so I’ll see how that fares before long. It may not be within Audible’s ability to release editions of Simenon’s work that contain 3 or 4 stories, but if they could it would tempt me to buy more. I think £8 (one credit) is not such good value as most books are that I get.
I’d say that this novella was pretty good, given its length and value, but I can’t see myself buying lots (there are 70 or 80 written by Simenon) at the current price, though. If you’re a big Maigret fan, and don’t mind the value, then fill your boots, I doubt you’ll be disappointed.

A real treat.

I love a Maigret but rarely buy them on Audible as I think 3 -4 hours listening is too short to be worth a credit. On the buy 2 for 1 it’s just about ok.
This is a god tale, lots of Parisian atmosphere and detail. I also loved the descriptions of Provence. The narrator was excellent and had a great variety of voices.