From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

The Death of Monsieur Gallet

Georges Simenon

Start date: January 15, 2022

Finish date: February 7, 2022

Discussion: Buddy reads

Why we're reading this: Next in our series of Maigret buddy reads.
[close] Next in our series of Maigret buddy reads.

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Buddy reads

* Starting/joining in with buddy reads
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What Members Thought

Sep 06, 2017 Nancy Oakes rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-fiction, crime-fiction-belgium, translated-crime-fiction

After giving it some thought, I'm raising my rating of this novel to 5 stars because this is one of those books in which I'm blown away not only by Simenon's own observations of humanity, but also by his ability to put them on paper via crime fiction and have them resonate so deeply. Even after only reading four of these books, I can already tell that it's what sets his work apart from other more run-of-the-mill police procedurals. So far this one is my favorite Maigret novel, completely differe ...more

24 likes · Like · see review

Jul 28, 2021 Christine PNW rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This was a very early Maigret - the earliest that I have read - and I got a better sense of what he would have looked like in this one than in any of the other four or five that I have previously read.

Maigret had no option but to set off in person to Saint-Fargeau, a place thirty-five kilometres from the capital even the name of which had been unknown to him an hour earlier. He did not know how the trains ran. As he arrived at Gare de Lyon, he was told that a local train was just about to leave. ...more

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Oct 03, 2018 Shabbeer Hassan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: whodunit, 2018, police-procedural

A less of a murder mystery but more of Maigret's poignant observations on humanity is shown primarily via the manner (aka ending) in which he resolves the case. Regardless to say, his dogged determination to get to the truth is at display here too like in, Pietr the Latvian.

My Rating - 4/5 ...more

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Dec 31, 2019 Leslie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: french, mysteries, kindle

3.5*
I believe that this book is actually #2 in the series (not #3 as GR states) but "The Crime at Lock 14" was published the same year as this (1931) so perhaps I am wrong about that.

In any case, it was intriguing to see Maigret work the case completely by himself. The plot has a good twist to it as well. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jan 17, 2022 Sandy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-detective-grp, rread-2022

I have become quite a fan of Simenon's writing style. It is brisk with no extras yet portrays a wonderful sense of place (here the summer heat pervades all Maigret's actions and everywhere he goes). Maigret himself is a dogged, no-nonsense investigator, determined to uncover the truth. He does not depend on flashes of brilliant intuition. ...more

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Jul 13, 2022 Ruskoley rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, 1930s

I think that Maigret’s brooding, aloof manner really suits this storyline very well. The mystery was revealed carefully enough to complement Maigret’s personality.

Its nice and noir, so to speak, how Simenon gives us such bare bones stories with so much character in them. I do not feel like I missed out on anything, that the book was lacking in some obvious respect, or that the story needed to be expanded in any direction.

From the first experience at the Gallet home, Maigret is never able to sha ...more

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Jan 17, 2022 Jill rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: jill-s-eighth-year-challenge, georges-simenon

Maigret, being the only officer available when a call comes in about a death of a salesman, finds himself having to go and see the wife of the salesman and give her the news. The death is a shock to his wife, when she is told, as she had received a post card from her husband dated the day after his alleged death. In extremely hot weather, Maigret has to accompany the wife across France to the place where the body is, in order to identify the body. Even though Maigret has been told that this is a ...more

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Mar 27, 2015 Nanosynergy rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: translated, 2015read, france, fiction-1930s, mysteries-thrillers-espionage, reviewed, fiction, series

Monsieur Emile Gallet is not what he seems. A salesman who had not actually worked as a salesman for years - but how had he supported himself? Inspector Maigret patiently unravels the truth behind the facade.

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