Paris has taken its toll and Maigret is sent to Vichy for the cure, but the Inspector finds it difficult to give his curiosity a rest. He compiles a mental dossier on his fellow guests, including a curious woman he and Madam Maigret note in particular -- the lady in lilac.When a headline in the local paper announces the woman's murder, Maigret -- with some relief -- interrupts his routine to aid the investigation. The arrival of the dead woman's sister provokes more questions than answers but Madame Maigret, as always, puts everything int he proper perspective.**

Dining at the Pardons', M tells the story of a case from a few years back, in which Adrien Josset was found guilty and executed for the murder of his wife, Christine Josset. She had been much wealthier than he, and had set him up in business. M had had but one chance to interview him before the Examining Magistrate, Judge Coméliau, having decided he was guilty, took over the case. Josset claimed he found his wife in her room, stabbed many times, and panicked, feeling he would be accused, and left the house, taking with him a dagger he thought would implicate him, which he claimed he threw off a bridge. He wandered around, drank heavily, and finally changed his mind and reported the crime to the local police station. It became known that he had a mistress, his young secretary, Annette Duché, and that the night before there had been a confrontation with her father, Martin Duché. When the father returned to his town, he was confronted by a newspaper reporter, and committed suicide, further moving public opinion against Josset. It became even stronger when it came out that his Annette had had an abortion. A few years later M heard that a drifter, Popaul, who had supposedly been an occasional lover of Christine's had claimed to have killed her, but it was never confirmed.

aigret arrives home exhausted after cracking an especially difficult case, only to be awakened within hours by the news of a nearly successful attempt on the life of a colleague. Plainclothes detective Lagnon, known to Maigret as "Inspector Hopeless," has become involved beyond his depth in an international art fraud and is suffering the consequences. Maigret's only clue to Lagnon's assailant is the single word "apparition" spoken by the victim as he emerges from the operating room. The apparition leads Maigret to the highest echelons of the Parisian art world--and the depths of greed and cruelty.

'The father of contemporary European detective fiction' Ann Cleeves'Maigret looked at him in some confusion, wondering if he waas dealing with a skilful actor or, on the contrary, with a sickly little man who found consolation in a subtle sense of humour.'A series of anonymous letters lead Maigret into the wealthy household of an eminent laywer and a curious game of cat and mouse with Paris high society.Penguin is publishing the entire series of Maigret novels in new translations. 'His artistry is supreme' John Banville'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century' Guardian

While committing what he intends to be his last burglary, "Sad Freddie" discovers something completely out of his line: the body of a dead woman, her chest covered in blood, holding a telephone in her hand. Inspector Maigret is called in to solve the crime, and after an exhaustive search, a psychological duel, a marathon interrogation, and innumerable glasses of Pernod, wine, cold beer, and brandy--a sure sign that this is no easy case--the famous French sleuth triumphs. Maigret is a registered trademark of the Estate of Georges Simenon

Maigret finds himself back on the Rue des Acacias just ten days after cracking another case there. This time it is the murder of a criminal Maigret has known for over twenty years and one he always suspected was behind a string of jewellery robberies in the city. Maigret's patience is tested as he eliminates neighbour by neighbour in his hunt for the murderer.Penguin is publishing the entire series of Maigret novels in new translations. This novel has been published in a previous translation as Maigret Bides His Time.'His artistry is supreme' John Banville'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories' Guardian

On a calm day in mid-summer, Maigret receives a visit from a former schoolmate whose detailed account of a murder he has witnessed leaves Maigret curiously puzzled. As the Superintendent reflects on the story his friend has told him, he compares the mature man with his memories of the boy. While some clues point to his friend as the murderer, Maigret remains doubtful. "As usual, while other writers flail away at huge lumps of story and end up with rhinestones, Georges Siminon works small and produces a diamond." (Saturday Review)

The regularity of life in a quiet village on the English Channel is broken when the local harbor-master is murdered. Inspector Maigret, down from Paris, is on unfamiliar ground here as he plunges into the harborside gloom, searching for killer and motive. Translated by Stuart Gilbert.A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book **

A gripping new translation of the iconic short story collection featuring Simenon's celebrated literary detective'The truth was, Maigret knew nothing! Maigret felt. Maigret was sure he was right, would have bet his life on it. But in vain he'd turned the problem over a hundred times in his head, in vain he'd had every taxi driver in Paris questioned'A sumptuous mansion hiding terrible crimes, a distressed young woman's cry for help, a gunshot on a rainy Dieppe street, a runaway couple with a secret: these seventeen Inspector Maigret short stories, written and published in journals during the Second World War, show Simenon's celebrated detective uncovering the darkness beneath ordinary lives.These stories have been published in a previous translation as Maigret's Pipe'Not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic...

'The father of contemporary European detective fiction' Ann Cleeves'Leaning on the banisters, Madame Maigret watched her husband going heavily downstairs . . . what the newspapers didn't know was how much energy he put into trying to understand, how much he concentrated during certain investigations. It was as if he identified with the people he was hunting and suffered the same torments as they did.'A young man is found dead, clutching his tape recorder, just streets away from Maigret's home, leading the inspector on a disturbing trail into the mind of a killer. 'His artistry is supreme' John Banville'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century' Guardian

A young woman who shares an apartment with an elderly aunt returns to police headquarters repeatedly to complain of strange shifts in the position of her furniture during the night. On a particularly busy day the Inspector puts her off just long enough for disaster to strike. Translated by Eileen Ellenbogen. Maigret is a registered trademark of the Estate of Georges Simenon.

Inspector Maigret, after ruling out the possibility of professional murder and having his spotless reputation called into question, solves the perplexing murder of a nightclub owner who at first glance seems to have no enemies. Translated by Robert Eglesfield.

"Simenon created one of the great moral detectives . . .a master of the slow unfolding of the criminal mind."-JOHN MORT I M E R Someone is moving a kind old woman's furniture while she is away, but by the time Maigret investigates, she is dead. A kind, elderly lady-meticulously groomed and showing no signs of derangement-appeals to Inspector Maigret, frightened because someone has been moving furniture in her apartment. Nothing, however, has been stolen, and Maigret's subordinates at Police Headquarters shrug her off as "Maigret's madwoman." Touched by the imploring look in her eyes, Maigret promises to investigate-but someone gets there ahead of him. "Simenon is . . . in a class by himself."-T H E N E W YO R K E R G eorges Simenon (1903-1989) was born in Liege, Belgium. He published his first novel at seventeen and went on to write more than two hundred novels, becoming one of the world's most prolific and bestselling authors. His books have sold more than 500 million copies and have been translated into fifty languages. Maigret is a registered trademark of the Estate of Georges Simenon

RetailA new translation of this gripping novel which sees the inspector brought out of his peaceful retirement, book nineteen in the new Penguin Maigret series. Maigret shrugged his shoulders, buried his hands in his pockets and went off without answering. He had just spent one of the most wretched days in his life. For hours, in his corner he had felt old and feeble, without idea or incentive. But now a tiny flame flickered. 'You bet we'll see' he growled. Maigret's peaceful retirement in the countryside is disrupted when a relative unwittingly embroils himself in a crime he did not commit and the inspector returns to Police Headquarters in Paris once again. Penguin is publishing the entire series of Maigret novels in new translations. This novel has been published in a previous translation as Maigret Returns. 'Compelling, remorseless, brilliant' John Gray 'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was...