Maigret Sets a Trap
Georges Simenon
Genre(s) | Mystery, Crime
Goodreads Rating | 3.9
Humpo Show Rating | 3.25
Published: 1955 (my edition was 2016)
Publisher: Penguin Classics
A serial killer has murdered five women in successive months in the Montmartre area of Paris without anyone witnessing the murders. The police have no leads, and Maigret worries there will be another, and soon, if he doesn’t do something. He must find a way to second guess what the killer does next and quickly.
This is a nice quick thriller that largely focuses on the psychology of a serial killer. In some respects, this slim volume is a perfect example of the early days of criminal profiling as Maigret investigates into what sort of mind wants to kill, and repeatedly so. Another intriguing element is why does this particular murderer kill only women in a certain place at a certain time?
Maigret Sets a Trap is well written, succinct and clever. Simenon has obviously gone to great lengths to ensure that the police procedures and the psychological analysis that he details down is both factually correct and interesting enough to be a focus of a mystery narrative. I will definitely pick up one of his again should I want to read something quick and intriguing.
The Humpo Show | Richard
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