Maigret Hesitates

Maigret Hesitates

About the Book

“A writer as comfortable with reality as with fiction, with passion as with reason.” —John Le Carré

When a mysterious letter writer warns Inspector Maigret that a murder is imminent, Maigret must trace the messages back to their source before it is too late


When a series of letters, penned on expensive stationery, arrives at Maigret's desk claiming that a murder will take place but that the writer is unsure as to who will die, who will do the killing, and when the killing will occur, Maigret's interest is piqued. He quickly traces the stationery back to the house of Emile Parendon, an eminent lawyer. But once there, the inspector finds that pinning down clues to a crime not yet committed isn't easy. When a murder does take place, the identity of the victim surprises even Maigret.

A twisty and engrossing mystery, Maigret Hesitates puts the great detective's powers to the test.
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Praise for Maigret Hesitates

Praise for Georges Simenon:

“One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories.” —The Guardian

“These Maigret books are as timeless as Paris itself.” —The Washington Post

“The matchless French crime novelist.” —Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker

“Maigret ranks with Holmes and Poirot in the pantheon of fictional detective immortals.” —People

“I love reading Simenon. He makes me think of Chekhov.” —William Faulkner

“An astute observer of human nature, writing in a spare and vivid style.” —Amor Towles

“I never read contemporary fiction–with one exception: the works of Simenon.” —T.S. Eliot

“A writer as comfortable with reality as with fiction, with passion as with reason.” —John Le Carré

“One of the most important writers of our century.” —Gabriel García Márquez

“A favorite writer of mine.” —Sigrid Nunez

“A great writer of detail, of atmosphere.” —Leïla Slimani

“Feels incredibly modern…A great writer.” —Ian Rankin

“The greatest of all, the most genuine novelist we have had in literature.” —André Gide

“A supreme writer . . . Unforgettable vividness.” —The Independent (London)

“Superb . . . The most addictive of writers . . . A unique teller of tales.” —The Observer (London)

“Compelling, remorseless, brilliant.” —John Gray

“A truly wonderful writer . . . Marvelously readable—lucid, simple, absolutely in tune with the world he creates.” —Muriel Spark

“A novelist who entered his fictional world as if he were a part of it.” —Peter Ackroyd

“Extraordinary masterpieces of the twentieth century.” —John Banville

"Gem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor" ―Times (London)

"Strangely comforting . . . so many lovely bistros from the Paris of mid-20th C. The corpses are incidental, it's the food that counts." ―Margaret Atwood

"One of the greatest writers of the 20th century . . . no other writer can set up a scene as sharply and with such economy as Simenon does . . . the conjuring of a world, a place, a time, a set of characters - above all, an atmosphere." ―Financial Times

"Gripping . . . richly rewarding . . . You'll quickly find yourself obsessing about his life as you tackle each mystery in turn." ―Stig Abell, The Sunday Times (London)
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Inspector Maigret Series

Maigret and the Informer
Maigret's Madwoman
Maigret and the Wine Merchant
Maigret and the Killer
Maigret's Childhood Friend
Maigret in Vichy
Maigret Hesitates
Maigret's Pickpocket
Maigret and the Nahour Case
Maigret Defends Himself
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About the Author

Georges Simenon
Georges Simenon was born in 1903 in Liège, Belgium, and died 1989 in Lausanne, Switzerland. His entirely singular body of work is among the most compelling in the global canon. More than 800 million copies of his books have been sold in more than 50 languages. More by Georges Simenon
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About the Author

Howard Curtis
Georges Simenon was born in 1903 in Liège, Belgium, and died 1989 in Lausanne, Switzerland. His entirely singular body of work is among the most compelling in the global canon. More than 800 million copies of his books have been sold in more than 50 languages. More by Howard Curtis
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