| Plot Summary of Maigret Has Doubts |
"Dining at the Pardons', Maigret 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. Maigret 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 Maigret 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. "
Dana Samson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Maigret Has Doubts |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 30% Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 10% How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- Dry-cynical
How difficult to spot villain?
- Moderately Challenging
Time/era of story:
- 1960's-1970's
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- nearly 100%
Special suspect?
- lover
Kind of investigator
- police procedural, Foreign
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
Age:
- 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Race
- French
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Genius (really!)
Physique
- healthy but a geeky weakling
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- small businessman
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- money/treasure
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
Unusual forms of death
- perforation--swords/knives
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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