"Commissar Maigret receives a phone call from Mrs. Lognon, that her husband, the Inspector, has disappeared and that gangsters have broken into her house. Maigret finds Mr. Lognon and learns from him that, while on a stake-out, he saw a body dumped from a car and when he went to call the police, the body disappeared. Beginning the investigation, the commissar finds out that the car was rented by Bill Larner, a well known con man from the US and that two other American gangsters Cicero and Cinaglia are also in France. Lognon is left to watch Pozzo's restaurant, where they probably have been, but he is captured by them, taken to the countryside and beaten, and left in the woods.
Miagret is advised to give up this investigation as he knows nothing about the American gangsters and it seems that everyone who knew something about them vanishes. Above all, his contact person in FBI, Jimmy Mac Donald tells him that another American, Joe Mascarelli, a star witness in an important trial is also hiding in France and Cicero and Cinaglia were sent to kill him.
"
Dana Samson, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Inspector Maigret and the Killers
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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?
- Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story:
- 1960's-1970's
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 80%
Murder of certain profession?
- criminals
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
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
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:
- an organization
Profession/status:
- killer
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
The antagonists are:
- foreign organized crime
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 1
Unusual forms of death
- perforation--bullets
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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