| Plot Summary of Maigret Takes the Waters |
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"Dr. Pardon has suggested a vacation in Vichy, where Maigret can take the waters. At 53 he's in good shape, but in need of a break. Maigret and Mrs. Maigret quickly adjust to the Vichy routine, and start to recognize some of the others on their daily walks. Then the news breaks that one of the women they'd often noticed, Hélène Lange, has been strangled, not far from their hotel. Inspector Désiré Lecoeur, of Clermont-Ferrand, who had once been one of Maigret's men, is in charge of the case, but Maigret begins to "consult". Hélène's sister, Francine Lange, arrives for the funeral, and claims she'd hardly ever had contact with her sister, who led a solitary life.
But each month Hélène had deposited 5,000 francs or more in the bank, after returning from various short trips, almost always to different small cities. Lecoeur and Maigret discover, after Francine has abruptly left Vichy when she received a phone call at her hotel, apparently from the killer, that her connection with her sister had been deeper. Finally the man is found, and the story becomes clear. He had been Hélène's lover years before, and she had told him that she'd had his son. Actually, it was Francine's baby, soon after given up for adoption, and drowned in a pond accident before he reached 3. Hélène had been taking money from Louis Pélardeau all those years, leading him to believe it was his son he was supporting, and that he was alive and well.
"
Dana Samson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Maigret Takes the Waters |
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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?
- Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story:
- 1960's-1970's
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- nearly 100%
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:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- accused criminal
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
Misc setting
- resort/hotel
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
- hanging
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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