| Plot Summary of Maigret and the Madwoman |
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"A little old lady, Léontine Antoine, tries to see Maigret at the Quai des Orfèvres. Lapointe interviews her and they learn that she believes someone has been in her apartment, as things have been moved around. She approaches Maigret in the street and makes him promise to come, but before he has a chance, he learns she has been murdered in her apartment. Apparently she'd returned while the unknown intruder was there. If only Maigret can learn what the mysterious intruder had been searching for, but she apparently had nothing of value in the house. The only strange item is a piece of paper with revolver grease found in her bedside table drawer. Her mannish masseuse niece, Angèle Louette, lives nearby, and her boyfriend turns out to be a petty criminal, Le Grand Marcel, but soon after Maigret confronts him in her apartment, he leaves for Toulon; apparently they had a quarrel and have split up.
Maigret calls his old friend Marella in Toulon to watch Marcel, and when he hears he's visited retired crime lord Pepito Giovanni, heads for the scene. Maigret and Marella go to Giovanni's, and shortly after they see him head out to sea briefly in his launch. He has thrown the revolver into the sea. Maigret returns to Paris where Marella calls him the next day to report that Le Grand Marcel was found shot to death. When Maigret confronts Angèle Louette with this news, she reveals that Marcel had wanted her aunt's late husband's invention, a silencer-revolver, thinking he could sell it. He'd killed her when she returned while he was still there. Since it was an unpremeditated crime, she cannot be held as an accessory, and Maigret decides to let her go free.
"
Dana Samson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Maigret and the Madwoman |
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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?
- Challenging
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:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- criminal
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- money/treasure
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
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?
- 2
Unusual forms of death
- perforation--bullets
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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