An interesting case but not my favourite. This was a quick and easy read.

A call from Maigret's friend Doctor Pardon late at night begins a case involving the death of a professional gambler and the death of his beauty queen wife. The cast of suspects is assembled quickly and we learn much about the characters involved. Really enjoyed this one, as once again Simenon creates fantastic but human suspects in an interesting case.

This wasn't a BAD novel, it's just that it's a phenomenally nutless wonder of a book. It was all sort of polite and cozy, which I guess is why they call them "cozies." As a procedural, it's too methodical, and as a mystery, it's not that mysterious. There's no on-stage violence; it's all just sort of...bland. A fine read, but nothing to remember. Sort of feels like a wasted two hours, though not unpleasantly wasted.