The Carter of "La Providence"

Book 4: Inspector Maigret

by Georges Simenon

Genres: Mystery

Synopsis

A glamorous woman suddenly turns up dead in the middle of nowhere in a tragic, mysterious puzzle that only George Simenon’s legendary detective can solve.

It’s just another slow, rainy day on a French canal, until the discovery of a woman’s body disrupts the placid scene. Inspector Maigret is baffled by the facts of the case: an expensively dressed woman, Mary Lampson, has been strangled in a nearby stable, with no road nearby wide enough for automobile traffic. Only by chance was her body found, without a noise, witness, or trace of mud to aid in explaining the scene. How did this glamorous, pearl-laden woman meet her end? It seems that those on board the barge La Providence—Mary’s proud husband, Sir Walter; a friend named Willy Marco; and a parliament member’s widow—might hold the key to the puzzle. In The Carter of “La Providence,” once again, Simenon orchestrates a harrowing plot of secrets and dramas that disturb, and reveal the underbelly of, the everyday.

Release date: June 3, 2025

Publisher: Picador

Print pages: 160