PIETR THE LATVIAN commences the latest entire series audio quest, having now finished the much loved Discworld novels. I'm also aware I've got a few other series underway in this quest - mostly they've lapsed because I'm easily distracted, or because they've failed to hold interest. This first Maigret outing definitely held interest, not always in the way I was expecting though.

Maybe it's just me, but the anti-semitism and the casual racism in this audio really jarred, so much so that there was a point when I thought I'm going to have to abandon this quest at the opening salvo. Cheating a little and looking through a lot of commentary and reviews, I was convinced me to press on, mostly because so many people find Maigret such a compelling character - which he most definitely is.

This introduction to Maigret brings to life a slightly grumpy lone wolf type detective, haunted by his decisions and dogged in his pursuit of the truth. The plot was interesting, and the detection methods, with surveillance and stakeouts playing a big part, and strikingly, the use of detailed written descriptions of suspects. Everything is played out against a dark, damp (often pouring rain) Paris, that seems as repressed and dogged as Maigret on occasions.

Discomfort aside, there are a lot of books in the Maigret series, and the quest will continue for the moment, as there is much commentary about the differences in each novel.

www.austcrimefiction.org/review/pietr-latvian-georges-simenon