Georges Simenon Reading Order

8 books (1957–2004)

This complete anthology series compiled by Georges Simenon consists of eight books published between 1957 and 2004, showcasing mystery and detective fiction alongside non-fiction pieces. The collections span from Writers At Work: The Paris Review Interviews through The Longman Anthology of Detective Fiction, featuring themed selections of short stories and interviews related to crime, detection, and suspense. These volumes should be read in publication order to follow the evolving editorial selections and thematic focus across the series.

Start with Writers At Work: The Paris Review Interviews, the first of 8 books in the Anthologies series.

#	Title
1	Writers At Work: The Paris Review Interviews 1957Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Nine Detective Stories 1964Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	City Sleuths and Tough Guys 1989Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Murder Intercontinental 1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Oxford Book of Detective Stories 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Murder Most Merry 2002Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Murder On The Railways 2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	The Longman Anthology of Detective Fiction 2004Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

75 books (1931–1973)

Georges Simenon's Inspector Maigret series comprises 75 complete mystery novels published between 1931 and 1973, following the investigations of the legendary French detective. The books should be read in publication order, beginning with A Battle of Nerves and concluding decades later as Simenon continued to develop the character throughout his career. Each novel stands alone as a self-contained case, making the series accessible to readers who wish to start anywhere, though following publication order provides the fullest appreciation of how the character evolved over four decades.

Start with A Battle of Nerves/ A Man's Head / Maigret's War of Nerves, the first of 75 books in the Inspector Maigret series.

#	Title
1	A Battle of Nerves/ A Man's Head / Maigret's War of Nerves 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Maigret Meets a Milord / The Carter of 'La Providence' 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Maigret and the Enigmatic Lett / Pietr the Latvian 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Maigret and the Tavern by the Seine / The Two-Penny Bar 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Maigret at the Crossroads / The Night at the Crossroads 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Maigret in Holland/ A Crime in Holland 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Dancer at the Gai-Moulin / Maigret at the Gai-Moulin 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	The Death of Monsieur Gallet / The Late Monsieur Gallet / Maigret Stonewalled 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien / The Crime of Inspector Maigret / Maigret and the Hundred Gibbets 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	The Sailors' Rendezvous / Maigret Answers a Plea / The Grand Banks Cafe 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	The Yellow Dog / Maigret and the Concarneau Murders 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	Liberty Bar / Maigret on the Riviera 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Maigret Goes Home / The Saint-Fiacre Affair / Maigret on Home Ground / Maigret and the Countess 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	Maigret and the Death of a Harbor-Master / Misty Harbour / Maigret and Monsieur Labbe 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	Maigret and the Flemish Shop / The Flemish House 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	The Madman of Bergerac 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Shadow Puppet / Maigret Mystified 1932Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Lock No. 1 / The Lock at Charenton 1933Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Maigret / Maigret Returns 1934Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	Maigret and the Spinster / Cécile is Dead 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	The Cellars of the Majestic / Maigret and the Hotel Majestic 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
22	The Judge's House / Maigret in Exile 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23	Félicie / Maigret and the Toy Village 1944Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
24	Inspector Cadaver / Maigret's Rival 1944Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
25	Maigret and the Fortuneteller / To Any Lengths / Signed, Picpus 1944Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26	Maigret Gets Angry / Maigret in Retirement 1947Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
27	Maigret in New York / Maigret in New York's Underworld 1947Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
28	Maigret's Dead Man / Maigret's Special Murder 1948Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
29	Maigret's Holiday / A Summer Holiday / No Vacation for Maigret 1948Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
30	Maigret at the Coroner's / Maigret and the Coroner 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
31	Maigret's First Case 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
32	My Friend Maigret / The Methods of Maigret 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
33	Madame Maigret's Own Case / The Friend of Madame Maigret / Madame Maigret's Friend 1950Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
34	Maigret and the Old Lady 1950Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
35	Maigret Takes a Room / Maigret Rents a Room 1951Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
36	Maigret and the Burglar's Wife / Maigret and the Tall Woman 1951Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
37	Maigret in Montmartre / Maigret and the Strangled Stripper / Maigret at Picratt's 1951Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
38	Maigret's Memoirs 1951Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
39	Maigret and the Gangsters / Inspector Maigret and the Killers / Maigret, Lognon and the Gangsters 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
40	Maigret's Revolver 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
41	Maigret Afraid / Maigret Is Afraid 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
42	Maigret and the Man on the Bench / Maigret and the Man on the Boulevard 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
43	Maigret's Mistake 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
44	Maigret Goes to School 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
45	Maigret and the Calame Report / Maigret and the Minister 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
46	Maigret and the Dead Girl / Maigret and the Young Girl 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
47	Maigret Sets a Trap 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
48	Maigret and the Headless Corpse 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
49	Maigret's Failure 1956Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
50	Maigret Enjoys Himself / Maigret's Little Joke / None of Maigret's Business 1957Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
51	Maigret Has Scruples / Maigret's Doubts 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
52	Maigret Travels / Maigret and the Millionaires 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
53	Maigret and the Reluctant Witnesses 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
54	Maigret's Secret / Maigret Has Doubts 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
55	Maigret and the Old People / Maigret in Society 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
56	Maigret in Court 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
57	Maigret and the Idle Burglar / Maigret and the Lazy Burglar 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
58	Maigret and the Black Sheep / Maigret and the Good People of Montparnasse 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
59	Maigret and the Saturday Caller 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
60	Maigret and the Tramp / Maigret and the Dosser / Maigret and the Bum 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
61	Maigret's Fury / Maigret Loses His Temper / Maigret's Anger 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
62	Maigret and the Ghost / Maigret and the Apparition 1964Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
63	Maigret on the Defensive / Maigret Holds His Own / Maigret Defends Himself 1964Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
64	Maigret Bides His Time / The Patience of Maigret / Maigret's Patience 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
65	Maigret and the Nahour Case 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
66	Maigret and the Pickpocket / Maigret's Pickpocket 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
67	Maigret Hesitates 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
68	Maigret in Vichy / Maigret Takes the Waters 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
69	Maigret's Boyhood Friend / Maigret's Childhood Friend 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
70	Maigret and the Killer 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
71	Maigret and the Madwoman / Maigret\'s Madwoman 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
72	Maigret and the Wine Merchant 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
73	Maigret and the Loner 1971Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
74	Maigret and the Informer / Maigret and the Flea 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
75	Maigret and Monsieur Charles 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

1 book (1938–1938)

#	Title
1	L'Étoile du Nord 1938Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

3 books (1945–1976)

Georges Simenon's Inspector Maigret short story collections comprise three complete books published between 1945 and 1976. These stories should be read in publication order, beginning with Maigret's Pipe: Seventeen Stories, followed by Maigret et les petit cochons sans queue, and concluding with Maigret's Christmas. The series collects mystery tales featuring the famous French detective across multiple decades of Simenon's writing career.

Start with Maigret's Pipe: Seventeen Stories and read in order.

#	Title
1	Maigret's Pipe: Seventeen Stories 1945Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Maigret et les petit cochons sans queue 1950Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Maigret's Christmas 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (1970–1981)

Belgian mystery author Georges Simenon's four-book non-fiction series spans from 1970 to 1981 and should be read in publication order. The complete series consists of Simenon's Paris, When I Was Old, Letter to My Mother, and Intimate Memoirs: Including Marie-Jo's Book. These works represent Simenon's personal reflections and autobiographical writings from the later period of his life and career.

Start with Simenon's Paris, the first of 4 books in the Non-Fiction series.

#	Title
1	Simenon's Paris 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	When I Was Old 1971Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Letter to My Mother 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Intimate Memoirs: Including Marie-Jo's Book 1981Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

104 books (1931–2016)

Georges Simenon wrote 104 standalone mystery and thriller novels between 1931 and 2016, with the complete collection presented here in publication order. Each novel functions as an independent story, though readers interested in experiencing Simenon's evolution as a writer may prefer to follow the chronological sequence beginning with The Girl with a Squint. The series spans decades of crime fiction and includes psychological mysteries, atmospheric thrillers, and character-driven narratives that showcase the author's versatility across the genre.

Start with The Girl with a Squint, the first of 104 books in the Standalone Novels series.

#	Title
1	The Girl with a Squint 1931Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The Engagement 1933Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Window Over the Way 1933Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Tropic Moon 1933Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Lodger 1934Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	The Man from London 1934Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Long Exile 1935Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	Donadieu's Will 1936Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Girl In Waiting 1938Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	The Man Who Watched Trains Go By 1938Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	Three Crimes 1938Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	The Strangers in the House 1940Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Across the Street 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	The Truth About Bebe Donge 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	The Widow 1942Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	The Suspect 1944Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	Monsieur Monde Vanishes 1945Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Act of Passion 1946Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	The Mahé Circle 1946Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	Three Bedrooms in Manhattan 1946Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	Death of a Nobody 1947Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
22	Magnet of Doom 1948Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23	Pedigree 1948Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
24	The Snow Was Dirty 1948Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
25	Four Days in a Lifetime 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26	The Bottom Of The Bottle 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
27	The Pitards 1949Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
28	Strange Inheritance 1950Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
29	The Heart of a Man 1950Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
30	A New Lease On Life 1951Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
31	Belle 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
32	Escape in Vain 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
33	Havoc by Accident 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
34	In Two Latitudes 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
35	On the danger line 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
36	The Burgomaster of Furnes 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
37	The Trial of Bebe Donge 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
38	Dirty Snow 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
39	Red Lights 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
40	The Iron Staircase 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
41	Big Bob 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
42	The Clockmaker 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
43	The Watchmaker of Everton 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
44	A Sense of Guilt 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
45	The Accomplices 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
46	The Burial of Monsieur Bouvet 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
47	The Fugitive 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
48	The Rules of the Game 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
49	The Little Man From Archangel 1956Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
50	The Stowaway 1957Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
51	Sunday 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
52	The President 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
53	The Son 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
54	The Grandmother 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
55	The Negro 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
56	The Widower 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
57	Young Cardinaud 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
58	Betty 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
59	Justice 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
60	The Blue Room 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
61	The Family Lie 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
62	Poisoned Relations 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
63	Striptease 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
64	The Train 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
65	The hatter's ghosts 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
66	The Door 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
67	The House on Quai Notre Dame 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
68	The Others 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
69	Inquest on Bouvet 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
70	The Bells of Bicetre 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
71	The Magician 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
72	The Man With the Little Dog 1964Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
73	Black Rain 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
74	The Survivors 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
75	The Venice Train 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
76	Ticket of Leave 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
77	Fate of the Malous 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
78	The Cat 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
79	The Mouse 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
80	The Old Man Dies 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
81	The Brothers Rico 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
82	The Little Saint 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
83	The Reckoning 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
84	The Patient 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
85	The Premier 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
86	The Prison 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
87	The Witnesses 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
88	The confessional. 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
89	The neighbours 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
90	Uncle Charles 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
91	Uncle Charles Has Locked Himself in 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
92	Enigmas 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
93	November 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
94	The Rich Man 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
95	The Glass Cage 1971Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
96	The Disappearance Of Odile 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
97	The Innocents 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
98	The Girl in His Past / Le temps d'Anaïs 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
99	The Nightclub 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
100	The White Horse Inn 1979Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
101	The Little Doctor 1981Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
102	The Outlaw 1987Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
103	The Murderer 2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
104	The Hand 2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible