Originally published in 1946 under the name Act of Passion, Letter to My Judge is the story of a doctor, Charles Alavoine, who writes to the magistrate that presided over his trial to clarify that his crime was not unpremeditated and asks for understanding, if nothing else.

Taking the unusual approach of revealing the killer first, before finally revealing the victim by the novella’s end — which is unlikely to be a massive revelation for those paying attention — Letter to My Judge is mainly told in the form of a letter, with the exception of the final few pages of the book.

This novella follows a truly unremarkable, self-centred, and loathsome man. He is incapable of empathy and can only view women through a twisted Madonna/Whore lens. Upon his second marriage to the stunning Armande, a woman he cannot fit into his worldview or dominate as he did his first wife, he retreats into a shell of outward respectability, entering a kind of self-imposed hibernation. It is then that he meets someone who releases him from this slumber, allowing him to fully embrace his true nature.

This was an odd one for me, and while I enjoyed the journey, I was also pleased by the novella’s length, so I didn’t have to spend any more time with Alavoine than was necessary. I suppose Simenon should be applauded for creating such a memorable, unlikable weasel of a character.

Definitely worth a look.

With thanks to Penguin for the ARC.