
The Hand
And Other Novels
Georges Simenon(Author)
Penguin Classics (Publisher)
Published on 6. November 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
496 pages
978-0-241-78791-5 (ISBN)
Description
'Irresistible... read him at your peril, avoid him at your loss' The Sunday Times
A trio of Simenon's finest psychological novels from the 1960s, including: The Hand, Betty and The Blue Room
Amidst the fury of a relentless snowstorm, the loyalties of two friends are put to the ultimate test, with fatal consequences.
In the shadows of 1960s Paris, a woman on the brink of despair is offered a chance at redemption. But as the haunting truth of her past begins to emerge, it threatens to consume her.
In a secluded hotel, an adulterous affair spirals into a terrible nightmare that will transform the couple's lives forever.
This new edition brings together Georges Simenon's most gripping psychological novels from the 1960s, capturing the raw essence of human frailty and resilience during a time of profound social upheaval, and revealing the chilling brilliance of Simenon's romans durs.
A trio of Simenon's finest psychological novels from the 1960s, including: The Hand, Betty and The Blue Room
Amidst the fury of a relentless snowstorm, the loyalties of two friends are put to the ultimate test, with fatal consequences.
In the shadows of 1960s Paris, a woman on the brink of despair is offered a chance at redemption. But as the haunting truth of her past begins to emerge, it threatens to consume her.
In a secluded hotel, an adulterous affair spirals into a terrible nightmare that will transform the couple's lives forever.
This new edition brings together Georges Simenon's most gripping psychological novels from the 1960s, capturing the raw essence of human frailty and resilience during a time of profound social upheaval, and revealing the chilling brilliance of Simenon's romans durs.
Reviews / Votes
A brilliant portrait of betrayal, hypocrisy, love and loss * Chicago Tribune * One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories * Guardian * Irresistible... read him at your peril, avoid him at your loss * The Sunday Times * The romans durs are extraordinary: tough, bleak, offhandedly violent, suffused with guilt and bitterness, redolent of place . . . utterly unsentimental, frightening in the pitilessness of their gaze, yet wonderfully entertaining -- John Banville The novels brim with atmosphere, insight and intelligence . . . quite unlike anything else written before or since -- India Knight * The Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 194 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
359 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-78791-5 (9780241787915)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Persons
Georges Simenon was born in Liege, Belgium in 1903. An intrepid traveller with a profound interest in people, Simenon strove on and off the page to understand, rather than to judge, the human condition in all its shades. His novels include the Inspector Maigret series and a richly varied body of wider work united by its evocative power, its economy of means, and its penetrating psychological insight. He is among the most widely read writers in the global canon. He died in 1989 in Lausanne, Switzerland, where he had lived for the latter part of his life.