In Maigret's Dead Man, a series of vicious, murderous attacks on three wealthy farms in Picardy hit the national headlines and the elite Brigade Criminelle at the Quay Des Orfevres is called upon to lend its expertise in tracking down the brutal gang responsible for the slaughter. However, Maigret is resolute in investigating the murder of an obscure anonymous Parisian. An investigation that ultimately solves both crimes.

The summer of 1955 finds Paris in the grip of both sweltering heat and terror on the streets. Four women have been murdered in Montmartre, with no apparent connection between the victims. Chief Inspector Maigret comes under huge pressure from the public and his superiors to apprehend the killer before he can strike again.