The Great Swindle

A Macabre Tale of Deception

The Great Swindle by Pierre Lemaitre won France’s highest literary honour, le Prix Gagencourt.

An engaging insight into French society after the first world war, but for Lemaitre at his balletically violent, take no prisoners best, read his Commandant Camille Verhœven series, The Paris Crime Files.

Synopsis

In the last weeks of the First World War, Lt. Henri d’Aulney-Pradelle wants to make a name for himself. The Bosch held Hill 113, and d’Aulney-Pradelle, ever a man for self-aggrandisement, sees an opportunity. He can go on the offensive, take the hill and ingratiate himself with his military commanders.

His division is less enthusiastic as they know an armistice is coming. All they need to do is sit tight in their trenches, and with luck, they will escape the war unscathed. Pradelle has other plans; he orders two of his men over the top on a scouting mission, discretely shoots them both in the back and then blames the Hun. His men, incensed by this last-minute bout of aggression from their old enemy, swarm out of their trenches. The ensuing victory (or blood bath, depending on your point of view) ensures d’Aulney-Pradelle’s promotion for heroic leadership.

Unfortunately, d’Aulney-Pradelle rouse doesn’t go unnoticed, leaving two badly wounded witnesses behind him.

One year later, the lives of the witnesses and d’Aulney-Pradelle become intermeshed for a second time. All three had become engaged in post-war criminality to help them make their way in the world.

Review

The Great Swindle shifted away from Lemaitre’s previous dark tirades of crime, violence and revenge. Instead, it is equal parts criminal caper, historical novel and picaresque tale. This style departure didn’t harm Lemaitre as it won the 2016 International Dagger and polished his crime credentials. It also won le Prix Gagencourt, the highest award in French literature.

Lemaitre’s style is both dramatic and descriptive. He spells out every detail of the unfolding events, interweaving two separate but related plots. He is also darkly funny, especially in his description of Merlin, the war graves inspector. However, the overwhelming impression you get from the book is the anger and resignation felt by the soldiers injured in the Great War. Heroes who were ignored and reviled by the society they fought to protect.

The Great Swindle is an intriguing counterpoint to Lemaitre’s noir novels, though I’d recommend The Paris Crime Files for criminal kicks.

The French title of the novel, Aurevoir Le Haut, is a tribute to Jean Blanchard, a French soldier who was shot for treason at the start of the Great War. French Commanders executed him and five others as an “example” to maintain discipline amongst troops. He signed his last letter to his wife, Aurevoir Le Haut – See you again up there. The French authorities pardoned Blanchard posthumously.

Excerpt

Together they stoop, the rotting stench hits them full in the face, they grab the thick fabric and with a grunt – one, two – they swing the body up onto the side of the grave. It makes a mournful squelching sound. It is not heavy, what they have to lift. The remains barely weigh as much as a child.

The driver quickly climbs out and Albert is only too happy to follow. Together they gather up the edges of the greatcoat and lift everything into the coffin. This time, the sound is a dull thud, and in an instant the driver has replaced the lid. There may still be a few stray bones in the grave, but it does not matter. In any case, both the driver and the capitaine clearly think what they have is more than enough, given what they plan to do with the body. Albert looks around for Mlle Péricourt but she has already headed back to her car. He can hardly blame her, what she has suffered is unimaginable, seeing her brother reduced to a pile of writhing maggots.

The Great Swindle by Pierre Lemaitre