The Unspeakable Crimes of Dr. Petiot

by Thomas Maeder

The chilling true story of a serial killer who preyed on men, women, and children desperate to escape Nazi-occupied Paris.   On March 11, 1944, police were called to investigate foul-smelling smoke pouring from the chimney of an elegant private house near the Arc de Triomphe. In the basement of 21 rue Le Sueur, they made the first of many gruesome a human hand dangling from the open door of a coal-burning stove.   Proceeding to the rear of the home, detectives found rib cages, skulls, and internal organs strewn across the floor and large piles of quicklime mixed with fragments of bone and flesh. The Gestapo had two offices in the neighborhood—were Hitler’s henchmen responsible for the carnage? Or was it the work of French Resistance fighters purging Paris of traitors and German spies?   As the investigation unfolded, a more sinister possibility emerged. The building’s owner, Dr. Marcel Petiot, was a handsome and charismatic physician whose past was littered with bizarre behavior and criminal activity. When he was finally captured eight months later, Dr. Petiot claimed he was a loyal member of the Resistance who helped kill Nazi collaborators. Prosecutors charged that he was a sadistic mass murderer who lured at least twenty-seven innocent people to their deaths with promises of escape. Estimates of the actual number of his victims ran as high as 150 men, women, and children.   From the first stages of the investigation to the sensational trial in which Dr. Petiot’s superior intelligence and perverse wit were on full display, author Thomas Maeder meticulously reconstructs one of the twentieth century’s most fascinating and lurid murder cases. Drawing on classified police files and interviews with surviving participants, The Unspeakable Crimes of Dr. Petiot is a riveting true crime saga that that “reads like a shocking psychological thriller” (Newsweek).  

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, History, Serial Killer, Crime

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1980

Reviews

[Jammin Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was an interesting account of a violent serial killer. It's amazing to me to study the minds of serial killers and the crimes they are capable of, without any sense of remorse. Of course, if they had a conscience they probably wouldn't be serial killers. Some of the crimes were really horrendous.

[Maria Beltrami · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cinema and genre literature have somehow convinced us that serial killers are a relatively recent phenomenon, partly born out of some 'laxity of morals'. Well, no, people with an irrepressible need to kill their fellows have always existed, and probably in the past their crimes could take on proportions unknown today and go unpunished for lack of adequate means of investigation. Let alone during a war, in an occupied country where, given the particular nature of the Nazi dictatorship, people disappeared with incredible ease. It is therefore not for this reason that Dr. Petiot deserves a special place in the overview of serial killers. What does, however, are his character peculiarities, which combine well-known traits, such as pathological narcissism, with an ability to assume new personalities that would put Fregoli to shame.
Given the historical context, the text is extremely interesting, but unfortunately, it is not very clear in its exposition, also considering that the number of actors involved, including victims, accomplices, lawyers, judges, members of the French resistance, etc., is enormous.

[Juliana · Rating 1 out of 5]

So Slow

Although it is obvious that the author thoroughly researched his subject, I found the book to be slow going slogging through the over abundance of detail. In fact at times the details became confusing and only added to my growing dislike of the book. I forced myself to finish, but do not consider it time well spent.

[Esther Labib-Kiyarash · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you like true crime you'll love this book.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disturbing But Revealing

This was more an informational historical read than anything. But it was interesting. I love history and find it mildly interesting that so few murderers were found during the Second World War. As serial killers go you think would have been more reported, or it may be that just haven’t off them yet.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is horrifying. The book tended to drag.

[Leeloo · Rating 2 out of 5]

French legal system was wack

[SouthWestZippy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow, what a deranged non-human being. The well-done research is there but it is covered up with too many details and lacks focus at times. I made myself finish that book.

[ManOfLaBook.com · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Unspeak­able Crimes of Dr. Petiot by Thomas Maeder is a non-fiction crime book tak­ing place in France dur­ing World War II.

The Unspeak­able Crimes of Dr. Petiot by Thomas Maeder is an enter­tain­ing and inter­est­ing book, well writ­ten and fac­tual. Dr. Petiot was a bril­liant psy­chopath who besides a med­ical degree, can also add mayor to his resume.

The time of the crimes which Dr. Petiot is accused of actu­ally makes the story much more intrigu­ing. The time: France is occu­pied by Nazi Ger­man and Dr. Petiot claims he killed only Nazi sym­pa­thiz­ers and French trai­tors. The French author­i­ties, try­ing not to seem unpa­tri­otic by arrest­ing the good doc­tor, took their time arrest­ing him, allow­ing him much free­dom until his story starts to fall apart.

Mr. Maeder spends time allow­ing the reader to under­stand the daily life in occu­pied Paris. The sense of uncer­tainty and occu­pa­tion cer­tainly lends cred­i­bil­ity to author­i­ties dif­fi­culty in assess­ing whether Petiot was resist­ing the Nazis or an insane ser­ial murder.

The sec­ond half of the book con­cerns the trial of Dr. Petiot. The author incor­po­rate much of the trial’s tran­script, para­graphs which in many books I sim­ply skim over, how­ever Petiot’s unbe­liev­able reper­toire with the lawyers and wit­nesses makes an amus­ing read to what I could only describe is out­ra­geous chutz­pah, gall and either extreme stu­pid­ity or courage.

The lack of deco­rum in trial, inves­ti­ga­tion and, of course, crimes makes this book very enjoyable.

For more reviews and bookish posts please visit: http://www.ManOfLaBook.com

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I started reading it and thought that it was very straightforward and a little dry-and yet the more I read the more it worked. It is a straightforward telling of the facts of the case, it was interesting because this case is so extraordinary! The circumstances in France made investigating the murders difficult, and the Dr. Petiot was such a polarizing personality and the trial such a circus, it is amazing that anything came of it. This book has peaked my curiosity and I'll be fascinated to read more in this case.

[Fishface · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a unique TC story, set in Nazi-occupied Paris. The crimes are horrible; the investigation chaotic; the courtroom proceedings absolutely insane; and the killer is one of the most interesting characters I've ever found in a TC story. He's as twisted and versatile as Mike De Bardeleben but far, far better at what he does. Even the ending of the story was supremely satisfying and seemed to sum up the killer's life perfectly. Don't miss this one.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very interesting story, but I found the writing caused some issues. The first sections were confusing and hard to follow. Once the trial started, however, this story really shone. Reading how the circus of a trial played out was truly fascinating and is actually what saved this book for me. I just wish the beginning chapters had more of a clear structure.

**I received this copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

[SerialReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compelling reading about one of the most brilliant yet sadistic mind ever known.

Read more on The Serial Reader Blog.

*This book was kindly sent to me via NetGalley by Open Road Integrated Media*

[Debra Raupe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is it true Docteur Petiot is not murdered? But I read and figured out that he killed them, how come?