L'affaire Lerouge vs The Talleyrand Maxim: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Mystery, Fiction

L'affaire Lerouge Émile Gaboriau · 1800 ★★★★☆ 3.8 478 pages · ≈ 8 h 51 m · Challenging

Le jeudi 6 mars 1862, surlendemain du Mardi gras, cinq femmes du village de La Jonchere se presentaient au bureau de police de Bougival.

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The Talleyrand Maxim Joseph Smith Fletcher · 1920 ★★★★☆ 3.9 195 pages · ≈ 3 h 37 m · Challenging

The “Talleyrand Maxim” holds that “With time and patience, the mulberry leaf is turned into satin.” The adage has the character of guidance for life for an ambitious legal clerk, Linford Pratt. Unlike most people, he…

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The verdict

Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
The Talleyrand Maxim is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 8 for L'affaire Lerouge.
L'affaire Lerouge has the widest readership — 635 ratings behind its score.

How to choose

Want a one-evening read? The Talleyrand Maxim ≈ 3h vs 8h for L'affaire Lerouge

Scores by source

	L'affaire Lerouge	The Talleyrand Maxim
Goodreads	3.8 (635)	3.9 (180)
Apple Books	—	4.5 (13)

Reception

	L'affaire Lerouge	The Talleyrand Maxim
Ratings	635	180
Editions	148	115
Want to read	1038	102
Pages	478	195

The verdict

How to choose

Scores by source

Reception

Side by side