Serge Janouin-Benanti

Joan the Poisoner

Version française

13 Crimes in Deux-Sèvres

In Deux-Sèvres, a picturesque little department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of western France, crimes, mysteries, and enigmas abound. In this collection of short stories, Serge Janouin-Benanti has selected the thirteen most astonishing criminal cases in the region’s history, including:

  • Jeanne Belouin, the poisoner of Nueil-les-Aubiers
  • The mystery of two people named Madeleine Miot who both killed their husbands, in Priaire and Maisontiers, respectively
  • Marie Bonnin and Joseph Courtin, the cursed lovers of Coulonge-sur-l'Autize
  • The bloody well in Brion near to Argenton-l'Église with Baptiste Boudié
  • The impudent escape of Etienne Giraudeau born in La Rochénard
  • Pierre Rivière the pretentious murderer of Pas-de-Jeu près near Thouars
  • The enigma of the Mauzé crime, for which Louis Giraudlost his head
  • The famous Bossard case with the abused children of Brioux-sur-Boutonne
  • The crime of Léon Lamy and Ernestine Périneau in Breloux-La-Crêche; the most famous of all murders in this region and the one that received the most media coverage
  • The judge René Chasteau of the court in Parthenay, who carried out investigations into two murders committed within one week of each other in Ménigoute and then in Gourgé by criminals René Charon and Dominique Coelorum
  • And, of course, the astounding case of the anarchist and counterfeiter Joseph Lauer, responsible for the deadliest chase that ever took place in the streets of Niort.

Enthralling short stories that captivate the reader in a region full of wicked surprises.