La corde au cou

by Emile Gaboriau

"La corde au cou" by Émile Gaboriau is a detective novel published in 1873. When fire ravages the Château de Valpinson in June 1871, a village witness accuses Jacques de Boiscoran of arson and murder. With damning circumstances mounting against him and a bitter hunting dispute providing motive, the suspect's desperate family calls upon investigator Manuel Forgat. Unlike Gaboriau's earlier works, this novel follows the accused man rather than the detective, creating intense suspense as readers question whether innocence can prevail.