1. The Eskimo Solution by Pascal Garnier

A quick and mindless little read that didn't start the new year off with the bang.  Garnier has a nice writing style and I can see how the reserve and distance could suggest comparisons with Simenon.  I find there is too much disdain here.  Simenon is bleak but he doesn't seem to necessarily dislike his characters. Here, there is a lot of self-loathing and loathing in general and it ended up not going anywhere interesting for me.

The base story is of a french writer at a beach house in Normandy writing his novel and being decadent.  This narrative alternates with the actual story he is writing, which is about another decadent single french male who kills his parents to get their inheritance and then starts doing it for his friends (sans consultation).  It's a neat base idea, but it's all done very breezily and off the cuff, so you don't feel much connection for anybody.  I'd give him another shot, as I'm not sure The Eskimo Solution is truly indicative of the range of his work.