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Gèvigne tells Flavières he remembers his never having a head for heights, a fact taking on great significance as the story unfolds - and the prime reason for the novel's title: Vertigo.Īlarming Likeness - As Gèvigne explains to Flavières, although Madeleine never has been attracted to anything relating to the occult, she does have, or so it appears, an eerie connection to her great-grandmother Pauline Lagerlac, a strange woman who committed suicide at age of twenty-five, the current age of Madeleine (gulp!). This incident compelled Flavières to leave the police and, even to this day, Flavières can hear Leriche's scream as he tumbled to the street below. Since he, Flavières, has always had a dread of heights, he had Leriche climb up and do the collaring. Unfortunately, a tragedy occurred that still haunts him: he and his assistant, a fine chap by the name of Leriche, were chasing a criminal who took refuge up on a steep roof. Flavières obeyed his father and did just that. As he recounts to Gèvigne, his father spent a career as a divisional inspector and insisted that he, his son, follow his footsteps and join the police to become a detective. Since there are significant differences between the Hitchcock film and this Boileau-Narcejac masterpiece, I will avoid spoilers by jumping to a highlight reel:īarrister's Backstory – Flavières became a lawyer for a very specific reason.

Initially hesitant, Flavières eventually agrees and starts to shadow Madeleine. The tale begins thusly: wealthy industrialist Paul Gèvigne arrives at the law office of Roger Flavières, a friend he knew intimately fifteen years ago in college and hasn't seen since, and asks for a highly unusual favor: keep an eye on his wife Madeleine since she has been acting rather queerly. Vertigo, an absolutely first-rate novel overshadowed by the Hitchcock film, a novel I would strongly encourage lovers of exceptional fiction to read.

Originally published in 1954 under the title D'entre les morts by French author team Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac and made famous by Alfred Hitchcock in his 1958 classic film adaptation, Vertigo counts as one of the greatest psychological thrillers, ever.īoileau-Narcejac are known for their ingenious plots, focus on settings, mounting psychological suspense - and, most notably, creating atmospheres and moods drenched in disorientation and fear, all elements abundantly present in Vertigo.