Martin Michaud Books In Order

Publication Order of Victor Lessard Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Martin Michaud is a screenwriter, musician and mystery thriller author from Montreal best known for the “Victor Lessard” series of novels. He was a corporate lawyer for more than two decades before he decided to quit to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time author in 2012. His debut novel was “Do Not Speak in the Elevator” that was the first novel of the “Victor Lessard” series. His first four works were standout successes and were not only bestsellers but also garnered critical acclaim. Critics called him the new “master of the Quebec thriller” and compared him to the likes of international authors such as Henning Mankell, Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin, Jo Nesbo and Harlan Coben among others. His novels have also won several prestigious awards including the best detective novel Saint-Pacome Prize. His “Victor Lessard” series was also the winner of the Banff World Media Festival Prize.

When a writer is nicknamed the Master of the Quebec thriller, it would not be long before they are approached to adapt their works for the silver screen. Martin Michaud was contacted and signed a deal with Pixcom who adapted the Victor Lessard novels into a series by the same name that started airing on Club Ilico the SVoD platform in 2018. ZDF Enterprises acquired distribution rights for the series and given the popularity of the series in Quebec and Europe, it is likely it will also be aired in Europe. While he had never written a screenplay, Michaud insisted on writing some for the series and has a few credits to his name. Given that he writes in his native French, he has several of the popular Victor Lessard series of novels translated to English. Besides the series, he is also the author of several novels including “Below the Surface” and “When I was Théodore Seaborn.”

Martin Michaud’s “Never Forget” is a thrilling mystery of the death of a homeless man named Andre Lortie that had been known to have psychological issues. On his body had been found tow wallets: one belonged to an unknown woman whose body had been discovered in an abandoned building, while the other is the property of a lawyer named Nathan Lawson who soon goes missing and turns up dead in eerily similar circumstances to that of the unknown woman. The best investigator in town is Major Crime Unit’s Victor Lessard and he is put in charge of the case. He learns that Lawton had asked for specific files from the law firm’s archives a few days before he went missing. Victor’s partner believes Andre had a connection to the murders and hence they start looking into his activities and those of the lawyer. They learn that Andre had been involved in mind control experiments while the mysterious woman was a professor at the college that had been administering the program. Searching the homeless man’s belongings, they find some gibberish that seems to be some type of notes that don’t make any sense. However, a deeper look into the notes convinces them that they are related to the experiments. There are also references to the John F Kennedy assassination among other high-profile murders. Lessard cannot figure out how these could be connected to his current investigations. However, he is starting to doubt if the man was delusional as had been claimed. But then there are more murders and things become more interesting.

In “Origin of Violence,” detective Victor Lessard is heading the major crime unit as his boss is away. As the man in charge, he has to investigate the murder of a high ranking SPVM officer that had been decapitated and his head thrown in a dumpster. He is working with the inimitable Jacinthe Taillon, the young Loic Blouin-Dubois and his partner Nadja Fernandez. They need to work quickly as the killer has said that he intends to kill again. He is a particularly arrogant and devious killer that finds pleasure in painting graffiti on the scenes of his crimes. His crimes evoke those of the serial killer that had been called “Santa Claus” that had been apprehended. It is an inextricable maze that rekindles the bruises in his heart and leads him to the brink even a he is handicapped with not getting the support he needs from the hierarchy.