Chief Inspector Pel has been kidnapped. Or is he being held for ransom, traded for the release of prisoners, or has he perhaps been murdered? He is, in any event, missing. To make matters worse, the press report the escape of the notorious Poltergeist from a high-security prison.

Just when things can't get more desperate, a fantastic robbery from the gunroom of Baron de Charnet's chateau takes place and a collection of diamonds is stolen from a high-street jeweller's safe.

Moody, sharp-tongued and worrying constantly about his health, Inspector Pel normally ensures that no case goes unsolved, in these mordantly witty French mysteries.