An eerie mystery in which a local wine dealer is shot and a strange yellow dog starts to circle the town-Inspector Maigret must navigate small-town dynamics to find the elusive culprit.

Late at night in a small seaside town, not a single light is on, and everyone is asleep. Or almost everyone: a man, drunk, departs for home after another evening at a hotel bar, where he and a few others regularly gather. Suddenly, he collapses-struck by a gunshot. The victim turns out to be the town's most successful wine dealer, and his death sets off a series of other curiosities: poisoned drinks at the bar, another missing man, and a dirty yellow dog haunting the neighborhood, accompanied by large, unfamiliar boot tracks. Maigret, who happens to be nearby heading up a mobile unit, arrives swiftly to resolve the growing confusion. Despite the pall over the town and the residents' tight-lipped reticence, the inspector's resolute pursuit of the truth makes for a taut, suspenseful adventure.