The Main Hardcover – January 1, 1976

This was not your typical "police procedural", nor is it a "crime study" or even a "mystery novel". So, if you are going into it thinking that it is, get that out of your head right now. No, what this novel instead proves to be is a very moving, in depth "character study" of an "old time" beat cop who has spent a lifetime on the job, taking care of his "patch" and the people who live there. It is a meditation on change, love, relationships, and what it means to live life by a particular "code". Very well written and populated by characters of real depth and insight. Highly recommended.

Not like other "famous" book of the author, here the storyline is secondary. But he gives a great picture if a gone time in Montréal with minute details. Well written, one never feels like reading a sociography, but in fact, it is. Enjoy.

I like Travanian. Writes with a great vocabulary. Always has an interesting story filled with fully-fleshed characters.

Any Book by Trevanian is worth the price.

Strange, different, interesting. Not as good as some of his other books.

I keep coming back to this book every couple of years. A great character and a setting that is so well described (but not over described) that you are immersed from page one. I only wish Trevanian had written more books! maybe Don Winslow will pick u0p this character too!

I gave it a chance but just couldn't get into it. Too much description, not enough narrative punch, plot moves as slowly as cold molasses, cheesy dialogue. Perhaps the author had pretensions of taking up where George Simenon left off with his marvelous Magritte novels (Simenon stopped writing in 1973), with this meandering tale of a French detective covering one of Montreal's seedy areas. Unfortunately, it comes off as third-rate Simenon. Even the weakest or lame of the Magritte novels is a far more enjoyable read.

What's not to like about a Trevanian story. Great characters, plot and mulitple storylines going at the same time. A view of Montreal only an insider would know and be able to bring to life for the rest of us.

Wonderful evocation of an immigrant and ethnic community in transition as it struggles to achieve the Western dream in downtown Canada. Little happens in the first 100 pages, so it's obscure what's the plot. However. The rendition of place and the urban character of Montreal is engaging and redolent of the old French Canada about to be eroded by the creeping forces of gentrification. Interesting plot, well developed but a police lieutenant putting a suburb to sleep seems somewhat fanciful. Does La Pointe ever do a real day's work? Stereotypical grizzly veteran at odds with The Department, a terror on the streets but with a heart of gold. Did he help make Montreal "the world's second most liveable city" after Melbourne?

The Main is principally a character driven novel in two senses. First, it is a detailed exploration of a neighbourhood, its geography, people, dynamics and relationships. Second, it is an in-depth portrait of a man and his lifeworld, outlook and philosophy, and how he relates to those people who populate his life. Trevanian really excels at both using well constructed prose. There is real insight, understanding and perceptive psychological and philosophical observation in his writing. He's particularly good at teasing out the ambivalent, shifting, complex and sometimes paradoxical relationships between people and the places they inhabit. The murder and the investigation is almost incidental; a foil through which to explore the Main and LaPointe. Which is the one slight weakness of the novel. The mystery wasn't particularly compelling and the resolution seemed somewhat weak and contrived. But this really isn't a police procedural in the conventional sense. It is much more than that. If the murder element of the plot had received the same kind of attention that the character portrayal and sense of place then it would have been exceptional. As it was, it's damn fine piece of writing and well worth a read.

Travanian strikes again! In the top 5 of all writers. Whenever I want to immerse myself in a different world I just have to pick up and read a book by Trevanian. Highly recommended

Many years ago I read Shibumi.I decided to read it again a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed it all over again and went looking to see what else Trevanian had written.The Main was outstanding, creating LaPointe's world in great detail whilst managing to be unlike almost any other murder enquiry.

This is set in Montreal, the seedy street that is the beat of the protagonist, a detective. It is a craftsmanlike work, technically ok but ordinary. A murder is to be solved and this is done quite well, the solution available early but largely unexpected when seen near the end. He does describe quite well and the characters are interesting. But what is attempted here is very minor. The intellectual range to be seen in Shibumi etc is missing.It is a thriller with little thrill.