Marnham, Les Vacances de Maigret is a similar novel that once again makes use of the fatal jealousy of a doctor to help Simenon finally rid himself of his own ghosts. In a letter to André Gide, Simenon wrote, "It took me twelve months to write Act of Passion. I really do not know if it was worth the trouble. I wrote it in order to rid myself of my ghosts, not to commit the same deed carried out by my protagonist. Since then, in the meantime over a year, I have had the feeling that I have started a new life, a life that is as full and juicy as a ripe fruit." In an interview with the magazine Combat, he explained that in 1959 he viewed Trois Chambres à Manhattan, Act of Passion , Antoine et Julie and Feux Rouges as significant steps in the process of his work that took him from the motif of resignation to that of a newer and fuller life. Interpretation Peter Kaiser describes "Lettre á mon juge" as the “chronicle of an obsession.” According to Ansgar Lange it is about two people clinging to each other to avoid drowning, who ultimately drown anyway; Whether their love was more passion or mania.<ref name="pt-magazin.de">Ansgar Lange: In: P.T. Magazin 6 April 2012.</ref> Here, Simenon uses the myth of the femme fatale, a woman both beguiling and vulnerable. Patrick Marnham regards "Trois Chambres à Manhattan" and "Lettre à mon juge" as two of Simenon's “most significant studies on sexual jealousy and obsession.” In both cases, two lovers look over the edge of the abyss. While the first book ultimately takes a positive turn, "Lettre à mon juge" goes further. The “ghosts” of jealousy overpower Alavoine, and the hopeless story can thus only end in death. Through the murder, says Becker, Alavoine exorcizes that part of Martine that always stood between them. By committing suicide, he attempts to reunite with her and finally states: “we went as far as possible. We did all that we could. We wanted absolute love.” David Platten compares Lettre à mon juge with Flaubert's Madame Bovary, where also the monotony of provincial life is contrasted with the lofty plans of an extramarital affair. But while Flaubert parodies both ways of life, Simenon clearly takes sides for love in his novel, which in fact can be destructive, but is preferable to a bland