Born in Montpellier, died in Paris.
Though having dabbled in many genres, he is most famous for Nestor Burma, the anti-hero of Les Nouveaux Mystères de Paris. Burma, a cynical private detective, is an astute speaker of argot (French slang), an ex-Anarchist, a serial monogamist and a inveterate pipe smoker. Many of his adventures take place in a sole arrondissement of Paris though he never completed the full 20 arrondissements as he intended.
The comic strip artist Jacques Tardi adapted some of his books much to the author's approval claiming that he was the sole person to have visually understood his books. Biography
Works