Fortuné Du Boisgobey

Born in Granville on September 11, 1821, Fortuné Hippolyte Auguste Abraham-Dubois later wrote under the name Fortuné du Boisgobey. He studied at the Lycée Saint-Louis and served as a military paymaster during several campaigns in Algeria from 1844 to 1848.

He made his literary debut in 1843 with Lettres de Sicile, an account of a journey published in the Journal d’Avranches. After a financial setback, he returned to writing in 1868 under his better-known pen name, beginning a highly productive period that produced more than sixty novels and stories.

Du Boisgobey became known for crime, detective, historical, and sensation fiction, including The Convict Colonel, The Chevalier Casse-Cou, The Old Age of Monsieur Lecoq, and An Omnibus Mystery. He was also an admirer of Émile Gaboriau, whose detective tradition he helped extend for a new generation of readers.