<b>The Lerouge Case </b>is a detective novel written by <b>&Eacute;mile Gaboriau</b> in 1866. It is considered a classic of detective fiction and is known for introducing the character of <b>Monsieur Lecoq</b>, an amateur detective and young police officer who appears in several of Gaboriau&#39;s later novels. The novel tells the story of a murder investigation and features a cast of characters from a small French village.<br /><br /><b>&Eacute;mile Gaboriau </b>(1832-1873) was a French writer, novelist, and journalist, and a pioneer of modern detective fiction.&nbsp;