Maxime Chattam

Maxime Drouot, known by his pen name Maxime Chattam or Maxime Williams, is a French novelist who, after studying criminology, specialized in writing crime novels. His father worked for a magazine as an artistic director while his mother was an executive secretary Throughout his childhood Chattam would frequently visit the United States. His first visit was to Portland, Oregon which would later inspire his first novel. He completed his schooling at lycée Montesquieu à Herblay, continuing to Sorbonne Paris North University. During his childhood, he wanted to become an actor. He took comedy courses at Cours Simon in Paris.

In 1988, he spent some time in the Thai jungle. While there he wrote a diary, which would become his first experience with writing. He continued writing into the early 1990s. His first literary essays were inspired by the Stephen King film Stand by Me. He drafted his first novel, Le Coma des mortels, which tells the story of a young man fallen into a coma following an accident, which is later revealed as an attempted murder.

He resumed his studies, focused on modern literature. He wrote Le Cinquième Règne, published in 2003 under the pen name Maxime Williams. It would go on to win the fantastic novel prize at the festival de Gérardmer. He then spent a year studying criminology at the université de Saint-Denis. Over the course of this year, he would learn the basics of criminal psychology, police science and techniques, and medical jurisprudence.

L'Âme du mal (published in 2002, under the pen name « Chattam », inspired by a small town in Louisiana) recounts an investigation by Joshua Brolin, ex-FBI agent turned Portland Police officer, aided by a young psychology student. A killer seems to have revived his mutilated victims through a ritual only leaving clues from a black Bible.

The second installment in the trilogy following Joshua Brolin is In Tenebris (published in 2003) set in a dark and gritty New York. A woman found traumatized claims that she has come back from Hell. Officer Annabel O'Donnel leads the investigation, helped by a decommissioned Brolin.

In Maléfices (published in 2004), Brolin and O'Donnel face off against a serial killer who mummifies their victims in a spider web.

He would later write a prequel to the trilogy, La Promesse des ténèbres. This novel follows Brady O'Donnel, husband of Annabel O'Donnel.

In 2019, his editor indicated he had sold 7 million copies of his work since 2001.Chattam is a member of the art collective La Ligue de l'Imaginaire.