Rating: 
-
2.5 stars, really. Over the Labor Day holiday, the body of a man is found in Gabri and Olivier's Bistro. No one knows (or will admit to knowing) who he is, so Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team of homicide investigators once again descend on Three Pines to seek out a murderer.
As always, Penny's prose is lovely (and Ralph Cosham's narration is such a pleasure). But I've finally decided the plots have to be seen as symbolic, much like Ruth's poems or Clara's paintings, because they bear less and less resemblance to things people would actually do. This book was all over the place to very little end. I also found it interesting that Penny managed to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with complaints about the confusion of the transition.
This is not the place to start with Penny's Armand Gamache series, she relies a little too much on the reader having previous knowledge of the characters and the village. I don't think there's much tension in the narrative for anyone who isn't already familiar with Gabri and Olivier. Series fans should probably read it because there are some elements set for future books.
Rating: 
-
To begin. let it be noted I am a great Louise Penny fan, and one who has actually searched, though ineffectively, for the village she used to model Three Pines. And this book did not disappoint in its use of settings and characters, old and new. But my problem with it comes from the opening of characters' lives to find more misery than I was ready for. So many of the characters I really like are showing indications of future disasters to be revealed(I'm trying here not to give any spoiler alerts), that I am afraid Three Pines will be left unpeopled, except for Gamache when he comes to visit. A bit of whining: why can't crimes be commited by characters who have already kicked a dog? Maybe lots of dogs? It would be easier on my own emotions.
All the above, of course, shows how much the book got to me, an accolade in itself. I just didn't want to be unhappy when i finished it.
Rating: 
-
A synopsis of this novel's plot and action has been covered in many of the reviews to date, so I won't bore readers with a repeat of those details. Rather I would like to address the many fans of Louis Penny's Three Pines series. This is the fifth book in the series and I, like so many other readers, devoured the first four with gusto, falling in love with Three Pines and it's wonderful, albeit quirky, residents. Thus it was good news to have a fifth book in the continuing series (the sixth book is to be released this Fall), but, unfortunately, I found bad news in the actual reading. That's not to say that the writing wasn't great, as Penny's writing is always smooth and satisfying, but Penny seems to have turned upon her creations. After spending four books creating a village in which readers wanted to live and wonderful characters who readers wanted to spend time with, Penny, like Saturn devouring his children, ripped open the ugly side of some of her characters. I found myself aghast with horror and emotional distaste at the thoughts and actions of characters that I had come to love through her first four books. I won't spoil it for those of you who have not yet read this book by giving specific details, but, if you are like me, you'll find your emotions in a state of flux as you come to hate characters that you had previously really liked. Penny may have been trying to achieve a more realistic picture of what small villages and people are truly like, but, if I had wanted that kind of realism, I would have picked up a non-fiction book. Instead of eagerly awaiting the next book in the series (as I did with each of the first four), I now find myself wondering if I even want to bother reading about these nasty, jealous, greedy, criminal characters again. Additionally, the denouement of The Brutal Telling is less than satisfactory, leaving numerous loose ends untied or simply unaddressed at all. This is not Penny's best work, instead it goes a long way towards tearing down all that she had spent four books building up.
Rating: -
After reading many reviews of this author I expected to love this book, but I just couldn't get into it. I found the writing somewhat flowery, confusing in spots, and not at all compelling. The story never hooked me, and it was no where near the literary brilliance of an author like P.D. James, to whom some reviewers compare it. Perhaps the problem was that I have not read other books in the series, but I wasn't intrigued by characters here who were non-series ones either. Your mileage might vary, but I found this only mediocre and unable to engage my attention.
Rating: 
-
A man's body has been found in the bistro of Three Pines village. No one knows who this man is, what he is doing in the village or who could have been involved in his death. Inspector Armand Gamache and his team descend on the village to discover what has happened and who is responsible.
Gamache and his team have been to Three Pines before and they know the people. There is Ruth, a famous poet who now is a bitter old woman who seems half mad. Olivier and Gabri are a gay couple that run the bistro. Myrna is a former psychologist who now runs a second-hand bookstore. The Parras are members of the refuge Czech settlement. Peter and Clare are artists, with Clare about to break out and become famous. The Gilberts are the newcomers in town. They have bought a ruined house above the village and are turning it into a luxury hotel and spa, a move that doesn't endear them to the village regulars.
As the case progresses, the team discovers that the man had lived as a hermit in the woods surrounding the village. No one there had known of his existence, except for the person who had supplied his needs. As the police investigate, his cabin yields marvels. It is full of heirlooms, true treasures from all over the world. These are marvelous items; items from the courts of Europe as well as fabulous art objects. How did this hermit come to have these treasures and who was he? The hermit himself was a gifted woodcarver and his mystery is solved as his sculptures are found and give up their clues about their creator.
Louise Penny is the most exciting find of the year for me. Her book is intricate and the plot is complex. Each character is fully developed, and the reader sees how each interacts with all those around them. As the book progresses, the reader discovers each person's strengths and their foibles, and how their characteristics have caused the events that have resulted in the murder. This book is recommended for mystery readers; especially those who enjoy authors such as Elizabeth George and P.D. James. This is an exquisite book.
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