It's about finding the humanity in others and revealing yourself to them in return. And above all, this is a tale of family, friendship, and community.

Penny has a way of taking fascinating historical facts and making them a part of the story, so that readers don't necessarily know they are learning something profound until one thinks things through in the end. nurture, art history, and the long lasting effects of abuse. This particular book has ties to some earlier ones in the series. This series is so interwoven that readers must read them in order. The mystery is intricate and nuanced and kept me invested throughout, even though I did figure some of it out before it was revealed. Penny's worldbuilding and characterization is phenomenal as always. Oh well, it just means I have to wait longer for my next Gamache novel.

And into the very heart of Armand Gamache’s home.ĭespite my best intentions to slowly enjoy this book, I devoured it in one huge gulp. In unsealing that room, an old enemy is released into their world. There are puzzles within puzzles, and hidden messages warning of mayhem and revenge. But the head of homicide soon realizes there’s more in that room than meets the eye. When the room is found, the villagers decide to open it up.Īs the bricks are removed, Gamache, Beauvoir, and the villagers discover a world of curiosities. Every word of the 160-year-old letter is filled with dread.

In it, the man describes his terror when bricking up an attic room somewhere in the village. Did their mother’s murder hurt these children beyond repair? Have those terrible wounds, buried for decades, festered, and are they now about to erupt?Īs Chief Inspector Gamache works to uncover answers, his alarm grows when a letter written by a long-dead stonemason is discovered. Gamache and Beauvoir’s memories of that tragic case, the one that first brought them together, come rushing back. Now they’ve arrived in the village of Three Pines. The two were young children when their troubled mother was murdered, leaving them damaged, shattered. A young man and woman have reappeared in the Sûreté du Québec investigators’ lives after many years. Not everything lying dormant should reemerge.Īs the villagers prepare for a special celebration, Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir find themselves increasingly worried. But not everything buried should come alive again. It’s spring and Three Pines is reemerging after the harsh winter. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache returns in the eighteenth book in #1 New York Times bestseller Louise Penny's beloved series.

A world of curiosities