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77th out of 907 books
—
857 voters
A Rule Against Murder (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #4)
by
Louise Penny
“What happened here last night isn’t allowed,” said Madame Dubois.
It was such an extraordinary thing to say it stopped the ravenous Inspector Beauvoir from taking another bite of his roast beef on baguette.
“You have a rule against murder?” he asked.
“I do. When my husband and I bought the Bellechasse we made a pact....Everything that stepped foot on this land would be safe....more
It was such an extraordinary thing to say it stopped the ravenous Inspector Beauvoir from taking another bite of his roast beef on baguette.
“You have a rule against murder?” he asked.
“I do. When my husband and I bought the Bellechasse we made a pact....Everything that stepped foot on this land would be safe....more
Hardcover, 322 pages
Published
January 20th 2009
by Minotaur Books
(first published 2008)
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Nov 26, 2011
Patti
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Patti by:
Robin Agnew gave me an ARC--thank you!
I just want to hang out with Armand Gamache. He is such a calm, practical person to be around, and you just know that he'll figure out who did what and why. In this entry into the series, Armand and his wife, Reine-Marie, are spending their anniversary at their favorite lodge, not far from Three Pines. While they there, a family reunion is going on also, with a family that seems such in name only--they are related to each other, but there is no affection displayed or even seemingly felt among th...more
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A Rule Against Murder is the second Louise Penny book that I have read and again, I enjoyed it completely. Chief Inspector Gamacheis the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec. He is a strong character and yet he has his own personal history and demons that he must cope with. In this book Inspector Gamache and his wife come to Manoir Bellechasseto to celebrate thirty-fifth wedding anniversary. While staying at the Manior, they are somewhat overtaken by the Morrow family who are meeting for a...more
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Another wonderfully inventive and humane mystery from Louise Penny! Policeman Armand Gamache and his wife are once again at the luxurious auberge Manoir Bellechasse to celebrate their anniversary. The only other guests are the Finney family, a dysfunctional brood having a family reunion. Armand is astonished when his friends from Three Pines, a lovely village not far from the manor, appear as part of the family. Artists Peter and Clara are at odds with his family, but Peter cannot resist seeing...more
The second of Louise Penny's Gamache series I've read...each is a stand alone, but there may be merit in reading them in order as the character development is wonderful. Her writing is intelligent and frequently laugh-out-loud funny. I find her descriptions of small events make me appreciate simple things.
Not all her sentences are lengthy, but the following quote is one I wish I'd been thoughtful enough to write. She's speaking of someone escaping from an argumentative, caustic crowd of relation...more
Not all her sentences are lengthy, but the following quote is one I wish I'd been thoughtful enough to write. She's speaking of someone escaping from an argumentative, caustic crowd of relation...more
Imagine you and a loved one are spending time in one of the most beautiful places, deep in the Quebec wilderness. Full of wild beauty, and breathtaking views....And then imagine being there with the most dysfunctional family you can ever meet. Oh yes, they have a perfect exterior but once you start peeling the layers they are pitifully broken.
And that's how I truly saw them. Each one of the (adult) children believed that they were unloved as children and they took out their hurt on each other....more
And that's how I truly saw them. Each one of the (adult) children believed that they were unloved as children and they took out their hurt on each other....more
Canadian Inspector and his wife are at a quaint French speaking wilderness Inn (or Manior as they call it) and are the only other guests there who are not related. The Morrow family is having a family reunion there and the author slowly unfolds each family member to the reader as well as several members of the staff. This book kind of reminds me of an old black and white film where a murder takes place at an isolated place and all the suspects are there and the criminal will eventually subtly re...more
The murder stone is not a stone in a snowball like the one in the Deptford Trilogy but there are echoes of that series in this all-the-suspects-locked-in-the-hotel mystery. We have an old family with strong feelings about each other, feelings that surface suddenly and dangerously, and feelings of entitlement that are quite unpleasant. We know Gamache and his wife Reine Marie well and are only surprised not to be in Three Pines this time. Clara and Peter certainly turn up in an unexpected role, t...more
‘The Murder Stone’ by Louise Penny
Published by Headline, October 2008. ISBN: 978-0-7553-4100-9
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife Reine-Marie are staying at Manoir Bellechasse, an isolated lodge in the Canadian wilderness by a lake in Quebec not too far from the village of Three Pines. Armand and Reine-Marie have returned every summer to the Manoir Bellechasse to retreat from the world and begin anew. This year their visit has coincided with a family reunion – the family Finney have take...more
Published by Headline, October 2008. ISBN: 978-0-7553-4100-9
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife Reine-Marie are staying at Manoir Bellechasse, an isolated lodge in the Canadian wilderness by a lake in Quebec not too far from the village of Three Pines. Armand and Reine-Marie have returned every summer to the Manoir Bellechasse to retreat from the world and begin anew. This year their visit has coincided with a family reunion – the family Finney have take...more
I've been hooked on Louise Penny's Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series since I read her debut novel, Still Life. Yet, as great as the novels have been, A Rule Against Murder still somehow manages to top all of the previous ones.
As ever, Penny plots out an interesting murder mystery that keeps you guessing until the end. However, what truly will delight the reader are the secrets revealed about Peter Morrow's well-to-do family and one about Armand Gamache himself. The theme of when to remember...more
As ever, Penny plots out an interesting murder mystery that keeps you guessing until the end. However, what truly will delight the reader are the secrets revealed about Peter Morrow's well-to-do family and one about Armand Gamache himself. The theme of when to remember...more
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What Louise Penny does is create a small, intimate world, while creating a sense of place so pervasive you feel you know it. Canada is rarely featured in best-selling books, and to have it so celebrated is wonderful. It is Quebec, to be sure, but the Quebec of Anglo-culture, and so, it is the Canadian Quebec.
Most powerful, for me, is the way she builds quiet characters of amazing strength and depth. These are not cartoon-brilliant people. They are, for the most part, fully-fleshed out, but rath...more
Most powerful, for me, is the way she builds quiet characters of amazing strength and depth. These are not cartoon-brilliant people. They are, for the most part, fully-fleshed out, but rath...more
Feb 10, 2012
Helen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
brothers-and-sisters,
canada,
death,
family-life,
fathers-and-sons,
fathers-daughters,
grief,
mystery,
old-age,
stepfathers
This is officially at the top of my list for favorite series (obviously I have several). These books are engaging and entertaining. The stories are good, solid. I have yet to read one where the story seems to lag or veer off into the unknown.
The books have been compared to Agatha Christi mysteries. I adore Agatha. I have read and re-read all her books (except for I am sorry to say Tommy and Tuppence; just couldn't quite seem to go there)and they will always have a place in my heart and on my boo...more
The books have been compared to Agatha Christi mysteries. I adore Agatha. I have read and re-read all her books (except for I am sorry to say Tommy and Tuppence; just couldn't quite seem to go there)and they will always have a place in my heart and on my boo...more
I liked this more than the previous 2, but give it a 3 due to the crime motivation and perpetrator. I enjoyed the story overall, with the characterizations and more of the inspector's back story, without Nichol or politics intruding.
The changes in POV, while sometimes confusing, serves to provide insight into the characters that would not be apparent in a simple 1st person narrative. This can result in a greater sense of sympathy towards the characters. In this story, however, the generally rep...more
The changes in POV, while sometimes confusing, serves to provide insight into the characters that would not be apparent in a simple 1st person narrative. This can result in a greater sense of sympathy towards the characters. In this story, however, the generally rep...more
Since first discovering Louise Penny's "Bury Your Dead," I have become addicted to her Chief Inspector Gamache series. Although they can be read out of order, I love the forward progression and recurring characters she has created. It is always a delight to visit in Three Pines. It feels like going home to a place you know even though you know something bad (and exciting) is going to happen.
"A Rule Against Murder" is book number four in a brief list of seven titles ending with last year's "Trick...more
"A Rule Against Murder" is book number four in a brief list of seven titles ending with last year's "Trick...more
A warning before the review: this novel is extremely omniscience point of view and you flow into the head of one character to another in a matter of a sentence or two. I know this bothers some people. If you dislike that pov, you can stop reading the review and the book right about now.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife, Reine-Marie, are on vacation at the Manoir Bellechasse celebrating their anniversary and awaiting the birth of a grandchild in Paris. The most anxiety they should have...more
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife, Reine-Marie, are on vacation at the Manoir Bellechasse celebrating their anniversary and awaiting the birth of a grandchild in Paris. The most anxiety they should have...more
While I am still reading this book, I'd like to comment on the series.
I rarely read books in a series one after another, however that is exactly what I am doing now.
I am reading about Chief Inspector Gamache and the cast of characters located in the small town of Three Pines, Quebec.
This is described as a "cozy mystery" series - and the description is accurate.
Despite someone getting murdered in each book - the series is a pleasure to read and getting to know the characters is an enjoyable, smo...more
I rarely read books in a series one after another, however that is exactly what I am doing now.
I am reading about Chief Inspector Gamache and the cast of characters located in the small town of Three Pines, Quebec.
This is described as a "cozy mystery" series - and the description is accurate.
Despite someone getting murdered in each book - the series is a pleasure to read and getting to know the characters is an enjoyable, smo...more
A brilliant, big, old-fashioned drawing-room mystery with a denouement worthy of Agatha Christie, from the international bestseller. Wealthy, cultured and respectable, the Finney family is the epitome of gentility. When Irene Finney and her four grown-up children arrive at the Manoir Bellechasse in the heat of summer, the hotel's staff spring into action. For the children have come to this idyllic lakeside retreat for a special occasion - a memorial has been organised to pay tribute to their lat...more
Another gift from Jan M. Thanks!
This series takes place in a tiny village. I was trying to figure out how the author would keep the series going without killing off the entire town. In this book, she solves the problem by selecting two of the villagers and sending them off on vacation, where they happen to meet the detective and the detective's wife. The four of them have suffered through three previous murder investigations together and are great pals. Farfetched, but I don't read these books f...more
This series takes place in a tiny village. I was trying to figure out how the author would keep the series going without killing off the entire town. In this book, she solves the problem by selecting two of the villagers and sending them off on vacation, where they happen to meet the detective and the detective's wife. The four of them have suffered through three previous murder investigations together and are great pals. Farfetched, but I don't read these books f...more
I'm mad at Louise Penny because of book #5 in the Three Pines/Chief Inspector Gamache mysteries, and I want to take it out on her now, but in fairness I just can't. I loved this book as much as I expected to. I thought that moving the action out of Three Pines would make me grumpy, but instead it made me feel, more than ever, that I want to live in Three Pines because Manoir Bellechasse is close for those times I need to get away from the hectic hustle and bustle of Three Pines (snort).
The Gamac...more
The Gamac...more
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This "Three Pines Mystery" is the first in the series in which the murder happens somewhere other than the village of Three Pines. A vacation lodge at which Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife are celebrating their anniversary is the setting. Peter and Clara Morrow, from Three Pines, and Peter's family are among the suspects as are all the members of the staff of the lodge. Penny's superb writing and strong characterizations keep the pages turning. We learn about Peter's past and Inspector Gam...more
1 like · like · see review
Other Goodreads reviewers have done a very good job of expressing their admiration for Louise Penny and her well-written detective series. There's little I can add except to say that Penny's distinction as a writer occurs when her exceptional talent at creating a sense of place combines with the carefully drawn characters in her books. You almost sense a bomb going off: of course, in this genre, the "bomb" is murder.
The mysteries that I enjoy the most are those that carefully expose the "players...more
The mysteries that I enjoy the most are those that carefully expose the "players...more
This is another of the Armand Gamache series set in Canada of an exclusive lodge set in the wilderness. Armand and his wife have gone to celebrate their wedding anniversary as they have gone for over 30 years. While the Gamaches are enjoying the peace and solitude of this tranquil area, the Morrow clan meets for a reunion and to unveil a statue of the deceased father, Charles Morrow. Four grow children converge on their mother and her new husband. One of the children is Peter, the artsit from Th...more
This is the fourth in the series by Louise Penny. The only sad part is that when I finish this book there is only one more written in the series and I will have to wait for her next book to read more. The story mostly takes place in a small town call 'Three Pines', Quebec. This installment in the series 'A Rule Against Murder' takes place at a lodge just over a mountain ridge from Three Pines. The chief inspector Armand Gamache is the main character in the series. A very strong, independent pers...more
This is the fourth in the Inspector Armand Gamache/Three Pines mystery series. Inspector Gamache and his wife Reine Marie to a country inn not far from Three Pines to celebrate their anniversary, which falls on Canada Day.
They are sharing the Manoir Bellechasse with Irene Morrow Finney and her family of adult children, who are having their annual reunion. This year is very special, as Irene is honoring her late husband by erecting a huge statue of him. When the statue falls on Irene's daughter J...more
They are sharing the Manoir Bellechasse with Irene Morrow Finney and her family of adult children, who are having their annual reunion. This year is very special, as Irene is honoring her late husband by erecting a huge statue of him. When the statue falls on Irene's daughter J...more
A rule Against Murder, by Louise Penny, A. narrated by Ralph Cosham, produced by Blackstone Audio, downloaded from audible.com.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, who had come to a luxry hotel with his wife to celebrate their 35th anniversary, suddenly finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation of the murder of Julia Morrow, who turns out to be Peter Morrow’s sister. The morrow family, their mother, now Eileen Finney, and their step-father, her new husband, were there to place a memorial...more
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, who had come to a luxry hotel with his wife to celebrate their 35th anniversary, suddenly finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation of the murder of Julia Morrow, who turns out to be Peter Morrow’s sister. The morrow family, their mother, now Eileen Finney, and their step-father, her new husband, were there to place a memorial...more
Jun 27, 2012
Kristensilvermoore
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
my-favorite-books-of-all-time,
mysteries
This is my favorite Louise Penny mystery so far! It's a beautifully written novel, with characters that are so real and so tragic. Penny explores interpersonal relationships with a tenderness and deep insight that is truly her greatest gift as a writer. She so skillfully creates characters, only to reveal that all is not as it seems, making me feel so painfully sorry for them. Her exploration of the Morrow family's dynamics is heartbreaking and absolutely riveting.
So, as with her other novels, t...more
So, as with her other novels, t...more
Dec 01, 2011
Elaine
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
kindle,
mysteries-thrillers-suspense
There’s no escaping murder even while on vacation as Chief Inspector Gamache and his wife celebrate an anniversary at an upscale inn, in the woods not far from Three Pines.
Gamache and his team are stumped when a huge statue falls upon one of the inn’s guests.
Anger flares as insults spew forth along with accusations among the members of the disagreeable Finney family. Those insults spread out to those around them as the Finneys don’t care who they maim with their angry words.
What I like about t...more
Gamache and his team are stumped when a huge statue falls upon one of the inn’s guests.
Anger flares as insults spew forth along with accusations among the members of the disagreeable Finney family. Those insults spread out to those around them as the Finneys don’t care who they maim with their angry words.
What I like about t...more
I love this series........ Armand Gamache is someone I would like to know, as well as his wife. They not only come to life as a couple, but as individuals. Armand is certainly highlighted, along with his 2 primary sidekicks. this has become my new favorite of the series, and I have trully enjoyed all of them. Bean, young child in the book, is an unusual character (boy or girl??), and there is never any definitive answer, but it is a sub theme in the book that is quite engaging. The family in thi...more
Jan 11, 2013
Dorothy
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
modern-day-mysteries
One of the pleasures of the Armand Gamache series - and there are many - is the description of the food. Wherever his job as head of the homicide division of the Surete du Quebec takes him, Gamache always seems to eat exceedingly well, and Louise Penny describes it all in intricate detail - the herbs used, the consistency of the sauce, and especially the aroma of the baking bread and of the coffee, always the coffee.
That is never more true than in this fourth entry in the series. Armand and his...more
That is never more true than in this fourth entry in the series. Armand and his...more
This is the 4th book in this series I read and I liked the change of venue. The other Inspector Gamache novels were centered in the Quebec village of Three Pines. This one was at the Manoir Bellechasse inn in the middle of the Quebec woods.
The major players in this story are members of a well to do family named the Morrows. Yes, this is the family of Peter Morrow, one of the main characters from the other novels.
The Inspector and his wife have come to the Manoir on their annual vacation which co...more
The major players in this story are members of a well to do family named the Morrows. Yes, this is the family of Peter Morrow, one of the main characters from the other novels.
The Inspector and his wife have come to the Manoir on their annual vacation which co...more
Pennyn neljännen dekkarin alku säikäyttää lukijan lähes hengiltä: miljöö ei olekaan Three Pines, Gamache viettää hääpäiväänsä eristetyssä kartanossa metsän keskellä!
Muutaman luvun päästä saa jo hengähtää. Pikkukylässä piipahdellaan useampaankin kertaan ja tuttuja henkilöitä saapuu paikalle. Murhan tapahtuessa onkin jo kotoinen olo.
Suljetun huoneen piirteitä sisältävä Murder Stone kertoo tarinan suvusta, joka on täynnä psykopatologiaa ja salaisuuksia. Kirjan edetessä lukija ymmärtää niistä yhä en...more
Muutaman luvun päästä saa jo hengähtää. Pikkukylässä piipahdellaan useampaankin kertaan ja tuttuja henkilöitä saapuu paikalle. Murhan tapahtuessa onkin jo kotoinen olo.
Suljetun huoneen piirteitä sisältävä Murder Stone kertoo tarinan suvusta, joka on täynnä psykopatologiaa ja salaisuuksia. Kirjan edetessä lukija ymmärtää niistä yhä en...more
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Many of Louise Penny's books are published under different titles by UK/Canada and US publishers.
She lives with her husband, Michael, and a golden retriever named Trudy, in a small village south of Montreal.
Her first Armand Gamache novel, "Still Life" won the New Blood Dagger, Arthur Ellis, Barry, Anthony and Dilys Awards.
Awards:
* Agatha Award: Best Novel
o 2007 – A Fatal Grace – Winner
o 2008 –...more
More about Louise Penny...
She lives with her husband, Michael, and a golden retriever named Trudy, in a small village south of Montreal.
Her first Armand Gamache novel, "Still Life" won the New Blood Dagger, Arthur Ellis, Barry, Anthony and Dilys Awards.
Awards:
* Agatha Award: Best Novel
o 2007 – A Fatal Grace – Winner
o 2008 –...more
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“But you want murderous feelings? Hang around librarians," confided Gamache. "All that silence. Gives them ideas.”
—
24 people liked it
“We're all blessed and we're all blighted, Chief Inspector," said Finney. "Everyday each of us does our sums. The question is, what do we count?”
—
4 people liked it
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