“What happened here last night isn’t allowed,” said Madame Dubois.
It was such an extraordinary thing to say it ...
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reviews
Nov 26, 2011
Patti
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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
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May 21, 2011
Linda
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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 fo
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Jan 25, 2009
Susan
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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 see
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Feb 10, 2012
Helen
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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 hear 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 hear More...
Feb 07, 2012
Nancy
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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, t 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, t More...
Feb 06, 2012
Ann
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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 title More...
"A Rule Against Murder" is book number four in a brief list of seven title More...
Oct 05, 2011
Cornerofmadness
rated it:
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 sh 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 sh More...
Sep 24, 2011
Ginny
rated it:
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 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 More...
Feb 08, 2011
Katie
rated it:
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
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Oct 08, 2010
Kirsti
rated it:
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 t 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 t More...
Sep 08, 2010
Richard
rated it:
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).
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Aug 04, 2010
Goose
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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 Ins
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May 03, 2010
Nancy
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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 careful More...
The mysteries that I enjoy the most are those that careful More...
Feb 17, 2010
Debbie
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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 fro
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Nov 29, 2009
Larry
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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
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Nov 05, 2009
Marlyn
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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' 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' More...
Feb 08, 2009
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 pla 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 pla More...
Dec 01, 2011
Elaine
rated it:
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 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 More...
Apr 07, 2009
Kayeb
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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
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Dec 02, 2011
Ron
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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 a 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 a More...
Jul 28, 2011
Reetta
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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...
Jan 22, 2011
Pamela
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“A Rule Against Murder” is Louise Penny’s fourth novel featuring Sûreté du Québec Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team. In this outing, Gamache and his wife, Reine-Marie, are celebrating their wedding anniversary at Manoir Bellechasse as they do every year. A family, the Morrows, are having their family reunion at the Manoir as well. It doesn’t take long before the Morrow adults begin sniping at one another with long-festering hurts from childhood. None of the Morrows are as they seem. Wh
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Nov 06, 2010
Kellie
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#4 of the Armand Gamache series- This is the first book I have read in the series. The mystery revolves around the death of Julia Morrow. She is part of a family reunion at the resort the Gamache couple is staying at. This very dysfunctional family becomes suspect after Julia is found in the yard of the resort after a storm. The beginning of the book was a bit slow. After about 100 pages, however, I started to get really excited about this book. I love the way the author writes. This is
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Nov 20, 2011
Monica
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as I have the previous three Louise Penny novels that feature Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. Not only is Penny is extremely talented in creating a wonderful murder plot, she's also a genius at creating atmosphere in her books that makes me feel as though I am right there. I could smell the forest, feel the heat, and taste the food. Because that's another thing that Penny is good at: writing a lot about the foods her characters are eating. How many times have I sa
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Jul 12, 2010
Michael
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Armand Gamache and his wife arrive at Manoir Bellechasse, for their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary.
They are the ideal guests, not complaining and happy with the room they are given. They are glad to see their old acquaintance the innkeeper, Clementine Dubois, at the reception desk.
Clementine tells them that the Finneys have taken the other five rooms for a reunion, all arriving in their expensive cars and asking for free upgrades.
The highlight of the Finney' More...
They are the ideal guests, not complaining and happy with the room they are given. They are glad to see their old acquaintance the innkeeper, Clementine Dubois, at the reception desk.
Clementine tells them that the Finneys have taken the other five rooms for a reunion, all arriving in their expensive cars and asking for free upgrades.
The highlight of the Finney' More...
Apr 30, 2010
Jennifer
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For the first time, we leave Three Pines for the majority of our story. It's an interesting choice and one I couldn't support long term, but it actually made for a nice change. The Morrows are a terribly messed-up family, but fascinating. I found it interesting that we never do find out if Bean is a boy or a girl. Penny often creates suspense by making it clear that clues have been found by the officers, particularly Gamache, but waiting to share that information with us. I can't decide if I li
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Mar 03, 2009
Gwenn
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This is the fourth, and best so far, mystery about a small Quebec community called Three Pines, which has had far more than its fair share of homicide in the last few years. The writing is lyrical but not precious, the mystery (and the "how" done it in particular) is a great puzzler, and the chief detective is so fully realized that his character and its complexities are equally as fascinating as the crimes. In each book, the author also helps us rediscover bits and pieces of poetry
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Jan 17, 2011
Deb
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Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife Reine-Marie are celebrating their wedding anniversary at an exclusive lakeside auberge. Other guests at the lodge include the Finney/Morrow clan who are gathering for a family reunion. Armand and Reine-Marie are pleasantly surprised to discover that Peter and Clara Morrow are part of the Morrow reunion. However, their idyllic vacation comes to a screeching halt when one of the Morrows is murdered by a falling statue. How this was accomplished and who mana
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Nov 07, 2010
Mrsgaskell
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Note: This has also been published under the title A Rule Against Murder
This is the fourth in Penny's series of mysteries featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Quebec Surete. Gamache and his wife, Marie-Reine, are staying at the Manoir Bellechasse to celebrate their wedding anniversary. A remote resort along Lac Massawippi, the Manoir's other guests include the wealthy Finney family who are there for the unveiling of a memorial to their late father. Rivalries, secrets, and fa More...
This is the fourth in Penny's series of mysteries featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Quebec Surete. Gamache and his wife, Marie-Reine, are staying at the Manoir Bellechasse to celebrate their wedding anniversary. A remote resort along Lac Massawippi, the Manoir's other guests include the wealthy Finney family who are there for the unveiling of a memorial to their late father. Rivalries, secrets, and fa More...
Feb 17, 2009
Susan
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This book is the 4th in a series of mysteries involving Armand Gamache and Three Pines, Quebec. This book differes from earlier books in that the venue has moved from the extremely likeable town of Three Pines (a Canadian Stars Hollow) to a remote lodge. Another notable difference is that although there is a murder, it is subsumed by the familial dynamics of the Morrow/Finneys. There is a murder (a Morrow) and there is an eventual resolution. But the characters are so well drawn and so tortu
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