The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #5)

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The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #5)

4.2 of 5 stars 4.20 · rating details · 5,560 ratings · 712 reviews

Chaos is coming, old son.

With those words the peace of Three Pines is shattered. As families prepare to head back to the city and children say goodbye to summer, a stranger is found murdered in the village bistro and antiques store. Once again, Chief Inspector Gamache and his team are called in to strip back layers of lies, exposing both treasures and rancid secrets

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Hardcover, 372 pages

Published September 22nd 2009 by Minotaur Books (first published 2009)

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Aug 05, 2010 Andy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: own, first-reads, reviewed

[This review is based on an Advanced Reader Copy won through the Goodreads First Reads program.:]

The Brutal Telling is an enjoyable, quiet mystery, with a couple of big flaws.

To repeat what some others have said, this is a nice small town mystery with interesting characters. Once the story pulled me in, I "couldn't put it down." (Okay, I could put it down. But I was always eager to return to it.)

You can read more about the plot and the characters and the writing in other reviews. I want to addre...more

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Jan 01, 2010 Kelly Maybedog Hawkins rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: what-mystery, what-glbtq, where-arc

My first book of the new year!

I'd really like to give this book 2.5 stars. The ending really irritated me but the rest was pretty good. I'm going to start of the new year with kindness and give it three stars.

This book is interesting and well written for the most part. It has a few slow spots but it's hard to put down once you reach the half way point. I'm sure it will be appealing to fans of this series. I haven't read any of Penny's books before so there have been a few moments when I've wonde...more

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Feb 13, 2010 Leah rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Won on "Giveaways"--was drawn in immediately by the description--sounded very creepy! This is my first "Gamache" novel by Louise Penny, so I came in with no real expectations, although I was hoping for something dark and creepy!

I was torn between giving 3 or 4 stars, but ultimately I couldn't stop thinking about the writing style, so I rest on three.

My dislikes: apparently the village of Three Pines has LOTS of murders which I find kind of ridiculous; some of the 'mysteries and secrets' of the...more

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Jan 04, 2010 Gail rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, advanced-review-book, mystery

I was fortunate enough to come upon this book in an ARC giveaway thing. I chose it for silly reasons: I knew someone with the last name of the detective (an unusual last name and hard to pronounce), I liked the setting (just over the border into Cananda from Vermont), and the title was intriguing.

How lucky for me! This was a great mystery story, well-written with sharp characteization, a good plot, and lots of local interest. It's always good to add another author to that mystery list which is...more

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Sep 07, 2011 Amy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: early-reviewers

Louise Penny brings back Chief Inspector Gamache and Three Pines in this intriguing mystery. Gamache and team arrive in the quirky village of Three Pines when an unidentified body is discovered in the local bistro. A new family has moved to Three Pines to rehabilitate the old Hadley place and turn it into an upscale hotel and spa. This presents competition to the local B&B and tensions have risen in the village. Suspician twists and turns as the team struggles to identify the victim and the...more

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Jan 01, 2010 Michelle added it

"First off, I need to apologize to my Canadian friends. Until I read this, I was completely wrong on the location of the province of Quebec. Shame on me. I guess I didn't realize that there was something east of Ontario other than Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. I'll be the first to admit that my Canadian geography is a little rusty, and now I know that it is located in Eastern Canada. I also know that based on this boo, it sounds like an absolutely stunning place to visit.[return]I was p...more "First off, I need to apologize to my Canadian friends. Until I read this, I was completely wrong on the location of the province of Quebec. Shame on me. I guess I didn't realize that there was something east of Ontario other than Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. I'll be the first to admit that my Canadian geography is a little rusty, and now I know that it is located in Eastern Canada. I also know that based on this boo, it sounds like an absolutely stunning place to visit.[return]I was pleasantly surprised at The Brutal Telling. I've been reading a string of murder mysteries lately and was a bit dubious when I picked it up that I would continue to be interested in this genre. I was wrong. There is so much to like about this book that there was no chance of me losing interest whatsoever. Chief Inspector Gamache and his team are charming beyond belief. The people of Three Pines remind me a little bit of the Cheers gang, since they are one very close-knit group of friends. The locale is perfect. Three Pines is so picturesque that it made me want to move there or at least move to a small picturesque northern town where I too can experience life in a small town surrounded by gorgeous countryside.[return][return]As I was reading this, I kept hearkening back to lines from both Little Women and Anne of Green Gables, where in both, Jo and Anne are reading Dickens' Pickwick Papers and comment how it always makes them hungry. I had the same experience here. As the bistro is one of the main attractions in the town and a focal point for the investigation, the food eaten at the bistro and elsewhere throughout the book where given close attention. Descriptions of fresh, warm breads oozing with butter, cheeses, pates, roasted meats of all sorts, creamy pasta dishes plus the desserts not only made me hungry but made me long to find a bistro like that in my town. Rather than detract from the overall story though, it made me want to keep reading, if only to find out what they were going to eat next.[return][return]The best image I can use to describe how it felt to read this book is that I savored it. I savored the descriptions of the food and the scenery. I savored the witticisms and commentary of Gamache and his team. This book enveloped me in its secrets. All I needed was a wood fire, a soft blanket, quiet music, and a quiet house and it would have completed the mood set by Ms. Penny.[return][return]The story itself was intriguing and kept me guessing. Ms. Penny does a fabulous job of presenting crime detection in all its glory - the dead ends, the endless questions with no answers, the breaks that help drive the case. In addition, her ending is realistic and one I did not see coming. In spite of the quirks and charms of the backdrop, it is the ending where this book shines. Unfortunately, to say more would spoil the fabulousness of that ending but it is worth the patience put forth to get there.[return][return]Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Three Pines. I definitely want to check out more of her Chief Inspector Gamache series to find out if they are as enjoyable as The Brutal Telling. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes a mystery and to be enveloped in the story.[return][return]Thank you to Tara Cibelli at St. Martin's for the opportunity to review this ARC!"(less)

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Apr 08, 2013 Nancy rated it 5 of 5 stars

After starting this series, I went to the library to get as many of the books as possible. I liked--didn't love--the first book, but had heard so much about the Armand Gamache series and Louise Penny's "cozies" that I wanted to read them, pretty much, in order. The library has multiple copies of all the books. But they were all checked out--something like two dozen books. Thus began The Waiting List game. "Brutal Telling" popped up first--on CDs.

The quirky characters from the first book were bac...more

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Georgia Hi Nancy...I'm not trying to 'be the boss of you' as my kids used to say...but...I think you'll enjoy the books more if you read them as they fall in...more
Apr 09, 2013 03:26am

Nancy You can boss me around anytime, Georgia! And my intention was to read in order. It was the availability that screwed me up--I can't buy 8 new books, a...more
Apr 09, 2013 05:46am

Feb 13, 2013 Susan rated it 2 of 5 stars

In her first novel, Three Pines, Louise Penny wrote a truly compelling, original novel with interesting characters and a neat mystery. The novel had no subtitle. Her second, A Fatal Grace, was subtitled A Three Pines Mystery; her third was A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel (A Three Pines mystery); her fourth similarly subtitled, and now this, her fifth, is an Armand Gamache novel. Clearly this is a writer in search of a cash-cow series. Armand Gamache was a secondary character in her first novel,...more

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Jun 29, 2012 Kristensilvermoore rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: mysteries

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Louise Penny is amazing. Really. I can't say much about this book without giving a lot away, but I can say that the story was gripping, well-written, intense, dark, and shocking. I totally did not know what to expect from one page to the next, and I definitely didn't guess the end. I think Penny really played against people's expectations of what a mystery novel is like, and it worked.

I loved all the details about art and antiques EXCEPT that she got at least one detail wrong. The "ancient" led...more Louise Penny is amazing. Really. I can't say much about this book without giving a lot away, but I can say that the story was gripping, well-written, intense, dark, and shocking. I totally did not know what to expect from one page to the next, and I definitely didn't guess the end. I think Penny really played against people's expectations of what a mystery novel is like, and it worked.

I loved all the details about art and antiques EXCEPT that she got at least one detail wrong. The "ancient" led crystal glasses could not have been THAT ancient. Cut led crystal (like the cut glass of the American Brilliant period, for example), wasn't invented until 1676, I think. So at most, the glassware could have been just a bit over 300 years old, which is old, but I would never call it ancient. But that's just being nitpicky! (Okay, this note is added later, but I started listening to the next book in the series and it also refers to these same glasses. It calls them thousands of years old. That's just completely IMPOSSIBLE! You would think Penny would have researched this better!)

My only other complaint is that some of the plot is far-fetched, but it's so wonderfully wrought and makes such sense in Penny's Three Pines universe that I didn't mind! Overall, I highly recommend this novel!

Above is my original review, but thinking about it more, I wanted to add a few comments, because I couldn't stop thinking about it. Spoilers are ahead!

So the entire novel, you are resisting the obvious suspect, because you don't want to believe that a beloved character in the series is the murderer. Generally speaking, beloved characters aren't the murderers in detective fiction, with exceptions of course. In the end, when it's revealed that Olivier did it and is a greedy lying selfish person, the Chief Inspector still calls him his friend and says he should just be convicted for manslaughter. I disagree! Strongly! It seems to me that this murder had to have been thought out, and that in combination with how he manipulated his victim prior to his death and the fact that he moved the body in an attempt to ruin another man's business makes him about the worst kind of criminal I could imagine! He needs the book thrown at him!

Also, why the heck didn't the Gamache arrest both Olivier and Marc Gilbert for moving the body? Okay, so since Olivier was the murderer, there's no need to charge him with that crime, but Marc Gilbert at the very least should have been charged with tampering with evidence and disrupting the scene of a crime. That really bugged me!(less)

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May 25, 2012 Marilyn Maya rated it 3 of 5 stars

The book touched me but not because of the story

This is the first book of Ms Penny that I have read. I learned so much about her part of the world. It was a great travel book,a book to read to experience the food and the feeling of living in a small town and there are very unusual characters to say the least. I wish some of the many could have been fleshed out more and maybe have done the crime
The best part of the book for me was not the mystery which to be "brutally" honest was a let down in th...more

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Apr 04, 2012 Karen Hall rated it 5 of 5 stars

I’ve loved Louise Penny’s books since Still Life, and read them quickly, almost one after another, but somehow I missed The Brutal Telling in my Year of Louise Penny, 2011. Since some of what happens in The Brutal Telling is revealed at the beginning of Bury Your Dead (2011), which I thought was brilliant, I considered skipping it altogether.

Boy, am I glad I didn’t! Had I not opened this book, I would have missed the continued rich development of characters I know and love, the interesting comp...more I’ve loved Louise Penny’s books since Still Life, and read them quickly, almost one after another, but somehow I missed The Brutal Telling in my Year of Louise Penny, 2011. Since some of what happens in The Brutal Telling is revealed at the beginning of Bury Your Dead (2011), which I thought was brilliant, I considered skipping it altogether.

Boy, am I glad I didn’t! Had I not opened this book, I would have missed the continued rich development of characters I know and love, the interesting complexities of plot I have come to expect, the developing descriptions of the village of Three Pines and interesting revelations about police work in and around Montreal.

The premise: the body of a man is discovered in Olivier’s Three Pines bistro. At first, nobody admits to knowing the dead man but, of course, that proves not to be the case. Inspector Gamache peels back the layers of deceit among people in the small, idyllic village, to find some things that aren’t particularly pretty—or expected.

As a writer myself, I’ve learned so much about character development from reading Ms. Penny’s work. Her people are not beautiful, not heroic, not even particularly intuitive (except, of course, Gamache), but they all have elements of each. They can be petty and vindictive, even with those they love. They are very old and very young, drunk and sober, gay and straight, and always, always interesting. I’d love to sit down for tea with any of them (though Ruth Zardo would undoubtedly prefer something stronger). In short, they’re real to me as they are to many of Ms. Penny’s devoted readers.

With all this discussion of character, you might think the plot must certainly be secondary. Not so. It moves quickly, with lots of twists and turns, as the Surete officers delve into the backgrounds of various characters and consider their likely involvement with the dead hermit—and the fabulous collection of treasures they find in his primitive cabin.

If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll give Louise Penny a try. Start with Still Life and work your way through the entire series. You won’t be disappointed!
(less)

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Feb 11, 2012 Nancy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery-or-something-akin-to-it

Once again, a slow journey to the story's end, which was not unenjoyable. The question is, how plausible was the motive for the murder; well, the main question anyway.

I thought that, given the murderous tendencies within the village, the recurring character finally arrested for the crime was a good way to show that none of the author's recurring characters were safe from being suspects. Although, given the history of crime-solving in Three Pines, it would seem rather foolish to commit a crime th...more Once again, a slow journey to the story's end, which was not unenjoyable. The question is, how plausible was the motive for the murder; well, the main question anyway.

I thought that, given the murderous tendencies within the village, the recurring character finally arrested for the crime was a good way to show that none of the author's recurring characters were safe from being suspects. Although, given the history of crime-solving in Three Pines, it would seem rather foolish to commit a crime there.

I did not find some of the plot points to be plausible, including the trip to the Queen Charlottes, which seemed a very pricey trip for no real payoff (left me wondering about the Surete budget). I also had problems with some of the characterization and motivational conclusions. If Olivier were as venal and greedy and "hungry" as stated, that it would have come out in his personality and be more obvious since, unless venal, greedy and "hungry" people are also sociopaths, they also tend to be rather unpleasant and, Olivier, for all his flaws, seems like a kind person. This then ties into the "story" storyline, and the idea that the Hermit was manipulated to staying in the cabin and becoming a recluse. And many people who love antiques don't just love them for their value, but for their beauty and their stories and there a far easier ways to make pots of money than wait for people to die so you can get their belongings; well, maybe some do but that comes out in other ways in their personalities also.

Like book #3, and the Hadley house, this book imbued the carvings with a degree of power unknown to lesser mortals, which became a wee bit tedious, although from the descriptions I would love to see such work.

NOTE: these books are NOT stand-alone books - to gain the most from reading them requires that you know the characters - as your knowledge of them progresses through the books and is a significant part of the reading experience - and what can keep you reading when issues like the previous paragraph arise.

Oh - and based on what I finally grasped, the poetry in the books are from other writers, and makes me think perhaps I might read Margaret Atwood's poetry, as I quite gave up on her novels. (less)

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Jan 04, 2012 Monica rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

“The Brutal Telling” is the eighth book in Louise Penny's mystery series featuring Inspector Armand Gamache. Once again Gamache is back in Three Pines...this time to solve a murder that is closer to home than ever.

Louise Penny has a wonderful talent for writing mystery novels. Her plots are intricate and never fail to entertain me and keep me guessing. Each of her many returning characters grow more complex with each book. And the poetry of Ruth Zardo? No Louise Penny book would be complete wit...more

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Sep 16, 2011 Mary Lou rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have recently discovered Louise Penny and just finished this book--what a treat.

Her policeman, Gamache, is a combination of Miss Marple and Columbo, with a French accent. This is a thinking person's mystery with layers of meaning, and it's not all neatly wrapped up with a bow (Gamache himself continues to question the eventually convicted killer's guilt, on into the next book). The book has a number of themes: what do people fear more than anything else? What does it mean to be in community wi...more

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Jul 26, 2011 Betty-Anne added it

Louise Penny’s fifth book to be set in the beautiful Quebec village of Three Pines, The Brutal Telling, begins with a body found in the local bistro belonging to two gay partners, Olivier and Gabi.

In a tiny village where everyone knows everyone else, the fact that no one claims knowledge of the victim is as much a mystery as the murder itself. This gives celebrated Chief Inspector Armande Gamache and his team two mysteries to solve in order to solve the murder.

From the start, there is confusion...more Louise Penny’s fifth book to be set in the beautiful Quebec village of Three Pines, The Brutal Telling, begins with a body found in the local bistro belonging to two gay partners, Olivier and Gabi.

In a tiny village where everyone knows everyone else, the fact that no one claims knowledge of the victim is as much a mystery as the murder itself. This gives celebrated Chief Inspector Armande Gamache and his team two mysteries to solve in order to solve the murder.

From the start, there is confusion about who is actually telling the truth, who really saw what they thought they did and whose motivations are really what they claimed. The mystery of the dead man is revealed in layers, each new level of clues leading first to and then away from a different suspect, in a tantalizing dance with the reader, until at the end the solution ties several threads together.

I was very impressed with Louise Penny’s ability to build this story layer by layer, which made for a focused and absorbing read. The descriptions of setting, characters and especially food made me want to alternately visit the bistro or someone’s kitchen!

The story is well told, in the author’s captivating writing style, and as the plot developed I looked forward to each new revelation and the twists it brought. Even though I figured out who the murderer was about two thirds of the way into the book (it just seemed the most likely possibility), there was still one excellent twist at the end which caught me completely off guard, and made me rethink the perspective I had been reading with from the very first sentence. I loved that.

I had one or two minor problems with the book, mainly the treatment of the priceless artworks found which seemed to me somewhat unrealistic, both in the manner of recognition and the way it was dealt with. It may have been too heavy a topic to truly fit into the tone of the novel. Also difficult was the behavior of some of the characters which simply did not ring true in some areas of the novel.

In spite of these small things, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any reader who enjoys light mysteries. Of particular enjoyment was the fact that this book worked well as a stand-alone novel. I didn’t feel that I was missing anything from the previous books.(less)

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Jun 22, 2011 Deb rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The characters and the setting kept me going. Reading The Brutal Telling was like sitting with an interesting group in a warm, inviting room; but seeing the time, realizing enough is enough...need to wrap it up and go home.
I expect a murder mystery to move ever forward. S-L-O-W meandering and philosophizing are not welcome in my murder mystery reading journey. Had I not enjoyed the characters and the Canandian wood I would not have stayed to discover "Who done it". (Plus, I was reading as an aud...more

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May 17, 2011 Ann Mcelligott rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

The fifth book in Louise Penny's "Chief Inspector Gamache Novel" series. Set in the tiny village of Three Pines, Quebec, Chief Insp Armond Gamache of the Surete du Quebec is called to investigate the appearance of body of an unknown man in a bistro. The story begins in a simple log cabin isolated in the woods outside Three Pines with a conversation between two men identified only as The Hermit and Olivier. A sentence is left hanging in the air: "Chaos is coming, old son." No one admits to knowin...more

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Apr 21, 2011 Stacy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Stacy by: Friend

I read this book because a friend told me Penny had written a book with a librarian character and we are in the library business. That book wasn't available, so I chose this one. Chances are, I will not be reading the library one, unless I have nothing else to read.
There were a couple of positive things about Penny's writing:
1)It is set in Quebec and the cultural atmosphere, especially her detailing of the food, make me homesick for a place I used to live
2)She can be very humourous and inserts h...more

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Mar 25, 2011 Pamela rated it 5 of 5 stars

"The Brutal Telling" is the fifth in Louise Penny’s excellent series featuring Armand Gamache, Chief Inspector of the Sûreté du Québec. In this outing, Gamache and his team return to the small town of Three Pines when the local bookstore owner reports seeing a body in the local bistro. The body is that of an unidentified man whom none of the locals claim to know or to have seen. With nothing to go on other than where the victim was found, Gamache begins his search not only for a murderer, but fo...more "The Brutal Telling" is the fifth in Louise Penny’s excellent series featuring Armand Gamache, Chief Inspector of the Sûreté du Québec. In this outing, Gamache and his team return to the small town of Three Pines when the local bookstore owner reports seeing a body in the local bistro. The body is that of an unidentified man whom none of the locals claim to know or to have seen. With nothing to go on other than where the victim was found, Gamache begins his search not only for a murderer, but for his identity as well.

It doesn’t take long for Gamache to know that he’s been lied to. What he doesn’t know is why. Finally, the team is told, by the bistro owner, that the man was known only as the Hermit. The bistro owner is the only one who has seen him. They catch a lucky break when a local, riding a horse along a newly forged riding trail, spots a cabin deep in the woods on her property. She reports the find to Gamache who goes to the cabin and what he finds there stuns and fascinates him.

In the end, Gamache makes an arrest based on the evidence. Doubts as to the man’s innocence remain in the minds of the locals who know him. Penny subtly allows the reader to question the evidence as well and to wonder whether Gamache is convinced he’s arrested the right man.

As Gamache goes about his inquiry, Penny gives her readers an update on many of the locals whom we met in the first book in this series, "Still Life". Ruth Zardo, the local curmudgeon and renown poet, is now dressing the foundling duckling she adopted in a previous book in a varied clothing including a sweater and raincoat. Claire, whose paintings have been “discovered” by a Montreal art gallery owner, must decide whether to stand up for her principles and lose the opportunity to become well known or keep quiet. Peter, her already-well-known artist/husband, must come to grips with the knowledge that his wife may be more talented than he is. The old Hadley House has new owners and we meet them in this book.

Once again, Penny has written an outstanding story. Penny takes the reader through each step of the investigation, only occasionally withholding information that Gamache has found, which only adds to the tension. Penny does not rush to the end as some authors do. She meticulously allows the reader to savor each new bit of information.

In this book, it is fall with a touch of winter in the air. Once again, we see autumn and can almost smell it as well. In following a clue, Gamache travels to Queen Charlotte Islands and introduces non-Canadians to little known historical events that occurred there.

Award-winning Louise Penny deserves every accolade heaped on her for this series. She is in the company of P.D. James as one of the best procedural writers writing today.(less)

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Dec 31, 2010 Marleen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a great book to finish the year with.
This is the fifth C.I Gamache mystery by Louise Penny, and everyone of them has been fantastic.
Her characters are interesting and very real to life. No such thing as black and white distinctions in these books. Everybody in the books has their good and their bad sides, and that's one of the reasons these books are so fascinating.
Another reason is that the mystery is always well plotted and the solution always makes sense.

In this instalment Gamache and hi...more

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Dec 29, 2010 Goose rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 08, 2010 Richard rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. **THIS REVIEW IS ONE LONG SPOILER**

Okay. I've told everyone that I read books twice before I write a review, because it's not fair to someone who spends a year just bringing a book to market, plus who knows how long dreaming it up and committing it to paper and lovingly burnishing its prose, simply to wing off some half-baked sentences about it.

So I read this book twice, and thought about it, and examined my responses to it. I was careful to think through my strong reactions to the book.

I can no...more

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Jun 05, 2010 Micheal Fraser rated it 5 of 5 stars

Having read all of Louise Penny's previous novels about the perfect
village of Three Pines and the amazing Chief Inspector Gamache I was
prepared to be vastly entertained by a witty, sometimes funny and
intricately plotted mystery whose solution always lies in the hearts of
men and the ability of Gamache to suss out what lies within.

I was not prepared for this compelling and unflinching look into the
heart of darkness that resides within us all. It is a universal truth
that we can never fully know ano...more

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Apr 03, 2010 Cate rated it 3 of 5 stars

Mix of cozy Christie-like murder mystery and deeper, psychological meditation--that doesn't quite make it. A small village of Three Pines, mere kilometers north of the border of Vermont, is the site of an astonishing number of murders. In this one, the body of an man is found lying on the floor of the village bistro. Unusually, no one knows who he is, and Three Pines is so small that everyone knows everybody.

Chief Inspector Armande Gamache returns to the village to solve the mystery. There are s...more

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Mar 20, 2010 Sheila Beaumont rated it 5 of 5 stars

This, the fifth in Louise Penny's wonderful Three Pines series, is not only a clever, well-plotted whodunit, but also an allegory, a myth brought to life, and a meditation on greed.

The story starts off with bistro owner Olivier Brule and a hermit, who will be the murder victim, sitting in front of a fire in a log cabin in the woods outside Three Pines. A story, involving a Mountain King and his treasures, and the coming of Chaos and the Furies, is being told. When the hermit's dead body is found...more

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Mar 02, 2010 Lynne Perednia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Three Pines, setting of Louise Penny's enjoyable, thoroughly Canadian series, has been a bit like Brigadoon. Not many people seem to find it or recognize its original beauty once there.

But those who do discover Three Pines have gloried in their personal journeys, secure that they are living in a place where they are valued for being their eccentric, quirky selves. Although there have been murders on a scale to rival Cabot Cove, the cast of continuing characters has been safe.

Until now.

Olivier, h...more

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Jan 28, 2010 Debbie Maskus rated it 4 of 5 stars

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the many characters: the 70+ Ruth and her duck Rosa, the couple Peter and Clara, who are both artists, the gay couple-Olivier and Gabri, the retired psychologist and only black female in this small village near Quebec, plus the many other minor characters. Of course, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team from the homicide department of the Surete du Quebec, are amazing in their cases. They search the past for the answer to the present murd...more

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Jan 01, 2010 S.D. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

Armand Gamache is a chief inspector in Quebec called out to investigate a murder in Three Pines. The deceased is supposedly an elderly man but forensics puts him in his early fifties. There are interesting characters in Three Pines: the town poet who owns, dresses, and walks a duck; a bistro owned by two gay men, an antique store owner, and the new owners of a bed and breakfast. When they finally locate the house in the woods where the deceased had lived, all kinds of puzzling questions come to...more

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Dec 21, 2009 Lisa added it

Shelves: first-reads, arc, fiction

A murder has been committed in the tiny Quebec town of Three Pines, and Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team are on the case. However, the identity of the victim is unknown, the body was clearly moved, and the whole town is suspect. Who was the dead man, where was he killed, and why?

Louise Penny has crafted an excellent small town murder mystery. The characters are both quirky yet well rounded and very human. The story is not just about solving a case, but more about how it affects the in...more

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Nov 19, 2009 Ronald Roseborough rated it 5 of 5 stars

Bon Dieu! How is it that I have not found this author before? "The Brutal Telling", by Louise Penny, is more than just a detective story. It is a literary novel. This work blends the lives of the characters and the reader by speaking to the souls of both. As in all great literature, the characters come to life through the words of the author, quickly becoming more than just the written word. The characters, such as Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, are completely developed people, full of life. Ea...more

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About Louise Penny

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...

Books by Louise Penny

Still Life (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #1)

Bury Your Dead (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #6)

A Fatal Grace (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #2)

A Rule Against Murder (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #4)

A Trick of the Light (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #7)

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Quotes from The Brutal Telling

“What are you afraid of?
I'm afraid of not recognizing Paradise.” — 12 people liked it

“The leaves had fallen from the trees and lay crisp and crackling beneath his feet. Picking one up he marveled, not for the first time, at the perfection of nature where leaves were most beautiful at the very end of their lives.” — 9 people liked it

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The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #5)

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