The Beautiful Mystery ~ Louise Penny

Twenty-four monks… Twenty-three living… One dead: A once forgotten order, cloistered in a monastery, deep in the wilderness of Quebec…

What could bring a man of peace and prayer to take the life of one of his brothers? This is the question Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir of the Sûreté du Québec, are trying to answer. The men breach the inner sanctum and take up residency among the monks, a place where no outsider has ever tread.

Within the walls of Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, there is an abundance of beauty. The brothers raise their voices daily to sing in ancient plainchant, the voice and word of God. These moving songs are known to the masses as Gregorian Chants; to those inside the faith, their profound effect on both singer and listener is called “The Beautiful Mystery.” Yet, there is discord in harmony. Differences of thoughts and feelings, toward the future of the order, have left one brother dead and twenty-three suspects. No man is without personal conflict; Gamache and Beauvoir come face to face with their own demons while on the path to solve a murder.

There is a reason Louise Penny is an acclaimed writer: She brilliantly weaves a who-done-it that keeps you hooked till the very last page. The Beautiful Mystery stitches together history, faith, doubt, religion, loyalty, dissention, and music in a manner that is relevant in this age.

The good news: I LOVED this book. The GREAT news: There are seven other Chief Inspector Gamache adventures for me to go back and read!


**Special Thanks to Louise Penny, St. Martin's Press, & Goodreads for an advance copy of “The Beautiful Mystery,” which will be available in stores and online August 28th 2012.