5. A Fatal Grace - Louise Penny

Chief Insp. Armand Gamache #2
listened to Audio (unabridged 10:31) borrowed from TPPL
read by Ralph Cosham
2006 Minotaur Books
311 pgs. (Hardcover) 417 pgs. (Kindle)
Adult Murder Mystery
Finished 1/8/2018
Goodreads rating:  4.11 - 49,781 ratings
My rating: 4.5
Setting:  Christmastime, Three Pines, Quebec (just outside Montreal)

First line/s:  "Had CC dePoitiers known she was going to be murdered she might have bought her husband, Richard, a Christmas gift.  She might have even gone to her daughter's end of term pageant at Miss Edward's School of Girls, or "girths" as CC liked to tease her expansive daughter.   Had CC dePoitiers had known the end was near she might have been at work instead of in the cheapest room the Ritz in Montreal had to offer.  But the only end she knew was near belonged to a man named Saul."

A quote to ponder:  "So much more comforting to see bad in others, gives us all sorts of excuses for our own bad behavior."

My comments:  Winter in Quebec, a cold, snowy, blizzardy time from just before Christmas until New Years.  I wan't really enamored with the first of the series.  But okay, I'll admit it, there's something special about this guy, this chief inspector.  Or is it Three Pines itself?  The idyllic setting, the quirky characters, the way that almost every piece in the thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle fit together.  And Ralph Cosham, the wonderful reader of this audiobook, who speaks the many French words in a way that I an almost understand them all!  It was definitely more of a "cozy" than the gritty murder mysteries I've always preferred, but it was so much more than a cozy mystery.  Of course I will now read more.  Louise Penny has put many questions into her readers' minds that still need to be answered.
ADDENDUM:  There were so many places that I chuckled during the story, lots and lots of subtle humor.  And every time that Ruth Zardo was in the scene, I loved it.  I want to know more about her.  And I really love her poetry!

Goodreads synopsis:  Welcome to winter in Three Pines, a picturesque village in Quebec, where the villagers are preparing for a traditional country Christmas, and someone is preparing for murder.
No one liked CC de Poitiers. Not her quiet husband, not her spineless lover, not her pathetic daughter—and certainly none of the residents of Three Pines. CC de Poitiers managed to alienate everyone, right up until the moment of her death. 
          When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, of the Sûreté du Québec, is called to investigate, he quickly realizes he's dealing with someone quite extraordinary. CC de Poitiers was electrocuted in the middle of a frozen lake, in front of the entire village, as she watched the annual curling tournament. And yet no one saw anything. Who could have been insane enough to try such a macabre method of murder—or brilliant enough to succeed?
          With his trademark compassion and courage, Gamache digs beneath the idyllic surface of village life to find the dangerous secrets long buried there. For a Quebec winter is not only staggeringly beautiful but deadly, and the people of Three Pines know better than to reveal too much of themselves. But other dangers are becoming clear to Gamache. As a bitter wind blows into the village, something even more chilling is coming for Gamache himself.

21. Still Life by Louise Penny

#1 Chief Inspector Armande Gamache
listened on Audible
2005 St. Martin's Press
312 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery
Finished 4-6-17
Goodreads rating: 3.91 - 63,992 ratings (that's a lot!)
My rating: 3
Setting: Contemporary Three Pines, Quebec, CANADA (just south of Montreal)

First line/s:

My comments:  Dozens of people have told me through the years that this is their favorite mystery series of all of them, and I just HAVE to read at least one.  Just the other day, a coworker got really excited that I was reading this because it's her favorite - she was so excited.  When I asked her "why?" she told me she'd tell me when I finished reading the entire book.  (I'll go see her tomorrow!).  So what is my honest opinion?  The setting was beautifully described, almost like another character.  Characterization was deep and complete.  The mystery was interesting but not entirely surprising.  The process that Gamache goes through and the respect he commands from his people are thoroughly enjoyable.  So why only a "this book was okay" kind of rating?  It was almost too much like a cozy for me.  Which makes me wonder about myself.  Am I looking for blood and guts, thrilling adventure, fast action?  I always thought that it was the deep, intricate puzzle that drew me into totally enjoying a mystery  Well, this book certainly had that.  But it's pacing seemed really slow, just like Three Pines, slow and lazy.  I'm guessing this was intentional on Ms. Penny's part.  And yes, I'll read the next one, to see if I still get the same feeling....

I Think I like this cover better!

Goodreads synopsis:  The discovery of a dead body in the woods on Thanksgiving Weekend brings Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his colleagues from the Surete du Quebec to a small village in the Eastern Townships.
     Gamache cannot understand why anyone would want to deliberately kill well-loved artist Jane Neal, especially any of the residents of Three Pines - a place so free from crime it doesn't even have its own police force. But Gamache knows that evil is lurking somewhere behind the white picket fences and that, if he watches closely enough, Three Pines will start to give up its dark secrets...