if you are in the mood for a cozy-ish mystery- gamache never disappoints. Art,food,philosophy,croissants- all with a menacing undercurrent that someone will die ( )

Book 10. Really good story about finding Peter. KIRKUS REVIEWArmand Gamache, former chief inspector of homicide for the S?ret? du Qu?bec, is settling into retirement in the idyllic village of Three Pines¥but Gamache understands better than most that danger never strays far from home.With the help of friends and chocolate croissants and the protection of the village?s massive pines, Gamache is healing. His hands don?t shake as they used to; you might just mistake him and his wife, Reine-Marie, for an ordinary middle-age couple oblivious to the world?s horrors. But Gamache still grapples with a ?sin-sick soul?Â¥he can?t forget what lurks just beyond his shelter of trees. It?s his good friend Clara Morrow who breaks his fragile state of peace when she asks for help: Peter, Clara?s husband, is missing. After a year of separation, Peter was scheduled to return home; Clara needs to know why he didn?t. This means going out there, where the truth awaitsÂ¥but are Clara and Gamache ready for the darkness they might encounter? The usual cast of characters is here: observant bookseller Myrna; Gamache?s second in command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir; even the bitter old poet, Ruth, is willing to lend a hand to find Peter, an artist who?s lost his way. The search takes them across Quebec to the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, toward another sin-sick soul, one fighting to claw his way out of jealousy?s grasp. Penny develops the story behind Peter?s disappearance at a slow, masterful pace, revealing each layer of the mystery alongside an introspective glance at Gamache and his comrades, who can all sympathize with Peter?s search for purpose. The emotional depth accessed here is both a wonder and a joy to uncover; if only the different legs of Peter?s physical journey were connected as thoughtfully as his emotional one.Gamache?s 10th outing (How the Light Gets In, 2013, etc.) culminates in one breathless encounter, and readers may feel they weren?t prepared for this story to end. The residents of Three Pines will be back, no doubt, as they?ll have new wounds to mend.

(2014) Not a murder mystery until the very end and then we all so who did it as Peter Morrow is murdered after finally being found. He had been missing and his estranged wife Clara is trying to find out what happened to him. Enlists the newly retired Gamache to help and it leads them to Paris and Scotland and back to Quebec.KIRKUS REVIEWArmand Gamache, former chief inspector of homicide for the S?ret? du Qu?bec, is settling into retirement in the idyllic village of Three Pines¥but Gamache understands better than most that danger never strays far from home.With the help of friends and chocolate croissants and the protection of the village's massive pines, Gamache is healing. His hands don't shake as they used to; you might just mistake him and his wife, Reine-Marie, for an ordinary middle-age couple oblivious to the world's horrors. But Gamache still grapples with a ?sin-sick soul?Â¥he can't forget what lurks just beyond his shelter of trees. It's his good friend Clara Morrow who breaks his fragile state of peace when she asks for help: Peter, Clara's husband, is missing. After a year of separation, Peter was scheduled to return home; Clara needs to know why he didn't. This means going out there, where the truth awaitsÂ¥but are Clara and Gamache ready for the darkness they might encounter? The usual cast of characters is here: observant bookseller Myrna; Gamache's second in command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir; even the bitter old poet, Ruth, is willing to lend a hand to find Peter, an artist who's lost his way. The search takes them across Quebec to the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, toward another sin-sick soul, one fighting to claw his way out of jealousy's grasp. Penny develops the story behind Peter's disappearance at a slow, masterful pace, revealing each layer of the mystery alongside an introspective glance at Gamache and his comrades, who can all sympathize with Peter's search for purpose. The emotional depth accessed here is both a wonder and a joy to uncover; if only the different legs of Peter's physical journey were connected as thoughtfully as his emotional one.Gamache's 10th outing (How the Light Gets In, 2013, etc.) culminates in one breathless encounter, and readers may feel they weren't prepared for this story to end. The residents of Three Pines will be back, no doubt, as they'll have new wounds to mend.Pub Date: Aug. 26th, 2014ISBN: 978-1-250-02206-6Page count: 384ppPublisher: MinotaurReview Posted Online: July 14th, 2014Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1st, 2014

An unexpected twist vaulted this read from good to really, really good. ( )

Wow..So many haters among the reviewers. It's true that this book is a lot different from the preceding ones. It is NOT true that there was no mystery to be solved. I thought there were quite a few, some of them only between Penny and the Reader. I rather liked the departure from the usual "dead body found," starting point. Sure, the conclusion to plot-driving mystery was a bit (okay, extremely,) over the top, but I'm forgiving. I think solving that mystery was merely a tool for taking the characters out of their usual confines.

Unlike many, I felt like this book revealed a lot about the characters and set us up for more development. After so many books and Armand's "retirement," it is not surprising that Penny explored a new path. I may be the exception, but I liked it a lot. ( )