https://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2023/08/2023115-still-life-louise-penny.html ( )

Yes, this is book is terrible, but is that any reason to give it fewer than three stars? Not in this case, since it never promises to be anything other than terrible. A woman is cosily murdered (even the murder wound is neat) in a cosy town and the cosy Inspector Gamache investigates which of the cosy cast of characters committed the (fairly) foul deed. The prose is occasionally awkward, but mostly fine; the characters are ridiculous, but then they're supposed to be; the plot moves along almost quick enough to distract from the large holes, but not quite.

Cosy crime is not a genre I read often, but if I were to read it again, I'd probably choose the next book in this series, as this is just as serviceable as genre fiction should be. ( )

Absolutely loved it! ( )

I don’t know why I put Louise Penny’s books off for so long, but I did. Fortunately, I have a friend who likes her writing and she started me off with the first book (there are 18!) in the Armand Gamache series. I don’t know if I would have been disciplined enough to start with book #1 if she had not lent it to me.

Still Life introduces Gamache, his associates, and the small town of Three Pines. Gamache, from the Surete du Quebec is called to Three Pines when a body of a beloved resident is found dead in the woods. Could her painting, recently accepted for a local exhibition, be a clue?

Usually I devour a book; this one I limited to only a certain number of pages a day so I could savor it. It is well written, with strong characters who are interesting and unique. Yes, it is a bit of a slow burn, but that gives the reader time to become well acquainted with the local residents as well as the police inspectors. Gamache is someone I’m glad I met and cannot wait to read more of this series. ( )

Oh an actually cozy murder series, with a dozen or more books I haven't read yet, hurray! ( )