Fun. Love the familial aspects. But ... I struggled with suspension of disbelief here and there.
A personal element: Penny was one of my late Mother's favorite authors.
My least favorite Gamache book thus far. I realize I said that last book, but I mean it this time.
The Gamaches are in Paris for the birth of a grandchild, but get sucked into a murder mystery when a close family friend is involved in a hit-and-run accident outside a restaurant. Not long after, a body is found within the family friend's residence, and the case starts quickly spiraling out from there. Soon, Gamache is chasing down leads involving corporate espionage and coverup murders, and it's not until the end that we finally learn who's side everyone is on.
Rather than feeling like a traditional Gamache twisty murder mystery, this felt more like Gamache-and-friends were dumped into a generic corporate espionage thriller plot. I know thrillers have their fans out there, but the incredibly fast paced action of this book didn't feel very....Gamache-like. All throughout Paris, I couldn't help …
My least favorite Gamache book thus far. I realize I said that last book, but I mean it this time.
The Gamaches are in Paris for the birth of a grandchild, but get sucked into a murder mystery when a close family friend is involved in a hit-and-run accident outside a restaurant. Not long after, a body is found within the family friend's residence, and the case starts quickly spiraling out from there. Soon, Gamache is chasing down leads involving corporate espionage and coverup murders, and it's not until the end that we finally learn who's side everyone is on.
Rather than feeling like a traditional Gamache twisty murder mystery, this felt more like Gamache-and-friends were dumped into a generic corporate espionage thriller plot. I know thrillers have their fans out there, but the incredibly fast paced action of this book didn't feel very....Gamache-like. All throughout Paris, I couldn't help but think about how much I missed Canada and Three Pines and the friends that have become mainstays in these books up until this point, and it really took me out of the current book's setting. I realize this was an attempt to keep the series fresh, but it just felt too far removed from what I loved about the other fifteen books.
All that said, I did like the role Reine-Marie played in this one, and I really hope she keeps it in the following books.
Another re-read. For the most part, the Gamache series do stand alone, but here, Ms. Penny does reference some things in the past (although she will admit she changed some things about Stephen).
So, the Gamaches are all in Paris. Annie is about to give birth, Jean-Guy and she live in Paris now and have joined Daniel and Roslyn (Annie's brother and sister-in-law, respectively). Armand and Rein-Marie are in Paris for the birth and to be with family. Stephen is going to join them and they are all waiting for the new baby. How wonderful! What could go wrong? Well, after their nice big family dinner, Stephen gets run down in a hit and run. The whole family was in the street at the time, but Stephen was the only one hit and hurt. Armand, of course, is traumatized and shocked because of the lost of his parents (Stephen is …
Another re-read. For the most part, the Gamache series do stand alone, but here, Ms. Penny does reference some things in the past (although she will admit she changed some things about Stephen).
So, the Gamaches are all in Paris. Annie is about to give birth, Jean-Guy and she live in Paris now and have joined Daniel and Roslyn (Annie's brother and sister-in-law, respectively). Armand and Rein-Marie are in Paris for the birth and to be with family. Stephen is going to join them and they are all waiting for the new baby. How wonderful! What could go wrong? Well, after their nice big family dinner, Stephen gets run down in a hit and run. The whole family was in the street at the time, but Stephen was the only one hit and hurt. Armand, of course, is traumatized and shocked because of the lost of his parents (Stephen is the only parental figure left). Then, stuff gets weird and I don't want to spoil anything. It looks like it was not a car "accident" but a hit. Who is going after Stephen? What was Stephen up to? Is the rest of the family safe?
Armand, along with Jean-Guy, Rein-Marie and others investigate.
I really enjoyed this book because it has a LOT. Good mystery, family, friends, it builds upon characters and themes that has been mentioned in previous books in the series.
Lots of intrigue. Three Pines is not a big character in this book. It's mentioned, but the focus is on Armand, his past, his family and what it all means to him.
One of my favorites of the series!
A family whodunit.
Armande Gamache and his family have dinner with his godfather in Paris, and his godfather is knocked down by a car in what the Paris police see as a hit-and-run accident, but Gamache and his family believe was an assassination attempt. In assisting the parish police with their enquiries they help to uncover a nest of corruption.
One odd thing about the story is that at one point the plot turns on a very obscure brand of perfume with a very distinctive fragrance, which helps to identify someone as a suspect. The problem I have with this is that it turns out to be Cologne 4711, which happens to be perhaps the most famous perfume in the world, and certainly the only one whose name I recognise.
