Review: "The Cruelest Month" by Louise Penny

Quick Summary

Type: Novel, book 3 in Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series

Genre: Mystery

Back Cover: "Welcome to Three Pines, where the cruelest month is about to deliver on its threat.

It's spring in the tiny, forgotten village; buds are on the trees and the first flowers are struggling through the newly thawed earth. But not everything is meant to return to life. . .

When some villagers decide to celebrate Easter with a séance at the Old Hadley House, they are hoping to rid the town of its evil—until one of their party dies of fright. Was this a natural death, or was the victim somehow helped along?

Brilliant, compassionate Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec is called to investigate, in a case that will force him to face his own ghosts as well as those of a seemingly idyllic town where relationships are far more dangerous than they seem."

Read Time: 1 day

Rating: 4 stars

Review

Once again, I thought this was a very solid book with an interesting murder and good exploration of characters. Although the murder itself seemed a little far-fetched, putting the pieces together was still a fun journey. I also appreciated that Madeleine's death - or the reason she was killed, rather - sort of mirrored the reason Brébeuf was so hellbent on taking down Gamache.

I will say that Lemieux's behavior seemed out of character during this novel. Previously, he was established as someone who is desperate for people to like him, and yes, while he is part of the conspiracy to take down Gamache, he is still smart and a good officer. So then what possesses him to try to scare Gamache to death in the Old Hadley House basement? And why would he pull his gun on Gamache? It feels very out of character, as does his decision at the end of the book to kill Gamache.

Finally, the 'twist' with Nichol - that she was secretly working with Gamache the entire time - was so obvious that I actually saw it coming in the preceding book. With that being said, I enjoyed her character in the TV show, so I'm hoping her character in the novels will show a little more growth now that her 'mission' is over.