A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. In the room, they find a trove of unusual objects, some of which had been stolen from Gabi and Olivier’s bistro, and an enormous painting. But the “world of curiosities” that’s found sealed inside that hidden room next to Myrna’s loft is more menacing than what’s entombed in Poe’s infamous wine cellar. This is a riveting read of the past and present, murders, of psychopaths, demons, witches, of a fate that is cruel and kind, love and community. Penny at one point mentions a painter who became great because she ambitiously stepped outside of her comfort zone and tried something new.

Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache series of novels (also known as the Three Pines series) began with Still Life in 2005. Maybe the author has finally realized that her main character was a little too saintly in his goodness and forgiving nature. A World of Curiosities is the 18th in the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series, and it was breathtaking! Many times over the years people have commented on reviews with the question Can this or any of the books in the series be read as stand-alones if you're a first timer?She is described by Myrna as—"If Ruth and a trash compactor had a child,…” Her use of three particular lines at the end of the book is incredibly powerful. Gamache and Beauvoir determine that Clothilde Arsenault, whose body was found in a lake, was bashed in the head with a brick. In the novel’s present day, Gamache and his wife are attending a ceremony at the college that combines a remembrance of the victims and the graduation of a new class of engineering students that includes two young women close to them. At first glance it appears to be a huge painting, a real-life work from the 17th century known as “The Paston Treasure” — but that painting, though its origins and painter are mysteries, is in fact housed in a museum in England. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Robert Bathurst, who does a good job, though his 'women's voices' are a bit off.

Each two-episode arc takes its plot from a single novel, with one story, about the disappearance of an Indigenous woman, threading throughout the season. Also, how is it that Myrna’s niece has been visiting every summer but we’ve never heard of hear until now? It’s always satisfying to learn more about the main characters’ relationships, but this also works because the case centers around two children who have been traumatized. While the community of Three Pines, Quebec is known for its bucolic nature, there are deeply troubling moments that emerge at the least opportune times.

An antique letter from a stone mason has mysteriously surfaced after 150 years, referring to an attic room that he walled up. In remembrance of the murdered female engineers and the recognition of the resilience of the survivors, Gamache and Reine-Marie attend the latest ceremony where Fiona herself graduates, she has been supported by Gamache through the years and lives in his home. Many years later, when I saw she actually had over 10 books in the series, I thought I would give her another chance - and I was not disappointed.

I love reading novels where a specific painting, either real or invented, features – especially when we’re given a detailed description of it. Kajori Patra, writing in The Telegraph (India) described the book as dramatic, frightening and thrilling. The Canadiana in the book is like no other, giving me that warm feeling without becoming stereotypical. Now she spends her time arguing for gun control, better support for emotionally damaged children and other social problems in a manner that makes one think she is shaking her finger at you.I have a tendency to hold onto something and gnaw on it for quite a while until I finally am ready to stop and begin moving forward. The two were young children when their troubled mother was murdered, leaving them damaged, shattered. He also seems to have unlimited funds and resources: How else are you able to have your entire identity in prison swapped with someone else’s so you can escape, leaving a trail of murder behind as you tie up loose ends and send your wife traveling as far as the UK to help set up your murder plan? While the meals may be simpler than in some previous books, still one is tempted by chilled pea soup, grilled Gruyère and sweet onion sandwiches; salmon, fresh-cut asparagus, baby potatoes, and green salad with vinaigrette; charbroiled steak with chimichurri sauce and frites; and wild mushroom ravioli with sage brown butter.

When the residents realized which house and attic the letter was referring to they unanimously decided to take down the brick wall.She imbues some of her characters with depth, wisdom and poetry, while others are as basic and ordinary as people often are. As she so often does, Penny uses an element of actual Canadian history as a basis for part of the plot. They have a big festival there about ducks, and there’s this huge fresco with ducks in the very old inn – that inspired the café.