In this 4th book in the 'Chief Inspector Armand Gamache' series, the Canadian detective investigates a very puzzling case. The book can be read as a standalone.
*****
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec is celebrating his 35th wedding anniversary. To commemorate the happy occasion Gamache and his librarian wife Reine-Marie are enjoying a vacation at the upscale Manoir Bellechasse near the village of Three Pines - where many of their quirky friends live.
Other guests at the Manoir Bellechasse are the Finney/Morrow clan, who are having their annual family reunion.
The matriarch, Irene Finney, is hosting the middle-aged children from her first marriage to multi-millionaire businessman Charles Morrow. In addition to Irene's current husband Bert Finney, the attendees include her offspring who are (from oldest to youngest):
- Thomas Morrow and his wife Sandra - an unpleasant couple who expect everyone to defer to them.
- Julia Martin (née Morrow) - who's in the midst of divorcing Ponzi scheme criminal David Martin.
- Peter Morrow and his wife Clara - both of whom are artists living in Three Pines. They also happen to be friends of the Gamaches.
- Marianna Morrow - an architect who brought her nine-year-old child Bean.
The Finney/Morrow tribe is beset by secrets and lies, and the family members dislike each other intensely. Mother Irene is cold, mean, and condescending and the brothers and sisters constantly spat and put each other down. Much of this behavior is a holdover from childhood, when the children competed for the their father's love and attention.
During the family reunion, a statue of Charles Morrow - commissioned by his wife - is to be raised on the hotel grounds. The Morrow offspring have ambiguous feelings about this (paid for) honor, but, as always, they defer to their controlling mother.
For the Gamaches, things go smoothly for their first few days at the Manoir Bellechasse. They enjoy delicious food prepared by Chef Véronique Langlois;
relax and stroll through the picturesque grounds;
and engage in polite conversation and nightly bridge games with the other guests.
The Gamaches never mention their professions, however, and the snobby Finney/Morrows come to believe Armand is a shopkeeper and Reine-Marie is a cleaning woman. The priggish family is disabused of this notion, however, when a murder occurs and the 'shopkeeper' leads the investigation. This part is very amusing. LOL 😊
The murder weapon is the statue of Charles Morrow, which topples and kills a family member. This seems to be an impossible crime since moving the sculpture - which weighs tons - would require an entire football team or heavy machinery.....things that would be noticed.
Gamache calls in his homicide team, Agent Isabelle Lacoste and Inspector Jean-Guy Beauvoir, who assist with the investigation.
Both Beauvoir and Gamache find it hard to be completely objective however: Gamache because he's friends with Peter and Clara Morrow; and Beauvoir because he has an odd interest in Chef Véronique, who seems familiar to him.
Other characters in the story include Madame Clementine Dubois - owner of the Manoir Bellechasse; maître d' Pierre Patenaude - a long-time employee who runs an impeccable dining room and trains the wait staff; Elliot Byrne, a new waiter who's insolent to Pierre and makes fun of the guests behind their backs; Colleen, a young gardener; Yves Pelletier - the sculptor who created the statue of Charles Morrow; and several residents of Three Pines, including the innkeeper Gabri and the disgruntled poet Ruth and her duck Rosa.
In the course of the story we obtain information about Armand Gamache's backstory - some of which is quite surprising, and learn details of Jean-Guy Beauvoir's personal life with his wife Enid.
Gamache eventually catches the perp, but not before a harrowing scene where he almost loses his life.
I enjoy Penny's Armand Gamache books but find that they tend to be overly 'literary - by which I mean the main characters' thoughts tend to be philosophical treatises. Most people don't think like this and it doesn't ring true. The author may be using this technique to convey her personal ideology, but it's distracting IMO.
Still, this is an enjoyable mystery, recommended to readers who like suspense novels, especially fans of Armand Gamache.
Rating: 3.5 stars
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