It was Richard, I believe, who last autumn recommended I give the work of Louise Penny a try. It took an unexpectedly beautiful, nearly autumnal Friday morning and an unplanned stroll through my local bookstore, for the planted seed to bear fruit. I saw Still Life in the Mystery section and my desire to bring forward the anxiously awaited Fall season drove me out of the store and to the local library where I hungrily grabbed the book from the shelf. In a moment of prescience I grabbed the second book, A Fatal Grace, as well. Good job me. For I devoured Still Life in between this weekend’s planned events and when I wasn’t reading it I was either thinking about it or, as my wife can attest, talking excitedly about it. I finished it moments ago. And now she is reading it.
I’m never entirely certain how it happens, how the trajectory of a really good book (and Still Life is a really good book) intersects with ‘just the right moment’ to move reading from an act to an EXPERIENCE. I only know that it happens, and when it does reading becomes intoxicating. Still Life is the first in a series of books set in Canada, featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Surete du Quebec. Rather than beat around the proverbial bush I’ll come out and tell you this up front: Gamache is fantastic. If characters are your passion, your passion will find its object of adoration in the characters birthed from the imagination of Louise Penny, with Gamache heading the list. But before going into that, lets talk a little bit about the story itself.
“Miss Jane Neal met her maker in the early morning mist of Thanksgiving Sunday. It was pretty much a surprise all round.”
Jane Neal is the person least likely to wind up murdered, or at least one would think so based on the shock and sadness of the people of the small village of Three Pines when they awake on Thanksgiving morning to the news that Jane was found dead on a nearby wooded trail. Jane Neal was the quintessential ‘dear little old lady’ whose life was one of dedication and service and friendship to her community. Chief Inspector Gamache is dispatched to the scene of what appears to be a hunting accident, but could also be cold-blooded murder. Gamache is a seasoned inspector with his own unusual and often effective methods, and as the mystery of Jane Neal’s death unfolds the villagers of Three Pines, members of his investigative team, and the reader will get to know Gamache’s quirks and eccentricities very well indeed. In a community of artists, Jane Neal was a creative soul who refused to allow anyone to see her work. Ever. Days before her death she surprises her friends with the bold move of entering one of her pieces for consideration at an upcoming arts show, and is surprised in turn when the piece is accepted. In the days that follow Jane Neal and her singular vision will come to touch the lives of the town in ways artists only ever dream of.
I love the way Louise Penny tells a story. She draws you directly into the story and never falters. It really is quite a feat. Given that Still Life appears to have all the trappings of a “cozy mystery”, it manages to bring out the very best of this style of mystery fiction while retaining a great deal of surprise. I was acutely aware as I read that my expectations were not always being met and often were thwarted by a direction I just did not see coming. It was fascinating to see. While the story is ostensibly about Chief Inspector Gamache it turns out to be everyone’s story and in getting to know a small but well rounded group of characters it becomes a story about human nature, about the choices we make, and about the things big and small that make up this thing we call ‘a life’. In Still Life we aren’t told the story simply from Gamache’s point of view. Instead we get to spend time in the minds of members of the investigative team and various characters from Three Pines and in doing so the story becomes so much more than a mystery to be solved.
I indicated earlier that I developed a very strong affection for Armand Gamache. The spark came early on, especially when he was musing about his wife. I particularly enjoyed this:
“He told her everything. In this he was unusual, but he couldn’t quite see how he could have a deep partnership with Reine-Marie and keep this part of his life secret. So he told her everything, and she told him everything. So far, after thirty-five years, it seemed to be working.”
That put such a big smile on my face as did every mention Gamache made of his wife Reine-Marie. So many of the other characters were great too but I choose not to exhaust your patience by going into a litany of the who’s and the why’s. Suffice it to say this is an engaging bunch. What makes them even more engaging is that you start to believe early on that one or more of these people that you are spending time with, people whose heads Penny allows you to get inside of, is responsible for the death of Jane Neal. It is an interesting and effective way to tell a tale. So many times during my reading I was impressed with a turn of phrase or a section of the book that demonstrated to me that Penny is an author worth following. Quotes don’t always work without the context of the greater story, but I will share this one more with you because as readers I’m sure you’ll understand why it resonated:
“Some order had been attempted at one stage, the art restoration books were alphabetical, though one had been replaced incorrectly. Without thinking, Myrna put it in its proper alphabetical home. Myrna could guess who had taken a stab at order but the rest had succumbed to everyday literary glee.”
“Everyday literary glee”. I LOVE that! The books on my shelves are certainly subject to that method of shelving.
Still Life was the right book at the right time for me and the credit for its impact lies in the hands of its skillful creator, Louise Penny. It is hard to believe this was Penny’s debut novel, but the fact that it placed second in the Debut Dagger awards, an award for unpublished work, should give you some indication of why Louise Penny has become a highly lauded author in the field of crime fiction. To Richard and everyone else who recommended her work, Thank You! To those looking for a cracking good read, move Louise Penny up the list. She has created something special here and I look forward to spending more time with Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and the people in and around Three Pines in the very near future.
Wow I found it for $2.99 on the iBookstore… so it looks like I am reading this next. Thanks Carl.
That is a great price, Ian! Please come back and tell me what you think. Hope you get as much pleasure out of it as I did. I’m already enjoying A Fatal Grace very much.
I’ve only read one Inspector Gamache by Louise Penny, and it wasn’t this one, but I remember thoroughly enjoying it. And, like you, I’m hungry for Fall, too. In a big, bad way. So much so that I actually made some pumpkin spice coffee this morning, and brought out my bottle of Opium for today’s scent. ;Bye-bye, heat and humidity. Hello, crisp autumn air and scarves with fingerless gloves.
Another mystery author I’ve enjoyed, for her Venice settings, is Donna Leon. Somehow, I keep these two authors joined in my mind perhaps for their European inspectors who are so very charming.
That’s a good sign then, as this first one was great. I’m not a big coffee drinker, but you can bet I would have grabbed a cup of that coffee and sat inhaling the aroma just to be whisked forward to autumn! Its been so great to read outdoors these last few days!
Donna Leon is on my list too. Her name came up when I read my Aurelio Zen mystery last fall and it was set in Venice. I’d like to get to her sometime soon too. It is funny because this one is set in Canada and yet, because of watching so many British mysteries, I cannot help but imagine English villages when reading it. Hopefully that will change as I read more so I can picture the actual places Penny is writing about.
Oh Carl, I am so pleased and thrilled that you loved Still Life so much! I read it a few years ago, and gave it to everyone I knew that year. I’m up to the book 6 now to read, Dead and Buried, set in Quebec City in the winter. This series is very very good overall! And she keeps winning awards for it, too.
Did you want to move to Three Pines? I do! It doesn’t exist, though it feels like it should, it’s such a realistic picture of a small Eastern Townships/Quebec village. Even if there is a lot of death there, it still seems the quintessential village 🙂
I’m glad to hear you love it so, Susan. And I believe there is a new one coming out this fall! This second one I’m reading now is set at Christmas time and though it is quite the contrast to the current season I am just too taken with the village, the villagers, and Inspector Gamache to be put off.
I’d love to live in a place like that…provided I could still get good internet service. That way I could still order books and have them delivered, lol!
Oh you evil man, you. The last thing I need is another series to read, and yet you made this sound so very irresistible! I suspect it may make its way home with me when I hit the library this week…and will you be sorry about my overloaded bag? No, somehow I think you’ll smile over your persuasive enabling powers. 😉
I know, I couldn’t help it though, this one captivated me. I will be thrilled with your overloaded bag, of course! Sorry…I’d only be sorry if a trip to the library didn’t net a huge bag of treasure.
I read this a while back and felt exactly the same about it. It was the right book at the right time for me as well. i really loved it. It’s hard to put my finger on it but it has a very special quality. I didn’t want to leave that place anymore…
You are right Caroline, it is hard to actually pinpoint what makes this so special. I think that is because it is a combination of little touches. This is one of those books where when I read back cover quotes about it after reading the book I don’t see them as hype. Instead I think, “they get it!”
I’ve read 3 or 4 in this fantastic series and loved them all. Like you, I think that Gamache is wonderful and like Susan, I want to move to Three Pines.
Lets all pack up and meet there! 🙂
Gamache is wonderful, and he shows that again not long into his introduction (which isn’t until 50 pages in) in A Fatal Grace, the second book in the series.
I’ve heard about this but still haven’t picked it up. Now I’m kicking myself. Thanks for the reminder!
She’s good, TBM. You should check out her work! 🙂
Finally I got here. Wonderful, I’m SO glad you like Penny. The books just get better and better! Barbara and I met her in San Francisco at the most recent Bouchercon there, it may have been 2010, and had breakfast with her and her husband, and she is as nice as could possibly be. Her books are so wonderful, I want to re-read them all again.
I remember you posting about that. What a fantastic experience. I’m even more excited you both got to do that now that I’ve read one of her books. Thanks again for the recommendation.
I dove right into book two and have spied out the rest at my local library. Not sure if I will rip through them all right away or not, but for now I am hooked.
Move to Three Pines? I’m there. I want to work at the Bistro. There’s internet by cable, but no cell phone service there. Carl, there is a fine bookstore there, Myrna runs it, both new and used.
Yes, I was definitely thinking that I would have to work for Myrna at the store, and would want to eat my meals at the Bistro! Yum! I felt like I needed to resist taking a bite out of the book at times.
I have wanted to try Louise Penny for a while but just hasn’t happened yet… One day!
Definitely move her up your list, she is really, really good.
Um, wow this sounds good!! ANd I love that cover too! A good cover can always draw me in 😉 Onto the wishlist it goes!
I know for a fact that you’ll love this Chris, the villagers are a wonderful bunch as is the Inspector. Hopefully you can find a place to fit it in during R.I.P.
It is a neat cover, isn’t it? The one I read from the library had a completely different cover but I couldn’t find a decent image of it online.
Wow, you really did gush about the book 🙂 It is so fun to grab onto the right book at the right time. It doesn’t happen as often as it should. I wonder why that is? Something to ponder.
These books are easy to gush about! I’m well into book three and am enjoying it every bit as much. I don’t know why it is that those experiences don’t happen more often either. Perhaps they wouldn’t be as special if they did. All I know is that I’m glad it happens as frequently as it does.
I was so excited by this review that I ran over to the library and picked up this book. Can’t wait to get started! Thanks for bringing my attention to it.
That’s wonderful Deb, I hope you love it too. Let me know what you think as you are making your way through it.
I’m definitely adding this one to my list. Sounds like a perfect fall read.
You must, it is perfect for the fall.
Yes, yes, yes! I just recently finished this book as well and just adored it! I’ll admit that I was surprised at all of the negative reviews on Goodreads that I came across. For me it was all about the reading experience and I can’t wait to pick up the 2nd book. Awesome review!
I hadn’t really checked on its status on Goodreads, but I would have to wonder what folks were smoking if they didn’t enjoy this one a least a little bit. And my gosh each book (up to three at least) has gotten better and better. Let me know what you think of book 2, and let me warn you, you’ll want to have book 3 in hand because…well…trust me, you will! 🙂
I guess it isn’t for everyone. I did read it but I hated it. Strange characters, odd pacing, and quite a disappointing finale. I will probably not read this author again, even though I know that you, Carl, like her books. I have too many books to read to pick another from this author. (Oh I am glad people like it – there are many positive reviews on Goodreads, but I related too closely with the bad reviews).
I do think you have to read the next book to really get the scope of what she can do, she really is a brilliant writer despite some stumbles in the debut novel. But I also understand the too many books issue. There are many books I won’t read for similar reasons and like you I’m not suffering from any lack of reading material.