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Book Summary and Reviews of The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny

The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny

The Brutal Telling

Chief Inspector Gamache Novel, #5

by Louise Penny

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  • Published:
  • Aug 2010, 400 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Chaos is coming, old son. 

With those words the peace of Three Pines is shattered. Everybody goes to Olivier’s Bistro - including a stranger whose murdered body is found on the floor. When Chief Inspector Gamache is called to investigate, he is dismayed to discover that Olivier's story is full of holes. Why are his fingerprints all over the cabin that's uncovered deep in the wilderness, with priceless antiques and the dead man’s blood? And what other secrets and layers of lies are buried in the seemingly idyllic village?

Gamache follows a trail of clues and treasures from first editions of Charlotte’s Web and Jane Eyre to a spiderweb with a word mysteriously woven in it - into the woods and across the continent, before returning to Three Pines to confront the truth and the final, brutal telling.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"This superb novel will appeal to readers who enjoy sophisticated literary mysteries in the tradition of Donna Leon." - Library Journal

"If you don't want to move to Montreal with Gamache as your neighbor - or better yet, relocate to Three Pines and be welcomed into its community of eccentrics - you have sawdust in your veins, which must be very uncomfortable." - Kirkus

"Readers keen for another glimpse into the life of Three Pines will be well rewarded." - Publishers Weekly

"There's always a log fire burning and it's always story time in the charming mysteries Louise Penny sets in sleepy Three Pines … While constant readers may think they know all there is to know about its eccentric villagers, Penny is a great one for springing surprises." - New York Times

This information about The Brutal Telling was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Cathryn Conroy

This Is a Marvel of a Murder Mystery: A Clever Whodunit Filled with Life Wisdom
I never read murder mysteries until I started reading Louise Penny, and now I am an avid fan—of both the genre and (especially) this author. Like the other four books that precede this novel, this is expertly written with a compelling whodunit plot, bold and vivid characters that pop off the page, and descriptions of food that will have you hunting down gourmet recipes for tonight's dinner.

In this, the fifth of the 18 (and counting) books in the Chief Inspector Gamache Mystery series, we find the brilliant and endearing Armand Gamache back in the idyllic Canadian village of Three Pines to solve (yet another) murder. (Maybe it's not so idyllic, after all.) Just before daybreak over the very busy Labor Day weekend, a dead body has been found lying on the floor of the bistro that is owned by Olivier and Gabriel, partners in business and life. No one knows the victim. At first glance, he looks like a homeless vagrant. He died after a blunt force blow to the back of his head, which should have resulted in copious amounts of blood. But there is no blood on the bistro floor. Who is this man? Who killed him? Where did the murder take place? Why was the body moved to the bistro? And why are several Three Pines residents obviously nervous, telling lies and guarding secrets? Gamache and his crew are on the case, and nothing is as it appears to be. Oh, I couldn't stop reading this one!

This is a literary murder mystery. The plot is grounded in references to art (painting, sculpture, and totem poles), poetry, literature, music, and history. In between the storyline of the murder investigation, you'll learn a lot, too!

Here is the wonder, the joy, and the marvel of Louise Penny's books: Life wisdom. These books are SO much more than riveting murder mysteries. Not only are there numerous short lessons of how to live life better, but also the books are packed with psychology—psychology that examines the human psyche better than most psychology books, baring the soul of the characters to understand the how and why of all human interactions.

The only caveat and it's an important one: You must read the Chief Inspector Gamache Mystery series in order beginning with the first one, "Still Life." Subsequent books reveal big hints and little spoilers that occurred in the previous titles. Don't ruin it for yourself! Read it from the beginning and enjoy and single one.

Elizabeth of Silver's Reviews

The Brutal Telling
A murder in a bistro during a busy Labor Day weekend in Three Pines, Quebec, makes for a great novel...add in beautiful Canadian landscapes, quiet village life, artists, hermits, bed and breakfasts, Inspector Gamache and his team, secrets, codes to break, antiques, and you can't stop reading.

Louise Penny has an intriguing method of keeping your interests through the descriptions of the characters, the settings, and the lives of those involved in the story.

Absolutely LOVED the book...a lot of life's lessons as well.

Jane N

Brutal Telling
Louise Penny has once again created an old fashioned "who done it". Three Pines is a village that I would love to exist in real life. The characters are so real that I felt that I knew them when I finished the book. The inn keepers, both old and new,Clara and Peter and all the rest. Ms. Penny weaves the history of Canada with the history of her characters in a way that entertains and teaches. I have read all of her books and this one by far, I felt was her best. The end was a shocker and I am waiting to read her next one !

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Author Information

Louise Penny Author Biography

Photo: Jean-Francois Bérubé

Louise Penny's first novel, Still Life, won the New Blood Dagger, Arthur Ellis, Barry, Anthony, and Dilys awards. Her second book, A Fatal Grace, won the 2007 Agatha Award for Best Novel, as did her third, The Cruelest Month. Her next, A Rule Against Murder, was a New York Times bestseller, followed by The Brutal Telling, which was a New York Times, USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, and National Indie bestseller. Louise lives in a small village south of Montreal.

Pronunciation Guide: Louise Penny's website provides a wealth of interesting information about her and her books including a pronunciation guide to the characters and places referenced in her books.

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache Series (to 2020)

  1. Still Life (2005)
  2. Dead Cold (2006) aka A Fatal Grace
  3. The Cruellest ...

... Full Biography
Link to Louise Penny's Website

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