Library Journal
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In the 13th book in Penny's popular "Chief Inspector Gamache" series (after A Great Reckoning), Armand Gamache is now the head of the Sûreté du Québec, which seems to be a sinking ship heading for an iceberg. Switching back and forth from an October murder scene in the village of Three Pines to a trial in a steamy summer courtroom in Montréal, the tale of a region devastated by drugs unfolds. Gamache and his team have a plan to save their beloved province, which may not succeed and will almost certainly result in the destruction of their careers. In Three Pines, the residents go about their lives, but no one is safe from the threat as both the tension and the action build. Fans of the series will be glad to encounter Ruth and her duck Rosa, Clara the artist, and Gamache's loved ones, Reine-Marie, Jean-Guy, and Annie. VERDICT The award-winning Penny does not rest on her laurels with this challenging and timely book. Though touched by the evils of the outside world, Three Pines remains a singular place away from time. [See Prepub Alert, 3/21/17.]-Terry Lucas, Shelter Island P.L., NY © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly
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Bestseller Penny's taut 13th novel featuring Chief Supt. Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec (after 2016's A Great Reckoning) opens at a murder trial in a Montreal courtroom. Judge Maureen Corriveau, who's trying her first homicide case, suspects that something is wrong with Gamache's testimony and the conduct of the Chief Crown Prosecutor. As for Gamache, who was the arresting officer in the case, he "knew perfectly well who the murderer was. He was just a little afraid that something would go wrong. And a particularly cunning killer would go free." Flash back to the recent past, when an ominous costumed figure starts to appear regularly on the green of Gamache's home town of Three Pines. The subsequent discovery by Gamache's wife of the murder victim in the local church leads to the unearthing of some disturbing, long-buried secrets that affect the entire community. The familiar, sometimes eccentric, denizens of Three Pines and Gamache's loyal investigative team help propel the plot to an exciting, high-stakes climax. Agent: Teresa Chris, Teresa Chris Literary Agency. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Library Journal
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Penny's (The Brutal Telling) latest begins in an unusual way-after the crime and with Armand Gamache on a Montreal witness stand. Gamache, while not on trial, is at cross-purposes with the prosecution. The rest of the intricately and beautifully written novel continues with flashbacks to Three Pines and forward to the present in -Montreal. Penny uses a hilarious -Halloween costume party and an ancient legend to set the scene for murder. She succinctly examines age-old social and philosophical issues-this time the question of "conscience" takes the forefront-in every aspect, from white lies to mass murder. Robert Bathurst beautifully expresses the mood and tenor of all of Penny's characters and themes. Listeners have a treat in store through a discussion between Penny and Bathurst at the end of the last disc-don't miss it! VERDICT For devotees of the series and for those new to the magic, this 13th visit to Three Pines represents those elements most of us crave-safety, belonging, security, and friendship-despite a bit of murder and mayhem. ["Penny does not rest on her laurels with this challenging and timely book": LJ 7/17 starred review of the Minotaur: St. Martin's hc.]-Sandra C. Clariday, Cleveland, TN © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A dark, still figure, wearing long black robes and a hood, appears on the charming village green of Three Pines, a small Qubec town; though at first it seems scary but harmless, it turns out to be something much more sinister. The strange figure's appearance coincides with a Halloween party at the local bistro, attended by the usual villagers but also four out-of-town guests. They are friends from the Universit de Montral who meet for a yearly reunion at the BB in Three Pines. But this event actually happened months ago, and village resident Armand Gamache, now head of the Sret du Qubec, is recounting the story from the witness stand in a courtroom suffering from oppressive summer heat. Gamache's testimony becomes narrative, explaining how over the course of a few days the masked man grew into a fixture on the village green and morphed slowly into an omen. Gamache's son-in-law and second-in-command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir, is asked to research the "dark thing's" back story after one of the BB guests, a journalist, mentions that the figure reminds him of story he did on an old Spanish tradition, that of the "debt collector." It becomes clear, as Gamache relays the events leading up to murder, that "someone in the village had done something so horrific that a Conscience had been called." But did the dark thing come for a villager or for one of their guests? Conscience is an overarching theme in Penny's latest, seeping into the courtroom narrative as Gamache grapples with an enemy much larger than the dark thing, a war he took on as the new Chief Superintendent. His victory depends on the outcome, and the path, of this murder trial. While certain installments in Penny's bestselling series take Gamache and his team to the far reaches of Qubec, others build their tension not with a chase but instead in the act of keeping stillthis is one such book. The tension has never been greater, and Gamache has sat for months waiting, and waiting, to act, with Conscience watching close by. A meticulously built mystery that follows a careful ascent toward a breaking point that will leave you breathless. It's Three Pines as you have never seen it before. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Library Journal
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Penny's 13th entry in her award-winning "Chief Inspector Gamache" series will take readers back to the village of Three Pines, where Armand Gamache knows something is seriously wrong when a mysterious figure appears and a body is later discovered. An arrest and subsequent murder trial leaves Gamache struggling with his own conscience. [See Prepub Alert, 3/23/17.] © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

*Starred Review* The heroes of crime-fiction series have a real problem with retirement even Armand Gamache, who ought to have it nailed. He gets to retire in Three Pines, the off-the-grid Quebec village where the horrors of modernity are held mostly in abeyance (the occasional murder aside). And, yet, Gamache just can't stay off the grid permanently. Now he's agreed to become chief superintendent of the Sûreté du Quebec, the province's top cop. It's just like Gamache to jump on a sinking ship, and that's what the Sûreté looks like, with the all-powerful drug cartels seemingly in full control of the province. But Gamache has an audacious plan to change that: a rope-a-dope scheme that will either cut off the cartel monster's head or leave the chief in a jail cell. And let's not forget Three Pines, where a hooded black figure has taken up residence in the village green, just standing there, staring. The gang at the bistro is nonplussed at first, then downright panicked after the figure (or someone wearing its outfit) is found murdered in the basement of the church on the green. It's at this point that Penny's devotees must make a leap of faith: accept that weird stuff keeps happening in Canada's Brigadoon in the face of all probability, or close the damn book and call this whole Three Pines thing off. But if we did that, if we failed to see that Three Pines is a sublime metaphor for the precariousness of harmony wherever we find it, we would be forced to walk away from one of the most entrancing fictional worlds in popular literature, not to mention parting company with a lead character whom we all young or old, male or female long to be like when we grow up. No, thank you. Let's call the calling off off right now. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Penny has a permanent spot on that enviable short list of writers who combine unwavering quality with mega-sales.--Ott, Bill Copyright 2017 Booklist