Louise Penny’s books are a cut above. They are well written and thoughtful as well as compelling and mysterious. And as with any series, getting to know the usual cast of characters and seeing a deepening in their development over time, is part of the pleasure. For me the series is getting better and better. I also loved the setting of this fourth Armand Gamache mystery which is called A Rule Against Murder in the US. The usual setting for Penny’s novels, the little quaint town of Three Pines, is not forgotten even though in this one it only makes a guest appearance. The fictional town of Three Pines is practically a character itself in the series by now.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his wife Reine-Marie are spending an anniversary holiday at a beautiful logged lodge overlooking a lake in the magnificent Canadian wilderness. There is a wealthy dysfunctional family staying there as well, in fact some of the family members are a little annoyed when they discover that they don’t have the whole place to themselves, and another couple is staying there. Little do they know that the man in the back bedroom is not the housekeeper’s husband, but the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec and that a murder is about to happen.
Louise Penny says she based the character of Armand Gamache on her husband Michael without even realising it. The manor in this novel was loosely based on a real manor (Manoir Hovey Resort) where Louise and Michael celebrated their own wedding.
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