by Louise Penny
Part of Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, book 1
First published 2007
A corpse turns up in the forest during Thanksgiving Weekend. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache arrives from the Surete du Quebec with his team to investigate. The crime scene sits near Three Pines, a quiet village in the Eastern Townships that has never needed its own police force. The victim is Jane Neal, a local artist whom everyone seemed to adore. Gamache struggles to understand who would want to kill such a well-regarded woman. The inspector suspects that someone among the friendly villagers committed murder. He knows that malice hides beneath the surface of this picturesque community. The white picket fences and charming facades conceal dangerous truths. Gamache must watch carefully and wait for the village to reveal what really happened to Jane Neal.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, small-town-secrets
Setting: Three Pines, Eastern Townships
Period: Thanksgiving Weekend
293 pages · Mass Market Paperback · St. Martin's Paperbacks