A World of Curiosities

A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny (2022) 390 pages

What starts with the need for more space in an apartment in the village of Three Pines leads to a walled off area broken through - a wall that was erected over a hundred years ago - revealing a huge painting that partially replicates a famous painting in England. The creepiest part of this painting is how many of its altered elements seem to be speaking out to Chief Inspector Gamache directly, hinting at details committed by a serial killer who was in prison for his gruesome crimes. But then, how was the painting put behind the brick wall relatively recently, with no one being aware of it being done?

The novel also brings us back 10 years ago, to the murder case where Chief Inspector Gamache first chose to bring the outspoken, rather disrespectful Jean-Guy Beauvoir onto his team. That case was pivotal to so much of what follows in this series. Two abused children are orphaned when their mother is murdered. Their appearance in this story as young adults adds much second-guessing.

So many of the residents in the village are involved in this intricate, and at times, quite suspenseful novel. Already a Penny fan, I found this story to be among her very best.

The Madness of Crowds

The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny (2021) 432 pages

The novel begins with Chief Inspector Gamache and his officers securing a university venue for a visiting professor's lecture. Scheduled at the last minute, during the winter holidays, expectations were that the event would be sparsely attended, but because the professor, Abigail Robinson, has gone viral for her lectures on the Internet, there is a restless mob trying to squeeze into the building. Dr. Robinson's premise is that euthanasia is the right solution for those whom society can't afford to care for. It looks like half the crowd accept her softly voiced opinion, while half the crowd are outraged. When a gunshot during the lecture almost hits the professor, Gamache is put in the uncomfortable position of having to figure out how a weapon got into the venue when everyone was being checked prior to entry.

A few days later, although the gunman has been caught, someone close to the lecturer is murdered, and it isn't clear whether the murder was a case of mistaken identity or happened as intended.

The novel has a slow start, giving an extended discussion of how the Covid lockdowns affected the people in Three Pines (and elsewhere in Canada), how the vaccine's availability allowed people to joyfully gather again, and finally, description of the intense crowd gathering for this lecture. There is also discussion of the training of police to manage crowds without getting violent themselves. Only once this section is past, and the action gets underway, did I finally relax and know that the Penny I relish is back at the wheel. There are a couple times in this novel when Gamache has a somewhat short fuse, but perhaps that's reasonable, given that he has to protect a professor whose views he finds despicable.