By Ande Jacobson

The Cruelest Month is the third Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (of the Sûreté du Quebec) story by Canadian author Louise Penny. Penny has kept a pace of one or two Gamache mysteries a year since she started the series, and this one was first released in 2008. As usual, the murder requires some setup through the first quarter of the book, and when it comes it hits hard.

Easter is fast approaching, and Three Pines has a visitor – a psychic named Jeanne Chauvet with a surprising history. She’s staying at the B&B where all visitors tend to stay, and Gabri is beside himself with excitement. He convinces Jeanne to lead a séance at the B&B on Good Friday, an activity she ostensibly hadn’t planned on as she had other plans for her time in the village. Still, Gabri is her host at the B&B, so she eventually acquiesces and holds an informal ceremony that night after most of the villagers had spent the afternoon hiding wooden eggs for the upcoming Easter egg hunt. There’s a story behind the wooden eggs that’s nicely covered in the book. For now, suffice it to say that Three Pines has some interesting creative traditions. Continue reading →