This is the second story with Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. In the village of Three Pines, he investigates the murder of CC de Poitiers, a cruel and unpopular woman who was electrocuted during a curling match. As Gamache unravels the secrets of the villagers, he uncovers a web of lies, betrayal and hidden pasts, leading to a shocking revelation about CC’s true identity and her killer. Gamache’s past also seems to be catching up with him. With the same people of the village and set during the Christmas season, this novel is an excellent book for this time of year. Witty and intelligently constructed, I was hooked again and couldn’t put it down. Next one ?
“Beauvoir turned one of the boots on its side so that the sole was visible. Twisted and charred and grotesque, the claws were revealed to be metal teeth, protruding from the leather sole. Armand Gamache felt his jaw clench. Who would wear such boots? The Inuit, maybe. In the Arctic. But even they wouldn’t kill baby seals. The Inuit were respectful and sensible hunters who’d never dream of killing the young. They didn’t have to. No. Only brutes murdered babies. And only brutes supported that trade. Sitting in front of them were the carcasses of two babies. Animals, certainly, but all senseless killing appalled Gamache. What sort of woman wore the bodies of dead babies shaped into boots, with metal claws imbedded in them? Armand Gamache wondered whether CC de Poitiers was at that very moment trying to explain herself to a perplexed God and a couple of very angry seals.”
Read and listened to as an audiobook