Pratik
I'm conflicted about this one. Louise Penny's writing remains impressive at creating the right mood and vibe for cozy mysteries, but starting with 'All the Devils Are Here', the plots get grander. I understand that it may be difficult to have enough murders in a tiny village and not come across as being the murder capital of Canada, if not Quebec. But going from someone with a mysterious past who died in a remote cabin to world domination plots in which Gamache is now hobnobbing with world leaders (spoiler?) seems more far-fetched than the plot of 'The Black Wolf'. Set as an immediate sequel to 'The Grey Wolf', the action (see, this is what separates her earlier work from recent plots) continues unabated. These last two books have been set up as action thrillers rather than cozy mysteries in which Three Pines features only as a place where characters return to contemplate, ponder, and host dinners with prisoners from Supermax. Isabel and Jean-Guy are less than supporting roles in these books, as they simply dance to Armand's directions, and only in the end does one of them get pissed at being reduced to caricatures of their former selves. We're told they are impressive police officers only through the words of other characters and not by their actions.
The plot, which seemed far-fetched, may not seem so when it was written, because the world changed so rapidly in 2025 ("There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen"). But that's the world we live in, and I'm sure many an action-thriller author may be frustrated at being cheated out of their livelihood. Penny has collaborated with Hillary Clinton to also write an action thriller, but we don't read Penny for the action. I hope she gets back to her roots and perhaps finds another tiny village that she can propel to the murder capital status.
I'm conflicted about this one. Louise Penny's writing remains impressive at creating the right mood and vibe for cozy mysteries, but starting with 'All the Devils Are Here', the plots get grander. I understand that it may be difficult to have enough murders in a tiny village and not come across as being the murder capital of Canada, if not Quebec. But going from someone with a mysterious past who died in a remote cabin to world domination plots in which Gamache is now hobnobbing with world leaders (spoiler?) seems more far-fetched than the plot of 'The Black Wolf'. Set as an immediate sequel to 'The Grey Wolf', the action (see, this is what separates her earlier work from recent plots) continues unabated. These last two books have been set up as action thrillers rather than cozy mysteries in which Three Pines features only as a place where characters return to contemplate, ponder, and host dinners with prisoners from Supermax. Isabel and Jean-Guy are less than supporting roles in these books, as they simply dance to Armand's directions, and only in the end does one of them get pissed at being reduced to caricatures of their former selves. We're told they are impressive police officers only through the words of other characters and not by their actions.
The plot, which seemed far-fetched, may not seem so when it was written, because the world changed so rapidly in 2025 ("There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen"). But that's the world we live in, and I'm sure many an action-thriller author may be frustrated at being cheated out of their livelihood. Penny has collaborated with Hillary Clinton to also write an action thriller, but we don't read Penny for the action. I hope she gets back to her roots and perhaps finds another tiny village that she can propel to the murder capital status.