The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny

When a young boy prone to crying wolf goes missing, village newcomers Armand and Reine-Marie Gamache join a frantic search for the child only to stumble on a community secret about a long-ago betrayal and murder.

I think I like this one better than the previous one. I appreciated the historical aspect (which I was unaware of until I finished the book), and enjoyed the story told around it involving our favorite little village. From reading the reviews here, some people didn't enjoy this one as much as the others because of the “outside-ness” of the story, but I think it works with the setting and the cast of characters involved.

I enjoyed this intricately plotted novel. When I found out that one aspect of the story was factual, I was even more intrigued. I am finding that the series is getting better as I get deeper into it and am looking forward to the next installment.

Short Review: I was thoroughly engaged with the book and enjoyed it. But as with many series books (especially murder mysteries) my credulity is being tested. I don't really want to find the answer early, I want to enjoy the ride.

But there seems to be an inevitability that the longer the series goes on, the more likely the mystery becomes a conspiracy theory and reaches beyond the immediate story line. This ones moves to international arms deals, war crimes, and state intelligence agencies. Which is all a far cry from the small town mysteries that really made the series.

My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/the-nature-of-the-beast-chief-inspector-gamache-11-by-louise-penny/