Book review: Louise Penny’s ‘Bury Your Dead’

By LARRY BALLWAHN | Wilton

Prologue: I often review books from mystery series. Since each book is usually written as standalone story (that make sales more likely), my suggested approach is that if a review interests you, get the book and read it. If you like what you read, you may want to start at the beginning to see how the author got here. As suggested below, that doesn’t always work.

Louise Penny’s “Bury Your Dead” is the sixth in the Chief InspectorArmand Gamache novels. It follows “A Brutal Telling,” a novel that I did not review. That said, if you choose to read “Bury Your Dead,” you may want to read “A Brutal Telling” first. Penny has a gift for tying the plot of one story to its predecessor.

“Bury Your Dead” is a major accomplishment requiring much research and a great deal of skill to write. It is historical fiction, a standard mystery, a reexamination of a prior mystery and the unraveling of a terrorist attack that has caused severe trauma to Gamache and his group.

Unlike Penny’s previous novels, “Bury Your Dead” is not set in Three Pines, but rather in Quebec City. Gamache is visiting his mentor, Emile Comeau, while recovering mentally and physically from wounds received while responding to a terrorist attack. Besides gunshot wounds, Gamache saw several officers killed while under his command. He is spending his time doing historical research, his hobby, at the renowned Literary and Historical Society Library. It is one of the remaining English institutions in predominantly French Quebec. When an amateur archeologist is found murdered in the Literary and Historical Society basement, Gamache is invited to consult on the investigation.

It turns out that the dead man was well known for his obsession for locating the body of Samuel de Champlain, one of the founders of Quebec. If not solved quickly, the archaeologist’s murder in this English institution would certainly be used by those who wanted Quebec to separate from Canada.

And if that was not enough, there is now a question as to whether the right man was found guilty in the last case. Thus, Three Pines enters the picture. The second in command, Jean Guy Beauvoir, also recovering from severe wounds, is dispatched to reexamine that case from a different perspective. If the motivation for the Hermit’s murder in the previous novel was not his treasure, perhaps someone other than the jailed Oliver was responsible.

The author skillfully moves from one setting to the other to tell the stories. In addition, the story behind the terrorist attack is revealed in flashbacks. In the meantime, we learn something of Quebec City and Samuel de Champlain.

If you can see the end of this set of mysteries, you’re ready to write your own.

 

 

 

Comments are closed.

  • Names released in fatal UTV crash

    6 hours ago
    by

    The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office has released more information related to the UTV crash that occurred early Sunday morning, March 17, that left a local woman dead and a man injured.   


    One dead in UTV accident in town of Wells

    March 17th, 2024
    by

    A woman is dead and one man injured after a utility terrain vehicle rolled over early Sunday morning in rural Sparta. 


    Burn ban issued for Vernon County

    March 17th, 2024
    by

    Effective immediately, Vernon County Emergency Management and the Vernon County Fire Chiefs Association has issued a burn ban until further notice.


    Window damaged at Norwalk Village Office

    March 8th, 2024
    by

    In an apparent act of vandalism, a rock resulted in a broken window at the Norwalk Village Office sometime between […]


    N-O-W construction project: A bird’s-eye view

    March 2nd, 2024
    by

    Construction at Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School Schools has resulted in a different landscape.


  • Brookwood to present ‘Harry Potter’ parody

    February 26th, 2024
    by

    The Brookwood theatre program will present “Sally Cotter and the Censored Stone” on Saturday, March 2, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 3, at 2 p.m. 


    Combating tooth decay among children

    February 26th, 2024
    by

    During Children’s Dental Health Month, Scenic Bluffs raises awareness on the importance of dental sealants


    Vernon County reports shots fired in rural Ontario

    February 26th, 2024
    by

    UPDATE FROM THE VERNON COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE “** UPDATE (1:15 PM): The situation is under control. A male, age 42, […]


    Royall concert slated for Monday

    February 21st, 2024
    by

    The Royall High School Music Department will present a Concert Festival Showcase Concert on Monday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. in the high school gymnasium. 


    Tomah Health to offer childbirth class

    February 21st, 2024
    by

    Tomah Health has scheduled a childbirth education class for expecting parents March 21 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. 


    Man dead in town of Wilton accident

    February 19th, 2024
    by

    A Sauk County man died Monday morning in a two-vehicle crash that shut down part of Highway 71 in the town of Wilton for more than five hours, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. 


  • Archives