Judith L. (jlautner) reviewed on 1/31/2022 + 105 more book reviews

Fourth in the Armand Gamache series. Gamache and wife Reine-Marie are celebrating their anniversary at a remote hotel, Manoir Bellechasse. They have been coming to this hotel for many years and are happy to take any room. This time they are joined by the Finney clan, who take up all of the remaining rooms. It is a reunion of sorts, in this case to honor the passing of the patriarch of the family. It is clear to Gamache from the start that these family members have issues.

A big part of the memorial to the father is the installation of a huge statue of the man in the garden. The small hotel is happy to accept this addition given how generous the family has been to the hotel. The statue is revealed in a ceremony but the next day daughter Jules is found dead, crushed by the statue. It had somehow come off its base.

It isn't long before Gamache has undertaken the case and brought in his team as well as local police to help. An unexpected help comes from Clara, artist friend from the village of Three Pines, who is married to Peter, one of the Finneys. The couple is there reluctantly as is the case for most of the other siblings.

It was not an accident. But how it was done is a mystery to Gamache. In interviews with the family members and hotel staff, he finds many possible motives, unfortunately.

I enjoyed getting to know Gamache a bit more with this case, and to learn more about Clara as well. Clara seems to be the main character in Three Pines, the one we really get to know. Their mutual friendship seems to be based on compassion and love of beauty.

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