Thanks to Telesilla Kotsi for the guest book review!

Still Life
by Louise Penny, 2005

A woman is found dead in the morning of Thanksgiving Day in Three Pines, a small village not far from Montreal. This is how “Still Life”, a mystery novel, begins followed by an elaborate description of the nature in Quebec and all the characters involved.

Highly recommended, although I do not prefer mysteries lately. It is not because I do not like them, quite the contrary. When I start one that I really like I cannot stop reading until I discover the solution to the mystery. This one was very well written, with wonderful setting and characters: Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec who comes to Three Pines to decide if the death was a hunting accident or a murder; Jean Guy Beauvoir who is the right hand of Inspector Gamache; Clara and Peter Morrow, both of whom are local artists, closely related to Jane Neal, who was the one found dead in the woods. What I liked the most was that all people in this small village where related to the crime but their motive was not obvious since they all seem to like Jane in the first place. Coming from a small place – fortunately not as small as Three Pines – I could relate to all these odd, tangled, interpersonal relationships. The plot is engaging and there was a point towards the middle of the book that I would change opinion every five minutes about who killed Jane. If you enjoy autumn colors and you want an easy read in front of your fireplace, you would definitely agree with me when you read “Still Life”.