Glass Houses - Chief Inspector Gamache, Bk 13
Author: Louise Penny

When a mysterious figure appears in Three Pines one cold November day, Armand Gamache and the rest of the villagers are at first curious. Then wary. Through rain and sleet, the figure stands unmoving, staring ahead. — From the moment its shadow falls over the village, Gamache, now Chief Superintendent of the Sûreté du Québec, suspects the creature has deep roots and a dark purpose. Yet he does nothing. What can he do? Only watch and wait. And hope his mounting fears are not realized.

But when the figure vanishes overnight and a body is discovered, it falls to Gamache to discover if a debt has been paid or levied.

Months later, on a steamy July day as the trial for the accused begins in Montréal, Chief Superintendent Gamache continues to struggle with actions he set in motion that bitter November, from which there is no going back. More than the accused is on trial. Gamache’s own conscience is standing in judgment.

This is the thirteenth in the Gamache series by Louise Penny. This one is told from two different timeframes. The first is as Gamache is a witness in a trial held during the heat of July for a murder that occurred in Three Pines in November. The story then unfolds with the events leading up to and after the murder. A cloaked figure in black appeared on the the public green of the quaint village in Quebec. The figure stands on the green and doesn't move which makes everyone in the village curious and then later unsure and wary of this strange visitor. The figure has not threatened anyone and has not committed a crime so Gamache does not take any action against it. Gamache is now settled in Three Pines with his wife and has been made the Chief Superintendent of the Quebec police force. So who is this strange figure in black? Could he be a mysterious "cobrador"— a personage originating in Spain who tries to force a moral debt by playing on someone's conscience? And is this person responsible for the murder that was committed in the basement of the small village church? And how does this all relate to the drug cartels in Quebec and their smuggling operations into the U.S.?

This was another very compelling read from Penny. I have now read all the books in the series up to and including this one and will be looking forward to the remaining novels that I hope to finish reading sometime in the New Year. Great series!

Sending to a PaperbackSwap member in MA. Enjoy!

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