Join us here in The Bistro for a discussion on the entire Gamache series. Feel free to ask or answer any questions about any of the books or the series as a whole.
Located in the Equitable Building in Manhattan, Minotaur Books publishes bestselling and award-winning crime fiction ranging from thrillers and suspense to traditional mysteries. Minotaur has published Louise Penny since 2007.
3,660 replies on “The Bistro”
Hi. I am new to the site (just found it today). Never order audio books but you folks have convinced me to maybe give it a try.
Hello Bistro friends! I’m new to this conversation but not new to Three Pines. I just finished Kingdom of the Blind….breathtaking! I wanted to ask here if anyone would please remind me of Armand’s ‘4 truths or confidences?’….I don’t know, I need help, I’m sorry, and…..? I’m stumped. And oh how Matthew 10:36 rings so true, sadly too many times. Where did Louise get these two unique mantras? Thanks for help and so nice to meet you all.
the third one is I was wrong
In some of the books, Chief Inspector Gamache tells new agents the four sayings that can lead to wisdom – four sentences his own mentor taught him. What are they?
I was wrong
I’m sorry
I don’t know
I need help
I copied that piece from a page. I too would love to know how or why these statements and 10:36 are so important to Gamache, and therefore Louise.
Easy to lose my way between the books. Amazing how a new book brings me back to a stable path to follow. Those mantra’s ring too true.
I am listening to Kingdom of the Blind and must have missed the reason Gamache has difficulty understand Billy Williams. Others seem ot understand him. Thank you for any insight.
I wondered about that as well, particularly since Billy obviously understands him quite well. I thought maybe if Billy lived in the country, his accent was different enough for a non-native speaker to have difficulty. I am relatively fluent in French but can have enormous difficulties understand some accents…..including Quebecois! Especially if the speaker does not live in a city…….
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Um Paul…any chance you can see what has invaded this site?
Working on it now, Anna!
Thank you!
Congratulations to everyone is going to see Louise. It really is worth it if you can.
I have tickets to see the Louise Penny speak in Tampa November 27. Very excited. I think the allure of Three Pines is particularly strong for me because it is so different from Florida. When I grow up, I want to be Clara!
Waiting not so patiently for the release of Kingdom of the Blind. I have however my ticket for December 1 for the book signing in St. Louis! My friend and went last time for Glass Houses and we had such a great time. Especially when Louise was asked what character she thought she favored as herself…I had to give my opinion and say Ruth! We all need a Ruth and a croissant from the bistro!
Hi Sharon. Louise has said that the poetry of Ruth is from Margaret Atwood. I think she also uses some Robert Frost in her books but have at look at Atwood, in particular Morning in the Burned House. I saw that somewhere.
As for her inspiration for Ruth, that I do not know. She certainly is a favourite character for so many of us, perhaps because she is tough and independent yet achingly fragile at the same time.
Great question though…does anyone remember Louise answering it?
Please tell me who is the inspiration, or the actaul person, for Ruth Bardo?From what source does the catual poetry come ?
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts.
Yes and yes Vicki. I love Canada and wish we had a Bistro in real life but we do love the virtual Bistro. Pull up a chair by the fire (it tends to be winter a lot in this Bistro), sup the beverage of your choice and feel you are among friends. Louise has created a real world which we enjoy and we are grateful.
Well done to that B&N employee by the way…let’s raise our mugs to them!
While in B & N, an employee suggested Still Life. I am reading book five after only a couple months…the work Penny Louise does is like an old friend.
Pouring rain, dark and cold in DC. Perfect a bistro weather. I need a croissant and a mocha please Gabri….
Don’t you wish? Im considering Canada….
The Townships are every bit as beautiful as Louise paints them in words. We loved visiting there a few weeks ago and hope to return if time permits.
Such an interesting comment Julie…about Louise sounding Canadian in her write. The voice of the author is so important. Especially so when her love of place and sense of home is such a vital component of what makes the Three Pines books special.
How fun to drop back in here and see a few comments and people waiting patiently for The Kingdom of the Blind… When I first read Still Life I was struck by how Canadian Louise’s voice is in the books. As a Canadian girl born and bred and transplanted to my now forever home in Seattle, it was the sound of home to me…
For those of you new to the Bistro – there’s a funny thing that happens when you start reading – it keeps trying to “reset” to the first page – we are on page 139 now – been talking since 2014, though sometimes with long gaps in between. It’s so fun to come to a little community that loves Gamache and re-reads every so often and loves to talk about it all…
I think we are all eagerly awaiting Kingdom of the Blind. Haven’t been here in a while but I did get to Knowlton and there are indeed liquorice pipes for sale. Danny and Lucy have a beautiful bookstore and a dedicated Three Pines corner where you can find the merchandise. They also have a “few” non Three Pines books and items which I can also highly recommend.
The postcards are lovely Paul. Thank you. If you are around in NY on Sept 20th I have a hug I owe you.
Sorry I missed this, Anna. Been have trouble seeing these until now.
No problem Paul. I might be back in December. Last chance before I return to Australia. I did walk past the Flatiron building and wave to you.
Are you going to be in Knowlton for the launch? We were lucky enough to get tickets!
As a born and bred Montrealer, I have loved the familiarity of the settings and the bilingual flavour Louise has tapped so effectively. Over my life I have spent a lot of time in the Townships, including Brome Lake and Knowlton, and it is a special pleasure to be able to place the action in that lovely part of the country. Early in the summer I bound up the entire series and passed them along to my step-daughter who lives near Montreal and who I hope will find them as addictive as I have. I’m eagerly awaiting ‘Kingdom of the Blind’.
Bonjour.
Three Pines reminds me of Brigadoon. My parents lived in Sutton.PQ for 30 years after retirement. There are many many hidden roads, off the beaten track. It was always fun to explore those byways.
I know the area quite well travelling there many many times to visit my folks during those years.
Now each is buried in the cemetery on the hill in Sutton.
I can hardly wait for the next Gamache book. Gamache reminds me of my stepfather and my father-in-law.now on the ‘other side’ many years.
What intrigued me in Louise Penny’s very first book, “Still Life”, was the historical setting of Three Pines. My Revolutionary Tory kin took to the sea at the end of the war and ended up in Nova Scotia, so I could imagine others who went by land up through the woods of New England. When they saw the Three Pines, they knew they were in safe territory. I would so love to be able to follow their trail! But I’ve been following Inspector Gamache’s trail ever since.
Just finished glass houses. So comforted getting back to 3 pines. Thrown off by a couple of things. What was the criminal importance in the trial of the bat being removed and returned to the root cellar? I realize its importance in helping reveal the existence of another door which could be used for transporting drugs and its connection to prohibition history.
The significance was that the bat was not there when Reine-Marie found the body, so there was no murder weapon at the scene. It later reappeared, tipping the Surete off that someone had returned the bat using a secret door, but Gamache didn’t want the drug cartel to know they had found out about the secret door because the cartel thought he was unaware that they were using the chapel and the secret door to transport drugs through Three Pines. To keep the cartel from finding out that the Surete was onto them, he lied on the witness stand (committed perjury) and said that the bat was there when the body was found. I believe the bat belonged to Anton, but had Jaqueline’s DNA on it too because she used it to kill Katie in hopes of framing him.