I liked the first one a bit more. I was fairly sure who the murderer was fairly early on. I also found the allusions regarding a character's character based on their physical appearance off-putting. ( )

I read "Still Life", the first of the Gamache novels, last year and enjoyed it very much. "A Fatal Grace" is even better! I loved this novel from the first to the last page!
The plot is quite interesting, although it is nothing completely new: A woman who only moved to the village of Three Pines a year ago is murdered during the Christmas curling match. She was not liked particularly well, so there seem to be many suspects. Gamache travels to Three Pines to investigate and of course he meets many people he knows from the last case, as well as a few he hasn't met before. The murder was quite gruesome because it was done by electricity - but how could that happen in such a public place?

While the case kept getting more exciting throughout the course of the novel, what appealed to me most was the community of Three Pines, the different characters, their background stories. Every single detail just felt right to me and when I had finished the novel, I did not want to leave. There is a magic about it, about Penny's style and the people she creates. I am already looking forward to reading the third book of this series. ( )

3.5 stars ( )

I so enjoy Penny's sense of humor and her characters are top notch. She shows such love and compassion for humanity without shying away from the cruelty that people too often inflict on one another and on ourselves. I thought this plot was very unique. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series to see how Penny develops the main characters. You'll learn a bit about the sport of curling in the book. ( )

Almost as soon as I started reading this book, I remembered how much I enjoyed the first book of the series. The action all takes place in a tiny town in Canada that isn't even on the map, although it should be. It seems like a lovely place to live - well, except for the freezing weather, perhaps.

The people in the story are so interesting and varied, mostly very likable although some are very dislikable. And at least one we're just never sure about. But one thing was for sure - the murder victim in this story was disliked by most everyone, from her immediate family to her lover. So almost everyone in the town might have a motive, although not all had the opportunity. So, the police have their work cut out for them.

( )