The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny

There were so many things I enjoyed about The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny, and a few tiny things that I didn’t.   

A Gregorian monk is murdered at Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, a 200-year-old abbey in Quebec. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Inspector Jean-Guy Beauvoir, of the Surete du Quebec (police), the only non-monks ever allowed into Saint-Gilbert, arrive to find a stunningly beautiful monastery, and the choirmaster with his head bashed in.

Turns out the 24 monks that make up the abbey are there because they were “recruited,” not based upon piety, but rather their singing voices. Chanting is at the core of the monastery, the mystery and the murder. The why’s, how’s, history and politics of chanting – which is "The Beautiful Mystery," is also the conflict that incited murder among the otherwise holier-than-thous (no sarcasm intended).  

I listened to the audio book and I’m glad that I did as it included snippets of beautiful chants  throughout, and the narrator, Ralph Cosham, was wonderful. He is the first narrator that’s made me want to listen to another book, simply because he reads it. At the end of my review I’ll provide an audio sample of  Ralph Cosham’s reading of The Beautiful Mystery, and a sample chant, so you can appreciate Penny’s commendable writing, Cosham's narrative skills, and learn a little history about chants – all things that I loved about this book.

I didn’t like that I sometimes felt a little lost. The Beautiful Mystery is one in Louise Penny’s series of books that include Chief Inspector Gamache and Inspector Beauvoir. They have history, and that history is somewhat important in understanding the dynamics of the story. A bit of that history was revealed, but I felt like an outsider. I suspect that Penny has a strong following as the tension between the characters was apparent and engaging, and would no doubt be even more so if one fully understood what got them there.

I also found a couple of the plot lines and characters unbelievable. For example, Beauvoir is introduced as a loving, smart and loyal persona, and yet he becomes something else so radically, and in my opinion, too quickly to be believable. Also, it was implied that the Catholic Church didn’t know that this monastery existed – but the monks at Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups had recorded a CD of chants, which went viral, bringing the world, literally and figuratively to their doors. It was only when the choirmaster was murdered that an emissary from Rome arrived.

And When She Was Good by Laura Lippman

And When She Was Good was so bad that I am disinclined to spend much time on a review. But if I can save some other idiot unsuspecting victim from launching into a time warp of mediocrity, I guess it is worth the effort.

Heloise is the main character of the book. Actually putting the word “character” and Heloise in such close proximity feels wrong, so lets just call her the main “person.”  Heloise, the main person in the book, was raised in a dysfunctional family with a wimp mother and an abusive father. She runs away, straight into the arms of several abusive lovers. Then becomes a prostitute under the rule of an abusive pimp. But of course she’s smarter, prettier and better in bed than everyone else, and of course she has a heart of gold, loves her son, and wants to get out of “the business.” Right. No clichés in there!

The reader could conjure up some sympathy for Heloise if she was even remotely likeable, which would make the story more compelling, but the chasms between poor Heloise and smart Heloise and stupid Heloise were just too wide, and the plot is so full of fluff I felt like I was in a pillow fight.

I’ve only read one other book by Lippman, What The Dead Know, but I remember that one being much better. Come on Laura (pictured), even your die-hard fans had a hard time liking this one.

And When She Was Good is nothing close to good. It is in fact very, very bad.