How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny

First Sentence:  Pandora was still pretty.
   
A suspected suicide is found at the base of the Champlain Bridge.  Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is still dealing with the forces at the highest level of the Sûreté du Québec set on destroying his career.  He is without his college and friend Jean-Guy Beauvoir, yet determined to learn what is the motive.  A trip to Three Pines is prompted when Gamache receives a call of Myrna, owner of the used bookstore.  An acquaintance of hers had visited and was due back for Christmas but hadn’t returned or been heard from.   These three seemingly disparate threads come to be one of Gamache’s most dangerous cases of his life.
   
It is not easy to describe the images that go through the mind of a phobic, yet Ms. Penny does and does it brilliantly.  That is just the beginning of another book by this incomparable author.  There are some who mistakenly classify Ms. Penny’s books as “cozies.”  They are not.  They are multi-layered character studies.  Even though set in the seemingly idyllic town of Three Pines, her stories reinforce the fact that darkness can intrude anywhere. 
   
Penny’s characters are wonderful.  They are not perfect people but ones which are very human, with strengths, weaknesses, faults, and enormous depths.  Ruth is a literary treasure.  Gamache is a man of integrity and principle; someone to be admired and exemplified yet with blind spots of his own.   The town of Three Pines is a character onto itself.  It may be imaginary, yet the town and its residents, are brought to life. 
   
Her descriptions are evocative…”But this was the snow of her childhood.  Joyful, playful, bright and clean.  The more the merrier.  It was a toy.”  At the same time, there is a sense of plaintiveness here as well…”Why do decent young men and women become bullies?  Why do soldiers dream of being heroes but end up abusing prisoners and shooting civilians?...Because everyone else does…Corruption and brutality is modeled and expected and rewarded.”  That’s only one example of Ms. Penny’s voice and superb dialogue.  She is one of those rare authors whose writing often compels you to read it aloud to others, both because of its excellence and its message. Why do I quote so much of her work?  How could I even begin to express things as perfectly? 
   
The multi-threaded plot has a complexity that gives real depth to the story.  There were a couple instances where I thought I’d caught an inconsistency or wondered whether something could have been done another way, only to realize one should always trust Ms. Penny as her choices are the exact right ones.  There are unexpected, powerful twists, but never done in a way that seems manipulative.  At times, the protagonist is as surprised as the reader.  There is tension, drama and tremendous suspense. 

Ms. Penny, in an interview for the television series, made reference to..."these books are love letters to where I live, to the village I live in, to the people I live with..."  I don't think she realized how much they would also become love letters to those of us who love her books.
   
“How the Light Gets In” is an excellent story of contrasts and the question of good overcoming evil; of light and darkness.   This may be Ms. Penny’s best book yet, although we’re talking in minute comparisons of excellence from her previous books.  However, this is not where a new reader should start the series.  Although each book could stand on its own, the entire series should really be considered as a whole and begun at the first book. 

HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN (Pol Proc-CI Armand Gamache-Canada-Contemp) - Ex
Penny, Louise - 9th in series
Minotaur Books, 2011

Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death: The Grantchester Mysteries by James Runcie

First Sentence:  Canon Sidney Chambers had never intended to become a detective.

      

Vicar of Grantchester, Sidney Chambers, is a bachelor and battle-scared veteran of WWII.  With his backgammon-and-pint friend, Insp. Geordie Keating, and others, Sidney becomes involved in much more than baptisms and weddings; sometimes mystery is on the agenda.

      

What a wonderful collection of six short stories this is.  Although they are “cozy”, as in no profanity, sex, or overt violence, some of the themes are quite serious. 

      

Because of Sidney’s past in the war, the topic of PTSD, even though not recognized as such then, is addressed, as is racism and prejudice of several kinds.  There is certainly the theme of faith, but rather than blind faith, it is questioning and uncertain.  Sidney questions his vocation, and certainly questions his participation in some of the mysteries with which he becomes involved. 

      

Beside Sidney and Geordie, Ruskin has created very real supporting characters in Mrs. Maguire, the housekeeper, Curate, Leonard Graham, Sidney’s friend, Amanda Kendall, and the dog, “What the Dickens.”  They add dimension, and occasionally conflict, to the stories.

      

There is a delightful thread that runs through the stories of everyone assuming—“I had you down as a sherry man.”  “Most people do…but I’d prefer whisky if that’s possible.”

      

Ruskin‘s wonderful use of language makes this such a treat to read—“I’m not stupid, Canon Chambers.  I know how to keep secrets.  Have you heard of Tupperware?...Nothing gets in; nothing comes out.”  His descriptions are evocative—“Autumn was his favorite time of year, not simply for its changing colours but for the crispness in the air and the sharpness of the light.  And, there are nicely done analogies—“The snow had muffled the once audible cries of the world.  It was like grace, he decided, or the love of God, coming down silently and unexpectedly in the night.”

      

“Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death:  The Grantchester Mysteries” is a collection of mysteries, but it’s also a study of humanity and faith, rather than religion, in general, as well as the question of at what cost comes pride.

SIDNEY CHAMBERS AND THE SHADOW OF DEATH (Trad Mys/Pol Proc-Sidney Chambers/Insp. Geordie Keating-Grantchester, Eng-1953) – G+

      Runcie, James – 1^st book of short stories

      Bloomsbury, USA – Apr 2012

Heavy on the Dead by G.M. Ford

First Sentence:  The door burst open and banged against the wall.

      

Private Investigator Leo Waterman destroyed the plans, men, and millions of dollars in materials and equipment of a white supremacist group.  Badly injured, Leo and his androgynous friend and protector Gabe, have taken refuge to recover in Ocean Beach, California, trying to keep a very low profile.  Finding a body on the beach, and being bitten by a homeless man, propels Leo into an investigation which takes the pair into Mexico and the world of sex trafficking, caught between two groups out to kill them.

      

Ford does create unique characters. From those one has met before, such as Gabe and other Seattle characters; to Chub and Lamar—one hopes never to meet them.  Who else would think up a guy with an afro and a barcode tattooed on his forehead?  But then there's SDPD officer, Sergeant Carolyn Saunders.  She is someone of whom one would love to see more in the future.  

      

Ford's perceptiveness—"Borders are lines in the sand.  Bloody lines. Lines that people fought and died for."—is equally effective in dark and light situations—"You know how people like to pretend they're more familiar with places than they really are … That was us. …neither of us wanted to admit we didn't quite remember the way…so we'd …wandered …for half an hour before realizing our mistake and sheepishly asking a truck driver for directions." He takes one places one would like to think don't exist; places one doesn't want to see where life is as one hopes never to experience.  But it is his humor which creates balance—"Take the 5 to the 8 … then over the bridge into Mission Bay." "Ooooh … don't we sound like Californians now," I joked."

      

The plot has a slowly-building flame with a very good intersection between the two threads of the plot.  What's nice is that it's not all action.  Ford also makes one stop and think along the way.  Still, he does take the story from crescendo to crescendo.  When things get serious, they get very serious and uncomfortably relevant to today's issues, which are important and handled extremely well.

      
"Heavy on the Dead" is one cracking good, fast-paced, suspenseful story.  It is exciting, but it's way more than an airplane book due to its focus.  One thing is for certain: one never gets bored reading Ford.

HEAVY ON THE DEAD (PI-Leo Waterman-California/Mexico-Contemp) - Ex

      Ford, G.M. – 12^th in series
      Thomas & Mercer – July 2019