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Inspector Gamache Novel, #1
by Louise Penny
Winner of the New Blood Dagger, Arthur Ellis, Barry, Anthony, and Dilys awards.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Surêté du Québec and his team of investigators are called in to the scene of a suspicious death in a rural village south of Montreal. Jane Neal, a local fixture in the tiny hamlet of Three Pines, just north of the U.S. border, has been found dead in the woods. The locals are certain it’s a tragic hunting accident and nothing more, but Gamache smells something foul in these remote woods, and is soon certain that Jane Neal died at the hands of someone much more sinister than a careless bowhunter.
Still Life introduces not only an engaging series hero in Inspector Gamache, who commands his forces--and this series--with integrity and quiet courage, but also a winning and talented new writer of traditional mysteries in the person of Louise Penny.
First published in hardcover in 2005
Book Club Reading List 2026
...a Peters - NOVEMBER 2025 6. THE GIRLS WE SENT AWAY by Meagan Church - DECEMBER 2025 7. THE SECRET SOCIETY OF SALZBURG by Renee Ryan - JANUARY 2026 8. STILL LIFE by Louise Penny - FEBRUARY 2026 9. THE BRIAR CLUB by Kate Quinn - MARCH 2026 10. THE LOST ENGLISH GIRL by Julia Kelly - APRIL 2026 11. THE HANDLER by L. T. Ryan and...
-Elizabeth
"Starred Review. Filled with unexpected insights, this winning traditional mystery sets a solid foundation for future entries in the series." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. This belongs in the same league with such other outstanding Canadian mysteries as Eric Wright's Charlie Salter series." - Booklist
"Starred Review. Cerebral, wise and compassionate, Gamache is destined for stardom. Don’t miss this stellar debut." - Kirkus
"It’s hard to decide what provides the most pleasure in this enjoyable book: Gamache, a shrewd and kindly man constantly surprised by homicide; the village, which sounds at first like an ideal place to escape from civilization; or the clever and carefully constructed plot." - Chicago Tribune
This information about Still Life was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Jean-Francois Bérubé
Louise Penny is the multi-award winning author of the Chief Inspector Gamache novels, set in her home province of Québec, Canada. Her books, including State of Terror written with Hillary Rodham Clinton, have sold more than 18 million copies worldwide, topped international bestseller lists, including the New York Times, and been translated into 32 languages. The recipient of both the Order of Canada and l'Ordre national du Québec, her country's highest civilian honours, her Three Pines Foundation reaches out to those in crisis and offers financial and emotional support, with a special focus on literacy as well as dementia care. Her husband, Michael, died of dementia in 2016. She lives with her Golden Retrievers Muggins and Charlie in a village south of Montréal.
If you liked Still Life, try these:
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A wildly charming and fast-paced mystery written with all the panache of the hardboiled classics, Fortune Favors the Dead introduces Pentecost and Parker, an audacious new detective duo for the ages.
by Louise Penny
Published 2021
The 16th novel by #1 bestselling author Louise Penny finds Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Quebec investigating a sinister plot in the City of Light.
by Louise Penny
Published 2017
Winner of the 2016 BookBrowse Fiction Award
Bestselling author Louise Penny pulls back the layers to reveal a brilliant and emotionally powerful truth in her latest spellbinding novel.
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