BOOKISH FRIDAY: “THE CRUELEST MONTH”

Welcome to another Bookish Friday, in which I  share excerpts from books…and connect with other bloggers, who do the same.

Let’s begin the celebration by sharing Book Beginnings, hosted by Rose City Reader; and let’s showcase The Friday 56 with Freda’s Voice.

To join in, just grab a book and share the opening lines…along with any thoughts you wish to give us; then turn to page 56 and excerpt anything on the page.

Then give us the title of the book, so others can add it to their lists!

What a great way to spend a Friday!

Today’s feature is a recent download, The Cruelest Month, Book 3 in the C. I. Gamache series, by Louise Penny:  “The book’s title is a metaphor not only for the month of April but also for Gamache’s personal and professional challenges—making this the series standout so far.” 

 

Book Beginnings:  Kneeling in the fragrant moist grass of the village green Clara Morrow carefully hid the Easter egg and thought about raising the dead, which she planned to do right after supper.  Wiping a strand of hair from her face, she smeared bits of grass, mud and some other brown stuff that might not be mud into her tangled hair.  All around, villagers wandered with their baskets of brightly colored eggs, looking for the perfect hiding places.

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56:  But if there was ever a case for evil, in Beauvoir’s experience, it was the old Hadley house.  He shifted his toned body in the driver’s seat, suddenly uncomfortable, and looked over at the boss.  Gamache was watching him thoughtfully.

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Synopsis:  Welcome to Three Pines, where the cruelest month is about to deliver on its threat.

It’s spring in the tiny, forgotten village; buds are on the trees and the first flowers are struggling through the newly thawed earth. But not everything is meant to return to life. . .

When some villagers decide to celebrate Easter with a séance at the Old Hadley House, they are hoping to rid the town of its evil—until one of their party dies of fright. Was this a natural death, or was the victim somehow helped along?

Brilliant, compassionate Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec is called to investigate, in a case that will force him to face his own ghosts as well as those of a seemingly idyllic town where relationships are far more dangerous than they seem.

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What do you think?  Do you want to keep reading?  Have you read any books in this series?

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