Inspector Gamache and his side kick Jean-Guy Beavoir find themselves in in the remote Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups monastery to investigate the suspected murder of one the monks. There are no roads to the lakeside fortress built hundreds of years ago. In fact the folks in Rome think this ancient order of silent monks were eliminated during the Inquisition. That is until a CD of these isolated monks singing Gregorian Chants becomes number 1 on the charts. The money earned from CD has allowed the monks to make much needed improvements in the ancient monastery but it has created a rift between the monks. Some were anxious to make another CD to continue the improvements in the building. Others believed that the necessary interaction with the outside world would mean an end to their contemplative life. The death of the choir master would definitely mean something very different to each camp.
One of the best thing about this book is the description of the music. The mystical, other worldly quality of the music when sung by these monks is the "beautiful mystery." Even the anti-church Gamache and Beauvoir cannot escape its power.
Because I have not read the Inspector Gamache mysteries in order, I definitely had a feeling of stepping into the middle of a much larger back story that does not end with this book. It is these characters and their complicated lives as well as the poetic love of the world around Quebec that elevates these above the typical mystery.
No comments:
Post a Comment