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delaneyyyw 's review for:
The Long Way Home
by Louise Penny
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I was reading the Gamache series in order, but this book stopped me in my tracks. The Peter and Clara storylines in the previous books had bored me to tears, so I didn't want to read yet another book focusing on their relationship. Took me two years, but I finally picked it up so I could continue with the rest of the series.
It started slow, but once the crew of Gamache, Beauvoir, Clara, and Myrna started on their trek up north, I was glued to the pages. I loved seeing different characters flex their investigative muscle (Reine-Marie and Ruth visiting the professor was a highlight), and Gamache ceding control to Clara was a great change of pace. Penny does character so well. And I'm including Quebec as a character...she knows how to bring a place to life like no other. A lot of people love her works for the Three Pines of it all, but I think she shines most when she takes her characters out of their comfort zone and gets to enmesh them in a completely new setting.
I was struck by the theme of artists and their muses (and nurturing talent vs letting it wither) on a personal level--particularly Ruth's assertion that the "lump in the throat" which drives the true artist comes from the meeting of the head, where fear dwells, and the heart, home of courage. Her assessment of Peter's artistic struggles truly fascinated me. And I don't think I would have connected with this book quite so much had that throughline not resonated.
It started slow, but once the crew of Gamache, Beauvoir, Clara, and Myrna started on their trek up north, I was glued to the pages. I loved seeing different characters flex their investigative muscle (Reine-Marie and Ruth visiting the professor was a highlight), and Gamache ceding control to Clara was a great change of pace. Penny does character so well. And I'm including Quebec as a character...she knows how to bring a place to life like no other. A lot of people love her works for the Three Pines of it all, but I think she shines most when she takes her characters out of their comfort zone and gets to enmesh them in a completely new setting.
I was struck by the theme of artists and their muses (and nurturing talent vs letting it wither) on a personal level--particularly Ruth's assertion that the "lump in the throat" which drives the true artist comes from the meeting of the head, where fear dwells, and the heart, home of courage. Her assessment of Peter's artistic struggles truly fascinated me. And I don't think I would have connected with this book quite so much had that throughline not resonated.