A review by k8tiger
The Long Way Home by Louise Penny

2.0

I'm a major fan of Penny and the Gamache series but this one was a disappointment. I know it happens to all authors of series but I think I secretly hoped Louise Penny would be different. It should have ended with the last book as Penny seemed to use up all her magic with Gamache. I just don't think she knew how this one was going to come together. The plot sagged towards the middle and there's a lot of "Let's look at the art again for more clues!". Instead of focusing on the interior journey each character takes as they get closer to finding Peter, Penny gets distracted with her academic rivals/Tenth Muse plotline that ends in murder. Too much time rehashing art clues and and not enough time was spent with each character made the ending surprisingly anti-climactic. There's no emotional impact and it just seemed a little too bizarre.
There are still some great moments and good writing but I don't think Penny can live up to the Gamache hype anymore. I think I might just mentally erase this book from my literary landscape and pretend there are only 9 books in the series!