On Glass Houses, and Why You Should Read Everything by Louise Penny

Note: Top Shelf Text received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

(SPOILER-FREE) 

Readers, do I really need to say anything about Glass Houses? I think we all know how I feel by now.

For my readers that are new to the Inspector Gamache mysteries, let me tell you why I love this series. Louise Penny doesn't just write mysteries, she writes about life. She writes about honor, and bravery, and friends that are really family.

Three Pines, and the people that live in that tiny village, are like family to me. When I open a Louise Penny novel, it feels like coming home. So while this is a mystery series, and I do think Penny has a masterful ability to plot a mystery, I don't actually read them for the thrill of the investigation. I read them because I love these characters enough that they feel like real people to me.

And Gamache himself? When I think about the type of person that I want to be, and the type of legacy that I want to leave in my lifetime, I think of him. 

If that's not enough to convince you to pick up the first in the series, let me give you a quick overview:

In the first mystery, Still Life, Chief Inspector Gamache is the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec. Rather than the brash leading detective that we may be used to from this genre, he's more of the bold but gentle type. That is, he lives by his code, and his goal is always to provide justice for the victims of the crimes he investigates. He leads a team of misfits from the ranks of the Sûreté, including Inspector Beauvoir, a rather outspoken man and Gamache's protege, and Inspector Lacoste, a clever and empathetic addition to their team.

Gamache lives with his wife Reine-Marie, whom he adores, and has two grown children. He's well into his career as Chief Inspector and sometimes clashes with those who lead the Sûreté, but he always manages to solve even the most difficult cases. It's in this first novel that Gamache discovers Three Pines, a tiny, unmapped village in the forest, and the scene of his latest investigation.

Throughout the thirteen books in this series, Gamache returns to Three Pines and becomes not just an investigator, but an integral part of the eccentric circle of friends there. And along the way, we witness his incredible ability to read people and to understand their motivations. More importantly, we see how long it takes for a murder to come to fruition, and how Gamache uses his powers of empathy and astute observation to pinpoint the exact spot where hatred (or rage, or jealousy) becomes a crime.

Penny's writing isn't prose -- it's poetry (sometimes literally) and her ability to convey feeling, atmosphere, and the scent of a meal at the B&B is incredible and so worth the time it takes to invest in these stories.

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On Glass Houses

I know I've done this to you recently with my review of Castle of Water, but I'm not actually going to give you any details here. That's because so many of you are at different points in your Gamache journey, and so many of you are discovering your own reasons for loving this series. I know I recommend a lot of titles to you here, but I'm asking you to trust me again. This series has earned its spot on my lifetime favorites' shelf. And this latest installment brings us to a particularly gut-wrenching and pivotal part in these characters' lives. Not to mention, the villain in Glass Houses is not what you'd expect, but it's entirely relevant and the timing of this book is therefore incredibly poignant. (And if you're still wondering, I gave this book a 5/5.)

This title will be released on August, 29, 2017. You can pre-order your own copy here on Amazon, or through your local independent bookseller.

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I hope you love this series, friends. If you've read any one of the books, tell us about your reading experience below!

Top Ten of Twenty Sixteen

Welcome Twenty Seventeen!

This year, I read 55 books. That's actually quite a bit less than I read last year, so I'm taking some time to reflect on what worked (and what didn't) as I plan my reading resolutions for 2017. You can read more about those on the blog next week!

As always, these are some of my most highly-rated books, and come to you in no particular order. 

I'd love to hear some of your top picks from 2016 in the comments if you'd like to share!

The Year of Living Danishly by Helen Russell

You know a book is good when you cannot stop talking about it. I've raved about The Year of Living Danishly to anyone willing to listen, and even talked a few of my coworkers into reading it too. Now we all gush about the Danish way of life. I am the type of person who thinks a lot about quality of life and how to improve my own, and this book actually gave me a few great ideas for finding that balance between work and personal life (spoiler: teachers rarely find that balance). Not to mention, I'd jump at the chance to relocate to Denmark, where quality of life is the driving focus for the entire population. You can read more of my thoughts here.

The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny

If you like mysteries and have not yet started Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache novels, then all I have to say to you is "What are you waiting for?!?"

The Beautiful Mystery is the eighth in the series and I think it's the best of them all, though I want to be clear in saying that this is the best mystery series I have ever (ever) read, so all of the books are great in their own right. I started this series over the summer and have been raving about it since. Even if you aren't a mystery lover, I would still recommend it to you. Worth a try, I promise.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

I didn't read many classics this year (oops), but this 1938 gothic novel was one of the best books I read and continue to think about. I'm sure there are other reviewers who could put it into words better than I can, but it's haunting and mysterious and the character of Mrs. Danvers is unforgettable.

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

I have yet to speak with a reader who read Outlander and didn't love it. The only intimidation of it is the size of each book in the series. I flew through this first one in just a few days over the summer (when reading for five hours at the beach was possible) and went immediately to the bookstore to pick up the next two. These are books that you want to be fully immersed in, and I find the mix between historical fiction and fantasy to be perfectly captivating.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

I read this in two days with no interruptions, thanks to a seaside vacation. It was beautifully written. Definitely a reading experience that I highly recommend, if you're interested in more serious historical fiction or stories from WWII.

The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley

This is a new-to-me series that I fell in love with this year. The vibrant cover is what first caught my eye at the library, but the story inside was just as mesmerizing. I'm looking forward to reading the second in the series in 2017.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

How interesting is it that I have been a reader for twenty years and had not yet read Anne of Green Gables until this year? Looking back on it, I'm sad for all of those years I spent without the influence of Anne Shirley. I love this book so much that I read it twice just this year (once in paperback, once through audible -- I highly recommend the Rachel McAdams narration) and loved it equally both times. Tears were shed, giggles escaped, and I can't help but dream of my own little Green Gables.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

Though I read this in childhood, I rediscovered it this year in an effort to read more children's classics. This is another one that I both read and listened to through audible. I love the level of writing in it -- sophisticated, and with the best closing line in all of literature (well, maybe except for Ulysses) -- and my students loved Templeton's character ("He's so rude!"). We celebrated finishing the book by watching the 1973 animated film and I loved how closely the film stuck to the dialogue of the book. 

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

I don't read a lot of young adult literature (something I'm attempting to branch out in next year), but this was a really fascinating read that mixed mystery and sci-fi with a classic villain character. Highly recommended for those who enjoy Marvel-esque stories. I'm looking forward to reading more of Schwab's work in 2017.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo

I'm doing something unprecedented here -- I'm adding a book to my top ten for the second year in a row. The Tale of Despereaux easily holds a spot in my top three books of all time, and I swear it doesn't feel like a children's book when I'm reading it. The theme of dark and light, or chiaroscuro, has stayed with me and has had a profound impact on the way that I both interpret characters by other authors and try to write my own. If you haven't read this yet, put it at the top of your list for 2017. 

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What made it to the top of your list in 2016?

You can find my top ten lists from past years here:

Twenty Thirteen

Twenty Fourteen

Twenty Fifteen

Currently Coveting {December}

Oh my goodness. I'm ashamed to say that it has been months since I posted a Currently Coveting list.

Not that I haven't been coveting -- and buying -- books in that time.

My most recent purchases have been this and this for my December book club reads, and I am so excited for our book club discussion at the end of this month.

Eight Flavors: The Untold Story of American Cuisine by Sarah Lohman

I've recently started cooking almost all the meals in my family (I just headed up my very first Thanksgiving this year) and I've become really interested in how to use spices to flavor healthy, fresh food. Since I started eating mostly clean a few years ago, I have found spices to be my biggest resource in the kitchen. This exploration of the eight flavors that unite American cooking seems like a great way to learn more about the cultural history of the country, in addition to being a resource for great recipes.

The Glass Universe by Dava Sobel

I'm craving a good story about fascinating, intelligent women and this seems to be just the right fit. It just came out yesterday and tells the story of the women who worked as "human computers" for the Harvard Observatory. Those women went on to make significant contributions to astronomy. 

The Long Way Home by Louise Penny

Are you tired of hearing me talk about Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series? I have been working my way through them since the summer. Shown above is the tenth in the series, which is on my to-read list for this weekend. I have been lucky so far in that my library was fully stocked with every volume in the series except this one, so when I went to snatch it from the shelf I was so disappointed to find that I would have to wait for a hold copy to come in. I'm telling you, this is one of the best series that I have ever (ever) read.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

This has been recommended to me several times (most recently by my grandmother), and I've heard that it is lovely as an audiobook. It's in the same category as The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. I'm looking forward to picking it up soon.

Penny Dreadful by Laurel Snyder

Sadly, I haven't been reading much middle grade lately. Sometimes (okay, often) being in school all day makes me want to read only adult fiction when I get home. I'm hoping to reignite my love for children's lit this month. Penny Dreadful looks like a great place to start.