Love that cover and always love spending time with these characters and being back in Three Pines. I also like the story here, but I did think the execution of the plot was a little weaker in this one. The scenes where Gamache and company are hashing out theories and deciding which ones to pursue are usually some of my favorite parts (along with any scenes that highlight our quirky village friends), but there seemed to be quite a bit more circular, repetitive theorizing and less clever conclusions and careful investigations that lead to revelations. Still a fast, pleasurable read with great depth of character and plenty of Big Ideas, food for thought, and literary catnip.