Louise Penny

Christmas is approaching, and in Quebec it's a time of dazzling snowfalls, bright lights, and gatherings with friends in front of blazing hearths. But shadows are falling on the usually festive season for Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. Most of his best agents have left the Homicide Department, his old friend and lieutenant Jean-Guy Beauvoir hasn't spoken to him in months, and hostile forces are lining up against him.

State of Terror follows Ellen Adams, a novice Secretary of State, who has joined the administration of her rival, a president inaugurated after four years of American leadership that shrank from the world stage. A series of terrorist attacks throws the global order into disarray and the secretary is tasked with assembling a team to unravel the deadly conspiracy, a scheme carefully designed to take advantage of an American government dangerously out...

The village of Three Pines, a refuge from the modern world in the beautiful Eastern Townships, basks in the tranquil glory of its autumn colours. But the blazing woods conceal the body of a much-loved teacher - shot through the heart with an arrow. A tragic hunting accident or murder? Charismatic Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team of officers probe to discover deep layers of deceit, resentment, and murderous rage in the pretty village.