Now, with The Black Wolf, the 20th instalment, set to be released on 28th October 2025, there\u2019s never been a better time to dive into (or revisit) the world of Armand Gamache.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s how to read the Chief Inspector Gamache books in order \u2013 note that Penny also co-wrote State of Terror (2021) with Hillary Clinton, which is not part of her popular series, but a great read nonetheless. <\/p>\n
Who is Armand Gamache?<\/p>\n
Over the course of two decades of books, readers have come to know Chief Inspector Armand Gamache as one of crime fiction\u2019s most beloved detectives. Not like your usual hard-boiled investigator, Gamache is gentle, intellectual and deeply principled, often quoting poetry or reflecting on the human condition.<\/p>\n
He believes in empathy over vengeance, and his leadership style is guided by \u201cfour sayings that lead to wisdom\u201d: \u201cI was wrong. I\u2019m sorry. I don\u2019t know. I need help.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gamache was portrayed by Alfred Molina in the 2022 Amazon Prime adaptation Three Pines<\/a>. Though the series was cancelled after one season, Molina\u2019s performance was widely praised by fans of the books.<\/p>\n Why do people love the Chief Inspector Gamache series so much?<\/p>\n Aka, \u201cHow do I know if I\u2019ll enjoy the Chief Inspector Gamache series?\u201d A fair question, especially as it is quite the commitment to undergo. If you\u2019re a fan of Agatha Christie, Ann Cleeves or Tana French, this series is likely to be your cup of tea \u2013 perhaps literally, as tea features heavily.<\/p>\n Louise Penny\u2019s novels are cosy yet complex, while the quaint village of Three Pines itself is so vivid, it feels like a character in its own right \u2013 which make the murders and buried traumas that take place in it all the more stark. Expect snowstorms, art, poetry, foul-mouthed ducks and a loyal cast of returning characters.<\/p>\n While set in a fictional world, the series tackles very real issues \u2013 political corruption, grief, mental illness, addiction to name a few \u2013 but always with compassion and nuance.<\/p>\n What happens in Still Life by Louise Penny?<\/p>\n The series begins with Still Life, where we’re introduced to both Armand Gamache and Three Pines. When beloved local artist Jane Neal is found dead in the woods, what appears to be a tragic hunting accident soon reveals deeper secrets.<\/p>\n As Gamache investigates, he uncovers the hidden tensions and old wounds lurking beneath the village\u2019s serene surface…<\/p>\n How to read Chief Inspector Gamache in orderStill Life (2005)<\/a>A Fatal Grace (2006) – also published as Dead Cold<\/a>The Cruellest Month (2007)<\/a>A Rule Against Murder (2008) – also published as The Murder Stone<\/a>The Brutal Telling (2009)<\/a>Bury Your Dead (2010)<\/a>The Hangman (2010) – a novella, best read after Bury Your Dead<\/a>A Trick of the Light (2011)<\/a>The Beautiful Mystery (2012)<\/a>How the Light Gets In (2013)<\/a>The Long Way Home (2014)<\/a>The Nature of the Beast (2015)<\/a>A Great Reckoning (2016)<\/a>Glass Houses (2017)<\/a>Kingdom of the Blind (2018)<\/a>A Better Man (2019)<\/a>All the Devils Are Here (2020)<\/a>The Madness of Crowds (2021)<\/a>A World of Curiosities (2022)<\/a>The Grey Wolf (2024)<\/a>The Black Wolf (2025)<\/a>When is The Black Wolf coming out?<\/p>\n The Black Wolf will be released on 28th October 2025, and continues directly on from the events of The Grey Wolf. In this new instalment, Armand Gamache is still recovering from injuries sustained in the previous case, but the danger is far from over.<\/p>\n Confined to Three Pines, Gamache begins a covert investigation into the mysterious figure known only as the Black Wolf, whom he believes may not have been fully captured. As he and his small team uncover corruption in law enforcement, industry and government, the stakes rise. The game of cat and mouse has only just begun\u2026<\/p>\n Read more:<\/p>\n For all the latest RT Book Club news, interviews, Q&As with the authors, reviews of previous books and more, visit The Radio Times Book Club<\/a> sponsored by Dr. Oetker Ristorante<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Now, with The Black Wolf, the 20th instalment, set to be released on 28th October 2025, there\u2019s never…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64851,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[64,63,457,134],"class_list":{"0":"post-64850","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-books","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-books","11":"tag-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64850"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64850\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}