The Long Way Home

It was time for me to revisit Gamache and the people of Three Pines.  I had halted in part because the storyline had become so difficult to process emotionally (a sign of good writing, I suppose), and in part when I learned that the narrator Ralph Cosham had passed.

But it was time to move on, and time to listen to the last of the Gamache books that Cosham did narrate, The Long Way Home (Chief Inspector Gamache, Bk 10).

This story is all about where Clara's husband Peter has gone to, and along the way, how everyone is living within their new positions and life roles after great turmoil, upheaval, and change of the past several books - Gamache, Beauvoir, and the several of the residents of Three Pines have adjustments to work through.  Which brings us back to Peter.  Clara and Peter had a trial separation of 1 year, and Peter was supposed to return to figure out where they go for now.  But he hasn't, and something must be wrong - but what?

There is a lot of symbolism in this story - in the title, the book cover, and the "clues" Peter has left behind.  

I do really enjoy this series.  During this particular book, I laughed throughout and cried once (I cannot say more without spoilers).  I will miss Ralph Cosham, but he did a beautiful job with this last book (and all those proceeding it). 

Going forward, I will be quicker to listen to The Nature of the Beast (Chief Inspector Gamache, Bk 11) and the other books in the series.  I hope narrator Robert Bathurst is a good fit (Louise Penny says he is), and I look forward to my next visit with Gamache and the residents of Three Pines.