Armand is attending the graduation ceremony at Ecole Polytechique, where some years before fourteen young women were killed just because they were women. He and Reine Marie are also attending because a girl who was involved in the case where he first met Jean Guy, is also graduating.
This leads to a discovery in the village, which asks more questions that it answers and ultimately leads Armand back to horrors he faced a few years before.
The title refers to the picture of "The Paston Treasure" which was painted in the 17th century and features heavily in this book.
It's an entertaining page turner and I lost sleep because I didn't want to put it down.

Armand Gamache and the residents of Three pines are back and this story makes a roller coaster read.
I must admit the beginning of the book was hard work going back and forth but I persevered and I’m so glad I did.
I won’t describe the story as I don’t want to give away any spoilers.
The writing is both intelligent and intuitive and draws the reader in I was compelled to read to the end I needed to reach the conclusion, and it’s been a while since I read a book that made me feel this way .
Highly recommended!
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

I started this advanced reader copy at the end of September because I had waited for this last book in the series but when after around 30 pages in I realized that if I finish this now I won't have it later.... hmm, so I put it down and a couple of days ago I couldn't wait any longer.

I LOVE Armand Gamache, Three Pines and all the other characters surrounding him. I want to move there.

As usual Louise Penny is an expert at developing rich characters, smart plots and if you haven't started this series yet, start now!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance Copy of A World of Curiosities, the eighteenth novel to feature Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec.

Gamache and his deputy, Jean Guy Beauvoir, are alarmed when a brother and sister from an old case reappear in their lives. They were damaged children at the time and the detectives now wonder how damaged they are as adults. Their unease is compounded by an old letter from a stonemason, detailing his unease at bricking up a hidden room 160 years ago. When the room is found it contains the eponymous world of curiosities, but also, Gamache feels, a warning of trouble ahead.

I thoroughly enjoyed A World of Curiosities, which is an absorbing story of revenge with plenty of twists. The novel starts with switching between the old case of murder and the present day. This is the case where Gamache and Beauvoir met and introduces Fiona and Sam Arsenault, then 13 and 10 respectively. I can’t begin to unpack the nuance of this old case but it packs a punch and several twists and that is only the beginning. It switches between Gamache and Beauvoir as they offer different perspectives and reflections on the same events. It’s fascinating. Then the novel moves to the present in Three Pines, the village where Gamache and his wife live. The opening of the secret room and the discovery of its contents is a harbinger of what is to come, murder and mayhem and I loved every minute of it.

This may be a difficult novel for survivors of various traumas to read, but it is handled sensitively with an emphasis on the victims rather than the perpetrators.

There is a certain fantastical element to the novel, not supernatural but more of the esoteric way the revenge is foreshadowed and in certain very unlikely events. Somehow it seems in keeping with a series often set in a village that doesn’t appear on any map. Still, there is no escaping the brooding sense of impending trouble that hangs over the novel, even though it is not a depressing novel. There is warmth and humour between the residents and a sense of optimism by the end. I was glued to the pages from start to finish.

A World of Curiosities is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

I had already read a previous book by Louise Penny so I had an idea of the characters in the story. This started slowly and I found it a little confusing at first. I persevered and once the complex story really began to unfold I found I could not put the book down. A very adult plot with a satisfying conclusion. I will certainly read another of books in this series.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the advance copy of this book.

I usually love these books but really struggled with this one. I am never a fan of books that skip back and forward over timelines.

You are led into this story at a gradual pace then your heart beats faster and faster as the tone changes. This is also the way Armand feels as he starts his case.
What starts off as normal everyday life soon cranks up to a terrifying out of control thriller. Armand knows all the chess pieces but which ones are involved in murder and revenge.
A sign of a great thriller draws you in and gets your mind working like the main characters to try and solve the mystery yourselves.
This is the 18th book in the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series. living in the village of Three Pines a welcome cast of characters flesh out the bones of this mystery. This is a story that even with its terrible crimes makes you wish to revisit Three Pines at the earliest possible opportunity.
Thank you NetGalley and (publisher Hodder & Stoughton) for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Yet another gem of a novel from Louise Penny. Settle down by the fire, pour a hot chocolate and prepare to be transported to Three Pines. This is a complex and thrilling read as we look into the past whilst living through the present. We get more insight into the history between Armand and Jean Guy and what cemented their strong bond. The goodness of Armand, Reine-Marie and the regulars of Three Pines is in sharp contrast to the darkness of Fleming, Fiona and Sam. They provide the light that keeps us as hopeful as Armand and it reinforces the importance of kindness and compassion in every chapter.
There is nothing more comforting than starting a Louise Penny book and meeting all the old friends in the Bistro and Myrna’s book store. In lieu of actually being there this is the next best thing. This is a really gripping read which I would strongly recommend.
Thank you for allowing us into the world of Three Pines again!!

This outstanding addition to Louise Penny's Canadian Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series, set in Quebec and the idyllic village of Three Pines, illustrates just what a gifted writer she is in this gripping blend of fact and fiction. The memorable characters include Amelia Choquet, a favourite of mine. In this complex and twisted narrative, the chilling past brings grave dangers and to blight the present. We learn of the beginnings of Gamache's police career marked by deadly misogyny with the terrors of the killing of women engineers. The murder of Clothilde Arsenault is the tragic case that first brings together Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir, leaving both marked by the evil horrors of the house where the victim's young children, Fiona and Sam, have been left so severely damaged and traumatised that it is unlikely they will ever be able recover.

In remembrance of the murdered female engineers and the recognition of the resilience of the survivors, Gamache and Reine-Marie attend the latest ceremony where Fiona herself graduates, she has been supported by Gamache through the years and lives in his home. He is unsettled and disturbed when Sam attends and is planning to stay at Three Pines, the troubling Sam is one of only two people who have been able to get inside his head, the other is imprisoned psychopath and monstrous serial killer, John Fleming. A strange historical letter written by a long dead stone mason leads to the discovery of a hidden walled in attic that is opened up by the villagers, within it is a long sought after grimoire and a odd version of the famous painting, The Paston Treasure, with its world of curiosities. The painting has a multitude of worrying hidden messages and puzzles that alarm and alert Gamache to an old foe intent on destroying everything and everyone Gamache holds dear.

It is always a joy to reacquaint myself with the now long established characters in the series, the querulous poet, Ruth Zardo, and her duck, Rosa, the therapist Myrna, the painter Clara and, of course, Olivier and Gabri among others, with their strong sense of community and support of each other. There are big themes touched on here, the difficulties of forgiveness, and the joy and freedom to be found in attaining this much desired quality for humanity, the historical and more recent evidence of misogyny in our world, and our misplaced tendency to concentrate on the historical archives of the powerful and the well known whilst ignoring the lives, knowledge and testimonies of the likes of ordinary people, minorities, women, etc.. This is a riveting read of the past and present, murders, of psychopaths, demons, witches, of a fate that is cruel and kind, love and community. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

I really enjoyed this latest Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novel, he is such a wonderful character and I liked returning to Three Pines with all the inhabitants I was familair with. The World of Curiosities was such a clever premise for a mystery book, it had me doubting myself constantly as I tried to keen up with the razor sharp mind of Gamache.

It took me a while to adapt to the two different timelines as there was just so much information I needed to process but as soon as I did I could not put the book down. It was fast paced and incredibly tense at times. Penny creates such a rich cast of characters and atmospheric surroundings I really felt like I was there with them, racing to join the dots so I could prevent any more deaths.

Penny is masterful at creating mysteries that really flex your brain cells and make you think about current events and society as a whole. Intelligently crafted throughout I cant help but admire the author as well as her characters.

A clever, complex story collecting together related events building up to an astonishing climax.
A well-researched background brings in a number of places and ideas. The setting of the Quebec village of Three Pines.
There are lots of intricate relationships. the story/ stories are spread over a long period of time, and there is some switching between aspects of the story.

Given the intricacy and complexity of the story as a whole it requires tremendous concentration to keep all of the relevant details in the mind.

I have to admit to having to go back to check certain details.

It is probably the most complex, interwoven story that I have ever read that is cover ed in one book.

I did not know Inspector Gamache or any of the other characters, and I had not read any of the authors other books.

I really enjoyed the book and will be looking up some of the previous books in the series. I don't think that I lost anything in the story by not having read the previous books in the series before, so it is safe for anyone to start with this book if they wish to do so.
It is too long to read in a sitting, but it is spellbinding enough to encourage the reader to keep on reading.

Excellent book.

Thanks to the author for a brilliant read, and my thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy for honest review.

I love Louise Penny's writing and the Three Pines community. As ever, it was a real pleasure to be back with all these old characters as their lives progress, and to enjoy the new ones - Amelie! The story involves Gamache's previous cases, and some real history about a mass murder at an Engineering college.
The Gamaches have mentored Fiona, whose mother was murdered when she was a child. Fiona and her brother Sam visit the village, after Fiona's graduation from engineering college. Events transpire so Gamache discovers a reproduction of a famous painting, then the murders start. There are many interwoven threads, and lots of possibilities as to who is the missing man, with some tense moments!
Thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended.

The latest Gamache novel from Louise Penny is quite the page turner. It explains to us the circumstances in which Gamache met Jean-Guy Beauvoir. The book jumps back and forth in time, with the past becomes extremely relevant to the challenging situation facing Gamache. It's always good to learn more about the history of the characters as it is always good to return to Three Pines. Another enthralling installment from Louise Penny.

This series just gets better and better! In this 18th Armand Gamache book,Readers are once again allowed back into the comfort of the Three Pines community.There is an interesting flashback at the start but once again the villagers become involved in a crime which features a locked up room,a painting, and a brother and sister who may not be who they seem.
Once again Penny’s inimitable talent is able to blend authentic events with moral questioning whilst telling a gripping mystery.I couldn’t read it fast enough and look forward to reading it again to savour parts of the story I may have missed.It is a shame there wasn’t more time in the bistro- the comfort of food always features so highly in this series,but this is a tiny negative in an otherwise fantastic book.
My thanks to Hodder &Stoughton and NetGalley for this ARC.

Although 18th in the series this is a first for me and I suspect that I would learn more about the character by reading the others. Nonetheless it was a good read with Chief Inspector Gamache and side kick Beauvoir of the Quebec Surete reliving an old case of abused children and their dead drugged-out mother. Confusing to start with as we switched from the decades old murder to the present-day from one sentence to the next (perhaps formatting issues?). Beauvoir started as an obnoxious know-it-all detective and definitively improved between then and now, Gamache seems remarkably stable, solid and the same. Bricked up rooms, old masters but with modern touches, old letters, enemies escaping prison, frankly pure psychopaths are intriguing and then very disturbing. No-one is quite who they seem. The past is definitely haunting the present. How will Gamache and family especially cope? I must now go and find earlier books in the series and look forward to the next one. . Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy.

Another wonderfully addictive episode in the lives of the residents of Three Pines and Armand Gamache. Here a past case - that of a horrific murder of a mother by her daughter - comes back to haunt the Gamache family and Beauvoir. The two children - troubled youngsters at the time of their mother’s death - arrive at the village of Three Pines. At the same time a letter emerges describing the bricking up of an attic in the village. When the room is found, the decision is taken to open it up and the painting of the World of Curiosities emerges.

All is not as it seems and as the messages within the paintings emerge, Armand realises an old enemy has escaped his prison and is coming after his family.

This is a page turner which kept me captivated throughout.

Heartedly recommended.

I have read a lot, but not all, of this series and welcomed the chance to live with Inspector Gamache and the Three Pines residents again.

I enjoyed this but didn’t love it. The plot is well done and gripping, but somehow Gamache’s endless goodness and perception grated a little, particularly in the series of flashbacks.

Nonetheless an essential read for fans of this series.

This is book number 18 in the Three Pines series and this has to be one of my favourites so far. Louise’s writing just seems to get better. Plots more intricate, and characters revealed. Do yourself a favour and start at the beginning. They are a superb crime series. One of the best. Highly recommend.

Back to Three Pines for the eighteenth book in the series. We learn about Armand and Jean-Guy’s original meeting interleaved with the current storyline, without announcing it as a flash back and I liked that. The whole story is incredibly well crafted and imbued with a sense of menace throughout..
To find answers Armand has to study a good copy of a real painting The Paston Treasure, now in a museum in Norwich, although the copy has different artifacts to the original all relating to the Surete’s case. I just had to find an illustration of the painting! So many clues brought out sparingly to be considered. The villagers are beautifully drawn and have been developed over much of the series. The best book I have read in a long time and highly recommended for both aficionados and new readers.

Thanks to Hodder&Stoughton and NetGalley for enabling me to read an ARC in return for an unbiased review. Wonderful!

Excellent addition to the Gamache oeuvre. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anyone who appreciates well-written, engaging novels, with imperfect, perhaps quirky, but good, decent main characters. The town of Three Pines plays a central role, and is now as much a character as Armand, Jean-Guy and the rest of the residents. There are 'villains', but they are believable, and, in many ways, more threatening.

With many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an ARC.