#34 in Thriller
The Brutal Telling
- 400
- Pages
- about 7 h
- Reading time
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Our view
“The Brutal Telling” finds the Gamache series at a high point: a dark, unsettling case that shakes a small community. It is the fifth novel about the Quebec chief inspector; some readers were caught out by the culprit, and others note that, unlike earlier cases, this one does not feel neatly closed. For some long-time readers the books keep getting better; this one is best met after the volumes before it.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Brutal Telling is a novel written by Louise Penny, the fifth novel in the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series set in Quebec. It was published by Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin's Press owned by Macmillan Publishers. The book was published on 22 September 2009. It won to the Anthony Award for Best Novel in 2010.
Reading order · Chief Inspector Gamache
Full order & progress →- Still LifeStart hereStill Life–Not ranked yet
- A Fatal Grace
7.77.7 / 10 - The Cruelest MonthThe Cruelest Month–Not ranked yet
- A Rule Against MurderA Rule Against Murder–Not ranked yet
- The Brutal TellingThis book
7.97.9 / 10 - Bury Your Dead
8.08.0 / 10 - A Trick of the Light
8.08.0 / 10 - The Beautiful MysteryThe Beautiful Mystery–Not ranked yet
- How the Light Gets InHow the Light Gets In–Not ranked yet
- The Long Way HomeThe Long Way Home–Not ranked yet
- The Nature of the BeastThe Nature of the Beast–Not ranked yet
- A Great ReckoningA Great Reckoning–Not ranked yet
- Glass HousesGlass Houses–Not ranked yet
- Kingdom of the BlindKingdom of the Blind–Not ranked yet
- A Better ManA Better Man–Not ranked yet
- All the Devils Are HereAll the Devils Are Here–Not ranked yet
- The Madness of CrowdsThe Madness of Crowds–Not ranked yet
- A World of CuriositiesA World of Curiosities–Not ranked yet
- The Black WolfThe Black Wolf–Not ranked yet
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.3 across 119 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 45% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Thriller average of 7.6. That is how 7.9 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 8.3 | 119 | 100% |
Frequently asked
How long is The Brutal Telling?
It has 400 pages — shorter than 56% of the ranked books in Thriller.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
The same shelf — Thriller — and a score of 7.9, the closest to this book.
