The five best mystery novels of all time, according to Louise Penny

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The bestselling author of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series reveals the mysteries she has found impossible to put down ...

In the picturesque Canadian village of Three Pines, murder is never very far away. For more than 20 years, Louise Penny has been drawing readers into its seemingly idyllic world, where secrets lurk behind closed doors and Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is on hand to unravel them. Her internationally bestselling mysteries have sold millions of copies worldwide, with her latest, Miss Wolcott’s Ghost, the 21st instalment in the beloved series.

Penny knows better than most what makes a mystery novel impossible to put down. But which are the ones that have kept her up at night herself? Here, she shares five mysteries that have shaped her life and writing…

“Who knew the scent of roses could arouse such dark passions? Set in 18th -century France, Perfume follows a young man with an extraordinary sense of smell who becomes obsessed with capturing the perfect scent – even if it means killing for it.

“I read this novel before I started to write my first book, Still Life, and Süskind’s work showed me the power of engaging all the senses of the reader. Terrifying, gripping, totally absorbing, Perfume is an utterly astonishing achievement.”

“Most people list Tey’s The Daughter of Time as her best and their favourite, and it is brilliant, but I love this one. It’s not a murder mystery, but it is a mystery and it is steeped with atmosphere.“The story follows two elderly women who move to a hermetic English village just after the war. They’re already viewed with suspicion, and don’t help by keeping themselves to themselves.“When an accusation is made, the police are called in. But has a crime even been committed? The book plays with the reader as we vacillate between believing the women guilty of a terrible crime and then, a paragraph later, thinking that they are the victims. It is ingenious.”

“This book, about the murder of a teenage girl on Shetland and the suspicion that falls on a lonely local outcast, introduced Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez and launched Cleeves’ celebrated…

“It…

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