Inspector Gamache is visiting Jean Guy, his old friend and former boss, in Quebec in an effort to recuperate from the physical and emotional wounds sustained during an agency wide effort to thwart a domestic terrorist attack.

To pass the time, he spends hours in an English library reading. There he meets Renaud, a historian obsessed with finding the burial site of Champlian, the founder of Quebec. When a body is discovered in the basement, Gamache finds himself unwittingly drawn into the investigation.

This was a sad yet fascinating story. While struggling to come to terms with the deaths of so many agency men, Gamache finds himself compelled to search for the body of Samuel de Champlain as this new mystery unfolds. A second mystery unfolds as Gamache responds to letters of concern by sending his deputy back to Three Pines. He must follow his mentor's footsteps or fail in his attempt to discover whether beloved Bistro owner, Olivier, really killed the Hermit.

Ms. Penny has given the reader an in-depth look at the city of Quebec and its origins. She also recognizes the historical and present-day struggles between the French and the English speaking citizens of Quebec.