100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Overnight NZ-wide delivery on in-stock orders 🚀

The Madness of Crowds

thrilling and page-turning crime fiction from the author of the bestselling Inspector Gamache novels
4.18 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating.
( 78,162 ratings, 7,088 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny takes readers to the quaint village of Three Pines, where Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is reluctantly drawn into a complex investigation. Set against a backdrop of societal tensions, the novel weaves a tale of psychology and morality, exploring the profound impacts of crowd dynamics and individual decisions in the aftermath of a controversial lecture.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2799
OVERNIGHT NZ-WIDE DELIVERY

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy intricate mysteries woven into a compelling narrative, set in the picturesque yet enigmatic village of Three Pines. Rich in character development and philosophical inquiry, it explores timely and thought-provoking themes, all wrapped in a gripping crime thriller.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

The 17th book in the internationally bestselling Gamache series by 'one of the greatest crime writers of our time' (Denise Mina).

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
The incredible new book in Louise Penny's #1 bestselling Chief Inspector Gamache series.

When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is asked to provide crowd control at a statistics lecture given at the Université de l'Estrie in Quebec, he is dubious. Why ask the head of homicide to provide security for what sounds like a minor, even mundane lecture?

But dangerous ideas about who deserves to live in order for society to thrive are rapidly gaining popularity, fuelled by the research of the eminent Professor Abigail Robinson. Yet for every person seduced by her theories there is another who is horrified by them. When a murder is committed days after the lecture, it's clear that within crowds can lie madness.

To uncover the truth, Gamache must put his own feelings about the divisive Professor to one side. But with her ideas gaining ground, the line separating good and evil, right and wrong, is quickly blurring—especially when the case leads unexpectedly close to home...

Praise for Louise Penny and the Inspector Gamache series:

'Louise Penny is one of the greatest crime writers of our times' DENISE MINA

'She makes most of her competitors seem like wannabes' The Times

'Gamache has become to Canada what Hercule Poirot is to Belgium' The New York Times

'Louise Penny twists and turns the plot expertly tripping the reader up just at the moment you think you might have solved the mystery' Daily Express

'The series is deep and grand and altogether extraordinary . . . Miraculous' Washington Post

'No one does atmospheric quite like Louise Penny.' ELLY GRIFFITHS

'An absolute joy' Irish Times

Series: Chief Inspector Gamache

View all
  • All the Devils Are Here
    WINNER OF THE AGATHA AWARD FOR BEST MYSTERY NOVEL 2021 Makes most of her competitors seem like wannabes – The Times Altogether extraordinary – Washington Post There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. On their first night in Paris, the Gamaches gather for a family dinner...
    Paperback
    $2499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Long Way Home
    Compelling . . . An original voice PETER JAMES Penny twists and turns the plot, expertly tripping the reader up just at the moment you think you might have solved the mystery DAILY EXPRESS There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. Clara Morrow's husband is missing....
    Paperback
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Black Wolf
    The brand new thriller from international bestseller Louise Penny, coming October 2025. Pre-order now! Somewhere out there, in the darkness, a black wolf is feeding. Several weeks ago, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec and his team uncovered and stopped a domestic terrorist attack in Montreal, arresting the person behind it. A man they called the Black...
    Paperback
    $3200
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A World of Curiosities
    Book 18 in the acclaimed and number one-bestselling Three Pines series featuring the beloved Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. It's spring, and Three Pines is re-emerging after the harsh winter. But not everything buried should come alive again. Not everything lying dormant should return. But something has. As the villagers prepare for a special celebration, Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir find...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Madness of Crowds
    The incredible new book in Louise Penny's #1 bestselling Chief Inspector Gamache series. When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is asked to provide crowd control at a statistics lecture given at the Université de l'Estrie in Quebec, he is dubious. Why ask the head of homicide to provide security for what sounds like a minor, even mundane lecture? But dangerous ideas...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Grey Wolf
    Electrifying drama ... Gamache is a fascinatingly complex protagonist THE TIMES Nobody does evil quite as scarily as Louise Penny ANN CLEEVES This is crime writing of the highest order DAILY MAIL Relentless phone calls interrupt the peace of a warm August morning in the small village of Three Pines in Quebec. Someone has managed to track down Armand Gamache,...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Still Life
    'A cracking storyteller, who can create fascinating characters, a twisty plot and wonderful surprise endings' ANN CLEEVES 'One of the most interesting detectives in crime fiction' THE TIMES There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. The discovery of a dead body in the woods on Thanksgiving...
    Paperback
    $2799
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Miss Wolcott's Ghost
    Pre-order
    Miss Wolcott's Ghost
    ‘There's a body in Lost Nation.’ But the line goes dead before Chief Inspector Armand Gamache can question the caller. The head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec has no idea where Lost Nation is, or who woke him in the small hours of the morning at his home in Three Pines. What he does know is that the...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    Pre-order
    Out 20 Oct 2026
  • The Black Wolf
    Several weeks ago, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec and his team uncovered and stopped a domestic terrorist attack in Montreal, arresting the person behind it. A man they called the Black Wolf. But their relief is short-lived. In a sickening turn of events, Gamache has realised that plot, as horrific as it was, was just the...
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • The Madness of Crowds
    THE NEW YORK TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER 'Enthralling ... this is crime writing of the highest order' DAILY MAIL 'A satisfying and multi-layered mystery' IRISH INDEPENDENT 'Louise Penny is on peak form' THE TIMES When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is asked to provide crowd control at a statistics lecture given at the University, he is dubious. Why ask the head...
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • The Grey Wolf
    'SUPERB' WILL DEAN 'Highly entertaining' THE TIMES 'Subtle, compelling storytelling at its elegant best' DAILY MAIL Relentless phone calls interrupt the peace of a warm August morning in the small village of Three Pines in Quebec. Someone has managed to track down Armand Gamache, head of homicide, as he sits with his wife in their back garden. When he finally...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny is highly praised for its thought-provoking nature and atmospheric storytelling. Critics highlight Penny's elegant style and intricate plotting, while appreciating the compelling and multilayered mystery she crafts. The book is described as timely and layered with great ideas and memorable characters, maintaining Penny's status as one of the top crime writers.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529379426

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 24 May 2022

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Hodder Paperback

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 38.0mm

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 320g

Pages: 448

About the Author

Louise Penny is an international award-winning and bestselling author whose books have hit number one on the New York Times, USA Today and Globe and Mail lists. Her Chief Inspector Gamache novels have been translated into thirty-one languages and have sold over 18 million copies worldwide. She has received the Ordre National du Quebec and the Order of Canada for her contributions to Canadian culture. In 2021, she co-authored the standalone thriller State of Terror with Hillary Rodham Clinton. Louise Penny lives in a village south of Montreal.

Also by Louise Penny

View all
  • All the Devils Are Here
    WINNER OF THE AGATHA AWARD FOR BEST MYSTERY NOVEL 2021 Makes most of her competitors seem like wannabes – The Times Altogether extraordinary – Washington Post There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. On their first night in Paris, the Gamaches gather for a family dinner...
    Paperback
    $2499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Long Way Home
    Compelling . . . An original voice PETER JAMES Penny twists and turns the plot, expertly tripping the reader up just at the moment you think you might have solved the mystery DAILY EXPRESS There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. Clara Morrow's husband is missing....
    Paperback
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Black Wolf
    The brand new thriller from international bestseller Louise Penny, coming October 2025. Pre-order now! Somewhere out there, in the darkness, a black wolf is feeding. Several weeks ago, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec and his team uncovered and stopped a domestic terrorist attack in Montreal, arresting the person behind it. A man they called the Black...
    Paperback
    $3200
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A World of Curiosities
    Book 18 in the acclaimed and number one-bestselling Three Pines series featuring the beloved Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. It's spring, and Three Pines is re-emerging after the harsh winter. But not everything buried should come alive again. Not everything lying dormant should return. But something has. As the villagers prepare for a special celebration, Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir find...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • State of Terror
    After a tumultuous period in American politics, a new administration has just been sworn in, and to everyone's surprise, the president chooses a political enemy for the vital position of Secretary of State. As the new president addresses Congress for the first time, with Secretary Ellen Adams in attendance, Anahita Dahir, a young foreign service officer on the Pakistan desk...
    Paperback
    $2499
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Last Mandarin
    The Last Mandarin is a standalone thriller co-written by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Gamache series and an award-winning journalist. In a fast-paced, all-too-real thriller co-written by #1 New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny and award-winning journalist Mellissa Fung, global politics become personal for two unlikely heroines. Alice Li, a first-generation Chinese-American, is an erstwhile...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Grey Wolf
    Electrifying drama ... Gamache is a fascinatingly complex protagonist THE TIMES Nobody does evil quite as scarily as Louise Penny ANN CLEEVES This is crime writing of the highest order DAILY MAIL Relentless phone calls interrupt the peace of a warm August morning in the small village of Three Pines in Quebec. Someone has managed to track down Armand Gamache,...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Still Life
    'A cracking storyteller, who can create fascinating characters, a twisty plot and wonderful surprise endings' ANN CLEEVES 'One of the most interesting detectives in crime fiction' THE TIMES There is more to solving a crime than following the clues. Welcome to Chief Inspector Gamache's world of facts and feelings. The discovery of a dead body in the woods on Thanksgiving...
    Paperback
    $2799
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • A Fatal Grace
    Read the series that inspired Three Pines on Prime Video. From the #1 New York Times bestseller Louise Penny comes the second Armand Gamache mystery set in the stunning countryside of Quebec. Winner of the 2007 Agatha Award for Best Novel! Welcome to winter in Three Pines, a picturesque village in Quebec, where the villagers are preparing for a traditional...
    Paperback
    $5100
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • The Cruelest Month
    Read the series that inspired Three Pines on Prime Video. The Cruelest Month is the third book in Louise Penny's award-winning Three Pines mystery series featuring the wise and beleaguered Inspector Armand Gamache. "Many mystery buffs have credited Louise Penny with the revival of the type of traditional murder mystery made famous by Agatha Christie ... " - Sarah Weinman...
    Paperback
    $5100
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • All the Devils Are Here
    INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER PARADE MAGAZINE - ONE OF FALL'S MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS AARP'S MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF FALL CRIMEREADS - ONE OF THE BEST TRADITIONAL MYSTERIES OF THE YEAR GLOBE AND MAIL - TOP 100 BOOKS OF THE YEAR CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR - ONE OF THE BEST NOVELS OF THE YEAR KIRKUS REVIEWS - ONE OF THE...
    Paperback
    $5100
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • A Rule Against Murder
    Read the series that inspired Three Pines on Prime Video. A Rule Against Murder, the fourth book in Louise Penny's award-winning and critically revered mystery series, features the wise and beleaguered Inspector Armand Gamache. It is the height of summer, and Armand and Reine-Marie Gamache are celebrating their wedding anniversary at Manoir Bellechasse, an isolated, luxurious inn not far from...
    Paperback
    $5200
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks

More from Crime & Thriller

View all
  • New Release
    Every Lake
    Scary stories are fun... until your life becomes one. When Alice was fifteen, her father killed Mia Heywood in their lakefront cottage before vanishing into the trees. At least that's what the locals think happened. Over a decade later, Alice has lost her job as a journalist, she's going through an expensive divorce and she desperately needs to sell the...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    It Could Have Been Her
    PREPARE TO BE HOOKED: The no. 1 Sunday Times and MULTI-million-copy bestselling author is back with a brand-new spine tingling thriller. It was the night she almost died. Jane Trevally, newly divorced and feeling a little lost, agrees to accompany a man she doesn't know to his house in the darkest corner of Hampstead Heath. She's offered a drink, goes in, and...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    26 Beauties
    The twenty-sixth thrilling novel in the globally bestselling Women's Murder Club series. Beautiful young women are disappearing by the dozen. A celebration is cut short when a concerned father crashes Detective Inspector Lindsay Boxer's party. His daughter is missing - and she's not the only one. DI Lindsay Boxer has been tracking a chilling pattern: a Jane Doe washed ashore,...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Secrets We Hide
    The stunning new North Falls thriller by the bestselling author of We Are All Guilty Here 'Quite simply, Karin Slaughter is the best of us' Dervla McTiernan Welcome back to North Falls -- a small town with big secrets. The house at 1601 Iris Drive looks like any other in the quiet, residential street. But rumours are rife about the Vickery...
    Paperback
    $3099
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Parkwood Murders
    They came for an escape, but can they escape a killer? Detective Nicola Bridge returns in another gripping and immersive mystery For its loyal guests, Parkwood Holiday Village in west Dorset is a haven- woodland walks, a tranquil lake, service around the clock. Until, just after midsummer, a body is found floating in the swimming pool. Detective Nicola Bridge, exhausted...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Hope Rises
    'BALDACCI IS STILL PEERLESS' - THE SUNDAY TIMES REVENGE IS A DISH BEST SERVED COLD . . . Walter Nash, working under the alias of Dillon Hope, is on the road to revenge after becoming an informant for the FBI against a global criminal operation headed up by Victoria Steers. Steers has ripped everything Nash held dear away from him....
    Paperback
    $3099
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    Slash
    A year after a brutal shootout left her lover dead, ex-police sergeant Honey Chalmers is a hot mess, drinking too much and eating too little, working casual gigs for a shady firm of private investigators — while holding conversations with a ghost. A desperate father asks her to investigate his missing son — a double-murder suspect last seen during the...
    Paperback
    $3200
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    A River Red With Blood
    The players call it the Game, and its aim is simple: to abduct and kill a stranger without getting caught. They're very good at it. They've been playing it for a long time. And they can keep playing as long as everyone sticks to the rules: No Killing Close to Home and No Killing Outside the Game. But those rules...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Shadow Step
    The new Detective Miller thriller from bestselling author Mark Billingham, full of tension, wit and incredible twists. The Shadow Step: One taken simultaneously by a pair of dancers facing the same direction, one of them behind and slightly shifted leftwards ('in the shadow') Typically, such a step perfectly demonstrates synchronized elegance. It showcases a couple in near telepathic harmony with...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    Backorder
    Ships mid August
  • Blue Lightning
    New Release
    Blue Lightning
    Blue Lightning The fourth Shetland novel A remote island on lockdown. A killer on the loose . . . Shetland detective Jimmy Perez knows it will be a difficult homecoming when he returns to Fair Isle to introduce his fiancée to his parents. With the autumn storms raging, the island is cut off from the rest of the world. Then...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Red Bones
    New Release
    Red Bones
    Red Bones is the third Shetland novel featuring detective Jimmy Perez. Sometimes the dead won't stay buried... When a young archaeologist uncovers a set of human remains, the island settlers are intrigued. Is it an ancient find—or a more contemporary mystery? Then an elderly woman is shot in what appears to be a tragic accident in the middle of the...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Last to Drown
    New Release
    The Last to Drown
    Praise for Noelle W. Ihli: 'Hands down one of my favourite reads of the year' - FREIDA MCFADDEN 'A true classic in the genre' - LISA JEWELL 'A propulsive story that haunts and mesmerizes' - KARIN SLAUGHTER FIVE DAYS. TWENTY STRANGERS. NO PHONE SIGNAL. The rafting trip was supposed to be the adventure of a lifetime. But now that Kaia's...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3499
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.