Check out Louise Penny, Aug. 30 at Auntie’s

I've been reviewing audiobooks for the past 15 years, helping choose those that deserve annual awards. And every time I receive a collection of nominees, I discover something — or someone — new.

As the saying goes, so many (audio)books, so little time.

That's my only excuse for never having heard of Louise Penny before I listened to "The Nature of the Beast," Penny's 2016 addition to her Inspector Gamache series. It was the first audiobook narrated by Robert Bathurst, who took over for her longtime narrator Ralph Cosham (Cosham had died in 2014).

I liked the book so much that I vowed to check out the previous novels in the series, all 11 of them. And it excites me to think that Penny will be appearing at Auntie's Bookstore on Aug. 30. The 7 p.m. reading will be in support of her new Inspector Gamache novel, the 13th, "Glass Houses" (Minotaur Books, 400 pages).

Here's what Kirkus Reviews has to say about the book: "A meticulously built mystery that follows a careful ascent toward a breaking point that will leave you breathless. It’s Three Pines as you have never seen it before."

Here's what Publishers Weekly has to say: "The familiar, sometimes eccentric, denizens of Three Pines and Gamache’s loyal investigative team help propel the plot to an exciting, high-stakes climax."

Sounds good. Can't wait.