Did you learn anything about monks in the novel that surprised you?

I have never tried Chartreuse. I have used creme de menthe (also green) when making a grasshopper or a grasshopper cheesecake many years ago. I guess the thing that surprised me was that the recipe for Chartreuse is only known by two monks who mix the formula which is then sent to an outside distillery. Contemplative orders have some sort of product that they make in order to provide an income. Some of those products include bread, beer, bourbon fruitcake and bourbon fudge, cookies, soap, candles, fudge and truffles, cheese, candy, preserves, CDs. Of course, we have St. Gilbert with its chocolate covered blueberries (a favorite of Jean-Guy).

I had no idea about anything related to Chartreuse, nor have I ever tried the liqueur. Doesn’t sound like it’s something I’m going to want to, either, though I would probably try it, just for curiosity’s sake. I was particularly surprised to learn about the secret recipe (so many ingredients!) known only to two monks at a time. I really enjoyed learning all about that, and the monastery, and the Carthusians and Dominicans, and their differences. There’s always something new and interesting to learn in these books, I find.

I only knew Chartreuse as a colour, not a drink, so I’ve never tried it. But after the Three Pines gang’s review of the cocktail, I’m not exactly tempted. 😄 As for the religious orders, I found the details about the monks, nuns, and the Catholic Church fascinating. It was interesting to learn about the Carthusian Order, why they are so hermetic, and the history behind the recipe. I also liked Louise’s detail about the Gilbertines burning their personal file in a bonfire and it being symbolic of them leaving their old life behind. “His past no longer matters. He has a new life, a new family.”

I have never tried Chartreuse but absolutely would so I could claim to have done so. I suspect it would be a one off event, though.

I have had Monk’s Ale (“Made with Care and a Prayer”) which was made by the Benedictine monks of The Monastery of Christ in the Desert in Abiquiu, NM. As Nancy noted, brewing and selling beer is one way monk’s support themselves. Unlike St. Gilbert, The Monastery of Christ in the Desert welcomes people to stay with them, join them for services and the Eucharist and, in some circumstances, to work alongside the monks. I have never done that but can honestly say it is a tempting idea sometimes. The Abbey of Santa Maria de la Vid, a Norbertine abbey in Albuquerque’s south valley, also welcomes guests.

I don’t think I learned anything surprising about monks. I consider LP’s descriptions of monks, like her descriptions of other characters, complex, nuanced and respectful. The vowed men and women religious I have known are pretty much like everyone else, just people who found purpose and meaning in religious life.

I admit that I am not very religious and also that I have a terrible memory sometimes. I didn’t know the Dominicans were the Inquisition. I also didn’t know that all catholic orders contribute to the Office of the Doctrine of the Faith, a department of the Curia. It is just a little piece of information that Simon reveals when Jean-Guy and Gamache are questioning him. I can’t help but wonder if we’ll revisit the Vatican in the next book because it doesn’t seem to be a coincidence that Louise is introducing all these different Catholic orders, then Isabelle visits the Vatican (but can only go so far inside being a woman). I agree with Gamache that it’s unlikely the Curia was behind the plot, but maybe they know more about who the real Black Wolf is?

I also have never tried Chartreuse but just as Jane says, I absolutely would, just for the experience of it. From the sounds of it, I imagine that it would be a very small amount ingested!

Both the Carthusians and the Gilbertines shared a history of escaping persecution and willfully exiling themselves to survive. They both shut out the outside world as a means to keep chaos at bay and to protect themselves. But still, both had murders happen at the hands of one of their own so that says something about evil and human nature. For all its peace and tranquility and isolation from the outside world Three Pines too has had its share of evil. I think that this means that no place in the world is safe from our darker natures or our two wolves. We are all human.

I am wondering what makes a young man decide that they want to be a cloistered monk. I am not talking about a religious explanation (like a “calling”) but more about a personality type. The one that was too curious, Simon, wasn’t going to last in this setting.The one that was a “good monk” had cut off his family without warning and had caused great pain.
I will freely admit that I find the idea of a world that is closed off intellectually and emotionally and mired in routines quite creepy. I am thinking of modern-day scenarios where young men of a certain personality type band together, cut themselves off from women and families and from a healthy emotional life, and practice rituals… and quite frankly, the examples that come to mind are not comforting.
My apologies if this is a harsh judgment on something that people value