**From the author of the New York Times –bestselling Inspector Montalbano mystery series, twenty-one short stories spanning the beloved detective’s career **
Inspector Montalbano has charmed readers in nineteen popular novels, and now in Montalbano’s First Case and Other Stories , Andrea Camilleri has selected twenty-one short stories, written with his trademark wit and humor, that follow Italy’s famous detective through highlight cases of his career. From the title story, featuring a young deputy Montalbano newly assigned to Vigàta, to “Montalbano Says No,” in which the inspector makes a late-night call to Camilleri himself to refuse an outlandish case, this collection is an essential addition to any Inspector Montalbano fan’s bookshelf and a wonderful way to introduce readers to the internationally bestselling series.
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Review
"A sparking collection... This is a treat for admirers of the Montalbano novels and a superb introduction for new readers."--Publishers Weekly (starred review/Pick of the Week)
"Series fans will especially enjoy learning the origins of Montalbano and company... newcomers may be intrigued by Camilleri's droll humor and nifty storytelling."--*Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Camilleri and the Inspector Montalbano mystery series
“Camilleri’s Inspector Montalbano mysteries might sell like hotcakes in Europe, but these world-weary crime stories were unknown here until the oversight was corrected (in Stephen Sartarelli’s salty translation) by the welcome publication of The Shape of Water …This savagely funny police procedural…prove[s] that sardonic laughter is a sound that translates ever so smoothly into English.”— The New York Times Book Review _
“Hailing from the land of Umberto Eco and La Cosa Nostra, Montalbano can discuss a pointy-headed book like _Western Attitudes Toward Death as unflinchingly as he can pore over crime-scene snuff photos. He throws together an extemporaneous lunch of shrimp with lemon and oil as gracefully as he dodges advances from attractive women.”— Los Angeles __ Times _
“[Camilleri’s mysteries] offer quirky characters, crisp dialogue, bright storytelling—and Salvo Montalbano, one of the most engaging protagonists in detective fiction…Montalbano is a delightful creation, an honest man on Siciliy’s mean streets.”—_USA __ Today _
“Camilleri is as crafty and charming a writer as his protagonist is an investigator.”—_The Washington Post Book World _
“Like Mike Hammer or Sam Spade, Montalbano is the kind of guy who can’t stay out of trouble…Still, deftly and lovingly translated by Stephen Sartarelli, Camilleri makes it abundantly clear that under the gruff, sardonic exterior our inspector has a heart of gold, and that any outburst, fumbles, or threats are made only in the name of pursuing truth.”—_The Nation _
“Camilleri can do a character’s whole backstory in half a paragraph.”—_The New Yorker _
“Subtle, sardonic, and _molto simpatico : Montalbano is the Latin re-creation of Philip Marlowe, working in a place that manages to be both more and less civilized than Chandler’s Los Angeles.”— Kirkus Reviews _(starred)
“Wit and delicacy and the fast-cut timing of farce play across the surface…but what keeps it from frothing into mere intellectual charm is the persistent, often sexually bemused Montalbano, moving with ease along zigzags created for him, teasing out threads of discrepancy that unravel the whole.”—_Houston __ Chronicle _
“Sublime and darkly humorous…Camilleri balances his hero’s personal and professional challenges perfectly and leaves the reader eager for more.”—_Publishers Weekly* (starred review)
About the Author
Andrea Camilleri is one of Italy's most famous contemporary writers. His books have sold over 65 million copies worldwide. He lives in Rome. The Inspector Montalbano series, which began with The Shape of Water, has been translated into thirty-two languages and was adapted for Italian television, screened on BBC4. The Potter's Field, the thirteenth book in the series, was awarded the Crime Writers' Association's International Dagger for the best crime novel translated into English. In addition to his phenomenally successful Inspector Montalbano series, he is also the author of the historical comic mysteries Hunting Season and The Brewer of Preston.