**Set in Sicily and starring a detective
unlike any other in crime fiction, blasts the brain like a shot of pure
oxygen. Aglow with local color, packed with flint-dry wit, as fresh and
clean as Mediterranean seafood altogether transporting. A.J. Finn, #1New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Woman in the Window
The new novel in the irresistible and transporting New York Times bestselling Inspector Montalbano mystery series**
The day gets off to a bad start for Montalbano: while trying to break
up a fight on Marinella beach, he hits the wrong man and is stopped by
the Carabinieri. When he finally gets to the office, the inspector
learns about a strange abduction: a woman was abducted, drugged, and
then released unharmed a few hours later. A few days later, the same
thing happens again, but this time the woman abducted is the niece of
Enzo, the owner of Montalbanos favorite trattoria. The only link
between the two events is that both women are thirty years old and work
in a bank.
Alongside this investigation, Montalbano has to deal
with an arson case. A shop that sells household appliances has burned
down, and its owner, Marcello Di Carlo, seems to have vanished into thin
air. Has he run off with his lover after a holiday in the Canary
Islands? Is he fleeing from his creditors, or was he murdered by the
mafia for not paying their protection money? At first this seems like a
trivial case, but a third abductionyet again of a girl who works in a
bankand the discovery of a body bring up new questions. Whose body is
it? And where has Di Carlos secret lover gone?
**
Review
Praise for Andrea Camilleri and the Montalbano Series:
You either love Andrea Camilleri or you havent read him yet. Each novel in this wholly addictive, entirely magical series, set in Sicily and starring a detective unlike any other in crime fiction, blasts the brain like a shot of pure oxygen. Aglow with local color, packed with flint-dry wit, as fresh and clean as Mediterranean seafood altogether transporting. Long live Camilleri, and long live Montalbano. A.J. Finn, #1New York Timesbestselling author of*The Woman in the Window*
The idiosyncratic Montalbano is totally endearing. The New York Times
Camilleri is as crafty and charming a writer as his protagonist is an investigator. The Washington Post Book World
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
[Camilleris mysteries] offer quirky characters, crisp dialogue, bright storytellingand Salvo Montalbano, one of the most engaging protagonists in detective fiction.... Montalbano is a delightful creation, an honest man on Sicilys mean streets. USA Today
Like Mike Hammer or Sam Spade, Montalbano is the kind of guy who cant 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 characters 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 Chandlers Los Angeles. Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
The novels of Andrea Camilleri breathe out the sense of place, the sense of humor, and the sense of despair that fills the air of Sicily. Donna Leon
About the Author
Andrea Camilleri, a mega-bestseller in Italy and Germany, is the author of the New York Times bestselling Inspector Montalbano mystery series as well as historical novels that take place in nineteenth-century Sicily. His books have been made into Italian television shows and translated into thirty-two languages. His thirteenth Montalbano novel, The Potters Field, won the Crime Writers Association International Dagger Award and was longlisted for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.
Stephen Sartarelli is an award-winning translator and the author of three books of poetry.