Andrea Camilleri’s novels starring Inspector Montalbano have become an international sensation in eight different languages. This funny and fast-paced Sicilian page-turner will be a delicious discovery for mystery afficionados and fiction lovers alike.
Early one morning, Silvio Lupanello, a big shot in the village of Vigàta, is found dead in his car with his pants around his knees. The car happens to be parked in a rough part of town frequented by prostitutes and drug dealers, and as the news of his death spreads, the rumors begin. Enter Inspector Salvo Montalbano, Vigàta’s most respected detective. With his characteristic mix of humor, cynicism, compassion, and love of good food, Montalbano goes into battle against the powerful and the corrupt who are determined to block his path to the real killer.
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"I've only recently discovered this author's work, thanks to the TV series on BBC 4. I was immediately captivated by the characters and their surroundings. Based in Sicily, the main protagnist, Inspector Montalbano, is both believable and engaging. Highly recommended."
— Katrina (4 out of 5 stars)
“Savagely funny police procedural prove[s] that sardonic laughter is a sound that translates ever so smoothly into English.”
— 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 towards Death as unflinchingly as he can pore over crime-scene snuff photos. He throws together an extemporaneous lunch…as gracefully as he dodges advances from attractive women.”
— Los Angeles Times“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“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 review)" Got turned on to the author by my sister. He's great. His characters are better, these are fast, fun, and funny books to read. "
— Sandy, 2/10/2014" A pretty typical book of its genre. I thought it might make it more interesting than some of our north american crime novels as it is based in Sicily, but it could have been based anywhere. Liked that it was a short read and it provided a good distraction for a day when I needed it. I could see that the Salvo Montalbano's character would start to grow on you in future books. "
— Kristine, 2/8/2014" Prep for Sicily. Not great literature but definitely a light, entertaining read. "
— Jennifer, 2/7/2014" Ok took a while to get going, looking forward to reading more!! "
— Karen, 1/29/2014" I read this book after few others from the Inspector Montalbano Mysteries and I had a feeling that in this book author is still exploring characters, politicizing a lot... "
— Mirjana, 1/11/2014" Was it the translation? This was a funny mystery but I'm not sure if part of that was the incongruity of translated swearing. The Sicilians certainly are verbally abusive to each other when they trust one another. Distrust is signaled by formality.There is a smattering of naked women and brief mentions of cruelty and an inspector buzzing here and there. I might read one more but I realized in discussing this with my brother yesterday, that what I'm really looking for in a mystery is insight. "
— Mary, 1/9/2014" Not my favorite, but not bad. Since the series is so popular, I will read a few more before deciding whether the series is worth pursuing. "
— Rhonda, 1/7/2014" It took me a while to get into Camilleri's style of writing, but I came to like it in the end. I'm looking forward to the other books in the series after being told that they just get better. "
— Barbara, 12/31/2013" Ah, Sicily! Beautifully corrupt, a lovely corpse at an open casket funeral. I'm warming to Inspector Montalbano, a sensitive character who eats well, cares much. Interesting plot - the extra translations at the end were helpful. "
— Andrea, 12/19/2013" The Shape of Water is the first of the Montalbano series. The book still did recieve 5 stars, though it isn't as good as August Heat or Voice of the Violen. Still a good read, but the series does get better on. "
— Anton, 12/12/2013" I am not a big mystery reader, but this was a fun and fast read. Having only read one in the series, I'm not quite sure why Inspector Maltalbano is such a popular character. However,I enjoyed the book enough to check out two more from library. So, we'll see... "
— Melissa, 12/10/2013" Intelligent, different. "
— Sue, 12/8/2013" So-so. Nothing to get excited about. Reads like a script, not a novel. I won't bother with any more by this author. "
— Kathy, 12/6/2013" Was really surprised by this- it is much more gritty thant the jacket would suggest. Loved Sicilian Inspector Salvo Montalbano. "
— Texaskcr, 9/6/2013" brilliant brilliant brilliant "
— Adip, 4/24/2013" Like Sicily? READ THESE! Montalbano is hilarious & his descriptions of food are fantastic. "
— Jono, 3/30/2013" I got this wondering how the series on TV had translated from the books - and have ended up really liking the book. I'm planning to slowly get the rest of the series. "
— Saleris, 8/24/2012" This series is great airline reading "
— John, 7/12/2012" Quick, easy-to-figure-out mystery. "
— Alicia, 6/28/2012" An enjoyable, light read. "
— Jake, 4/25/2012" Really enjoyed this short detective novel. It is a great change from the types of detective novels that wrap everything up in a nice ribbon. As Livia says in the novel, this is really about an inspector who promotes himself to God. "
— Yolie, 3/22/2012" I was attracted to it because the cover said something about stories of food + mystery (?)...and it's set in Sicily, which I love... I didn't think it delivered what I expected (it IS set in Sicily). That said, it was a fun, quick read, and I'll read more in the series! "
— Kathryn, 3/4/2012" The less nice from the MOntalbano serie "
— Pamina, 2/2/2012" This is the first of the wonderful Inspector Salvo Montalbano, a detective in Sicily. His crew is terrific and the mysteries are very intriguing. Once you're hooked you'll want to visit Sicily immediately. I did. "
— Maggie, 11/30/2011" Pleasant, quick read. A mystery that takes place in Sicily. "
— Monica, 8/21/2011" Enjoyable Sicilian police procedural, heavy on sex, corruption and food. Cerebral Inspector Montalbano steers a course through plenty of potential pitfalls. "
— Ian, 8/4/2011" Detective novel. The policeman's character is most interesting. The mystery seems like a fairly standard set of sordid. Most interesting for the dismissal of good/evil morality; everything is in shades of gray.<br/><br/>I'd read another. "
— Jeremy, 5/26/2011" gave up because it was too hard to keep people straight, I'm not in the mood for books that need a cheat sheet. "
— Janet, 5/26/2011" A great book.<br/>Cool police work.<br/>Good food. "
— Joe, 4/29/2011" Humorous, slightly absurdist mystery series set in Italy with great social commentary. The whole series is pretty equally wonderful. "
— Wog, 3/29/2011" I'm not sure what to think about this one. I really wanted to like it, and thought the plot was decent and relatively complex, but the writing was a odd, perhaps due to the translation. I'll at least give the series one more shot before I bail on it completely. "
— Stephanie, 3/20/2011" Ho iniziato a leggere la saga di Montalbano dal suo primo capitolo, e mi piace. Leggero e fresco, ma non certo "all'acqua di rose". "
— Wick, 3/9/2011" I enjoyed this first book of a series of mysteries. The inspector is a unique character. "
— Barbara, 2/8/2011" Nicely written, but it never grabbed me. I read it piecemeal, which often makes it hard to fully appreciate a book. Liked Inspector Montalbano well enough, just didn't find him compelling. "
— 1002books, 1/18/2011" As with all of Camilleri's books, no cliche, no overburdened dialog, no stale plot lines. Once I discovered his Comissario Montalbano, I read all of them without stopping. I had no idea it had been made into a TV series in Germany, and then in Italy as well. "
— Robin, 1/11/2011" It was the first time I read a Camilleri book and I wasn't disappointed. It could have been better, I thought, but overall it was an ok read.<br/>However, I didn't quite like the ending; while the 'mystery' is solved, the book didn't actually end the way I expected it to end. "
— Leaf, 1/4/2011" Wonderful series. I don't know if I would get the full flavor of this book reading it myself. The reader in the audio version is fantastic and really seems to understand what Camilleri was trying to achieve through the book. "
— Ruth, 12/22/2010Andrea Camilleri (1925–2019) wrote the internationally bestselling Inspector Montalbano mysteries as well as historical novels. His books have been made into television shows in Italy and translated into thirty-two languages. His thirteenth Montalbano novel, The Potter’s Field, won the Crime Writers’ Association International Dagger Award and was longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.
Grover Gardner (a.k.a. Tom Parker) is an award-winning narrator with over a thousand titles to his credit. Named one of the “Best Voices of the Century” and a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine, he has won three prestigious Audie Awards, was chosen Narrator of the Year for 2005 by Publishers Weekly, and has earned more than thirty Earphones Awards.