Customer Reviews: Read 4 more reviews...
 The best Montalbano mystery September 4, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Larger than life characters, the flavour of Italy in both the food and ambience, mixed with a bit of mystery and good writing and with a glass of Chianti you could be there.
I came late to Camilleri's Montalbano novels, have enjoyed them all, but enjoyed this one more than previous titles ( I've not read them in order either).
Montalbano is idiosyncratic, breaks the rules and has his own unique approach to procedure. There's a lightness and humour to the writing that borders on farce at times but never undermines the credibility of the stories.
If you like mysteries, may have enjoyed Michael Dibden's Aurelio Zen and Donna Leon, try this, Montalbano is the icing on the cake.
An excellent read March 3, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The whole series has proved to be an excellent buy; I've even taken the Montalbano recommendation to read the Spanish author Montalban & his series of detective novels (also excellent BTW & highly recommended)I just hope that Andrea Camilleri can write fast enough
Gritty November 19, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a great book. We have all the usual things to love about Montalbano, his obssession with his lunch, his disastrous love life, his sometimes incompetent staff, with a fantastic story of murder, intrigue and obsessive love. This is very dark in places, and the end has a wonderfully macabre twist which finishes off what is already a fantastic story perfectly. Montalbano is investigating the disappearance of a fraudulent businessman and the damage that his behaviour has wrought on the population of the local town.
The pace is taut, the plotting good and the characters wonderfully drawn. The difficulties that may happen with a translation are dealt with with the translator's glossary at the back of the book, and this is a worthy addition to the genre.
Best so far October 15, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
This is arguably the paciest and least put-downable in the series to date. The characters have developed and matured, and Montalbano is starting to seem more credible as he twists, turns and agonises his way through his world. This is not a book to read out of order - sorry, you need to go through the highs and lows of the other 6 to get the best out of it, but it is worth it. There is less of the Sicilian scenery and more of the storyline and the characters, and I think it is the better for it, although the glossary at the back of the book is always handy!
 Amusing Montalbano Quirks and Follies While Pursuing a Minor Mystery August 16, 2007
The Smell of the Night is the only one of the first six books to lack a decent mystery. Inspector Montalbano is as amusing as ever as he trashes an uninhabited villa, challenges a tease, deals with the remnants of incompetent laundering, desperately searches for new places to dine, tries to show he isn't really middle-aged, and solves a crime he isn't supposed to go near. There's the usual byplay at the station as Catarella mangles words and Fazio tries to inveigle Montalbano to sign stacks of paperwork for hours. In between, there are delicious meals and quiet interludes to think things over.
The book's plot involves a missing financier, Emanuele Gargano, who appears to have been running a Ponzi scheme (paying out large returns to early investors by using the money deposited by new investors). When the payment date occurs, the financier is nowhere to be found. One of his staff members, Giacomo Pellegrino, is also gone. But the dedicated middle-aged teller, Mariastella Cosentino, still mans the office . . . despite threats from angered depositors. Another assistant, the attractive Michela Manganaro, is licking her wounds after not having been paid for two months. But she can dish the dirt, and Montalbano gets some helpful clues.
On the serious side, headquarters has learned about the adoption Montalbano had arranged after another case, and Montalbano has to cover his tracks. As he does, he finds some good and not-so-good news. In addition, Mimi is getting close to marriage . . . but cold feet are also setting in. Will his nerve hold?
Will Montalbano's relationship with Livia survive some prevarications on the part of each?
If you are a devoted fan of the series, be sure to read the book. It contains some nice character development. But don't expect much of a mystery. After all, how hard can it be to solve a Ponzi scheme case with a missing financier? There has to be a money trail . . . and that can be turned into a physical trail.
Enjoy a pleasant taste if Sicily!
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