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Title: The Terra-Cotta Dog: An Inspector Montalbano Mystery by Andrea Camilleri, Stephen Sartarelli ISBN: 0-14-200263-1 Publisher: Penguin USA (Mm) Pub. Date: 25 March, 2003 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.86 (14 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Fantastic read
Comment: The Terra Cotta Dog is the 2nd in a series of recently translated Inspector Montalbano mysteries. Hugely popular in Europe, it's hard to see how this series will not catch on in the US (and Australia!) with the Inspector's dry humour, wit, self depracation, tenacity, and understanding of human nature.
In the midst of uncovering a mafia weapons brokering scheme, Montalbano discovers a well hidden cave with 2 long dead lovers embracing, tenderly watched over by a terra cotta dog. While his job dictates he must resolve the guns problem, it is the lovers and the dog that really grab his attention.
Not all authors can intertwine and simultaneously solve 2 mysteries, one of which began over 50 years before, during fascist World War II Italy. But Camilleri does so brilliantly, keeping you turning those pages until the end.
Of course, he doesn't forget to eat, and I'm starting to enjoy the constant aspects of his personality such as his ravenous appetite for gourmet foods.
A word should be said here regarding the translation. I don't know what a poor translation would be like, but I suspect that Sartarelli is owed some credit to the overall enjoyment of this book.
As in his other books, the story unfolds in narrative fashion. The characters are complex and believable. There is plenty of humour thrown in, and his live-away lover makes a welcome appearance also.
If you like a good mystery, you'll get 2 for one with this book, my favourite of the series.
Rating: 4
Summary: SICILIAN RECIPE FOR MYSTERY
Comment: Dependent on it's moody likable Inspector Montalbano whose Sicilian mannerisms and bohemian lifestyle carry and lie at the heart of this mystery, "The Terra-Cotta Dog" is a leisurely and fascinating journey through the streets and countryside of Sicily as the Inspector solves a mystery of preserved corpses found in a cave. It's the Inspector's love of art and music, his disdain and attraction to modern media, and his commitment to fine Italian cuisine which keeps these pages turning as the mystery itself brews as tempting as a slow cooked pasta sauce. The excitement wanes a bit as the book propels into climax which amounts to a conversation resolving all issues, but it's the time spent with the reserved yet crusty and good-hearted Inspector which makes "The Terra-Cotta Dog" so enjoyable.
Rating: 5
Summary: A really excellent book.
Comment: A Mafia leader wants out, but he has a job you don't just quit. Working with Sicilian Police Inspector Salvo Montalbano, Gaetano The Greek arranges a complex capture fantasy. The capture works, giving Montalbano more publicity than he wants and the threat of a feared promotion, but Gaetano also tells him of a cave where the Mafia hide a huge weapons cache. Montalbano investigates and finds both the weapons and an older and more complicated mystery. Two mummified bodies lie in a hidden cavern, accompanied by a water pitcher, a terra-cotta dog, and a rug. The meaning of the intwined lovers fascinates Montalbano and he virtually drops the Mafia investigation to discover what could have happened to the dead couple.
Montalbano is a fascinating and well developed character. He lives by his own moral code, pursues an ambiguous relationship with Livia, and seems to appreciate good food more than he does either women or the law. His investigation combines literary allusion, hard-core detecting, a history lesson, and intriguing mentions of the food Montalbano finds himself enjoying.
In THE TERRA-COTTA DOG, author Andrea Camilleri has a wonderful and moving story. Much of the story kept me laughing, but Camilleri maintains a darker subtext. The Mafia and Italian corruption and violence, both in the Fascist days and in the present, are an ever-present reality and form much of the story's background.
I found the story to be completely compelling and recommend it without reservation.
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Title: The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri, Stephen Sartarelli ISBN: 0142002399 Publisher: Penguin USA (Mm) Pub. Date: November, 2002 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: The Snack Thief by Andrea Camilleri, Stephen Sartarelli ISBN: 0142003492 Publisher: Penguin USA (Mm) Pub. Date: 28 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: The Voice of the Violin: An Inspector Montalbano Mystery by Andrea Camilleri, Stephen Sartarelli ISBN: 0670031437 Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: 06 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: A Noble Radiance by Donna Leon ISBN: 0142003190 Publisher: Penguin USA (Mm) Pub. Date: 26 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Uniform Justice: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery by Donna Leon ISBN: 0871139030 Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press Pub. Date: September, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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