The Voice of the Violin: An Inspector Montalbano Mystery

Rating:
Summary: Nice Misdirections
Review: Camilleri injects some twisted ingenuity into this Inspector Montalbano plot. In many ways this has the hallmarks of a classic whodunnit, by commencing the story with the naked, murdered corpse of a beautiful woman. An obvious suspect quickly emerges, and the Inspector assiduously collects data. But the suspect dies under cloudy circumstances, which turn out to be unrelated to the original murder. Camilleri deploys misdirections, but eventually our Inspector solves it all. Aided as always by fine Sicilian cooking.

Apart from the obvious differences between Sicily and the US, alert American readers may notice something else. The book is set in 1996-7. There is common, casual use of cellphones. At that time, these were still rare in the US. A comparable American novel set then would probably have to make some glancing remark as to their novelty.

Rating:
Summary: Fatal Mistakes
Review: If you decide that you want to read this book, be sure to read The Snack Thief first. Many of the references in the book don't make a lot of sense without that background. Otherwise, you will think this is a two or a three star book.

The Voice of the Violin is deftly written. It captures all of the confusing elements of a disjointed case in which the clues are deeply hidden. I didn't tumble to the full scale of the mystery until quite near the end, when Mr. Camilleri chose to make it transparent. Here's a sample of the writing from the opening paragraph: "Inspector Salvo Montalbano could immediately tell that it was not going to be his day . . . . [T]he darkness was already lifting . . . to reveal . . . a sea that looked like a Pekingese dog. Ever since a tiny dog of that breed . . . had bitten painfully into his calf . . . Montalbano saw the sea this way whenever it was whipped up . . . . His mood darkened . . . . He had to attend a funeral."

The story opens with Montalbano's futile efforts to attend that funeral in Floridia, after receiving a mangled telephone message from the ever annoying Catarella. In a day that resembles a frustration dream, Montalbano misses the funeral. The only effect of his journey is to have Gallo's efforts to evade a chicken cause the police car to clip a passenger car. Leaving a note on the car's windshield, Montalbano becomes curious when no one calls the station about making repairs. He visits the house where the car is parked and finds no one at home. As this recurs, he decides to let himself in at night with his picklocks. He finds a sight that sickens him; a beautiful nude woman has been murdered in her bed.

From there, the story takes on a Keystone Kops-like character. Montalbano must arrange for the victim to be discovered without revealing his own illegal actions. With aplomb, he recruits an anonymous phone caller and cynically decides to save his own time by calling the judge, forensics team and coroner about the body before even arriving at the house. Once there, he's sickened again by the way the policemen react to seeing the bare woman. Going against police procedures, but following his heart, he covers her with a bathrobe. That mistake leads to powerful consequences when his changing of the crime scene causes him to be removed from the case. An incompetent investigation follows that centers on a half-wit stalker. When that investigation takes a terrible turn, Montalbano calls all of his colleagues together and swears them to secrecy . . . they are taking over the investigation on their own, but it must be done totally covertly.

Montalbano finds the case to be mystifying. Why is the beautiful young wife of an older successful doctor spending all of her time alone in Sicily building a house that he never visits? The victim also seems to have acted uncharacteristically on the day of her death. Why? The men in her life all make a bad impression on Montalbano at first. A lot of valuable jewelry is missing. Is this a theft that led to a murder or a murder disguised by a theft? It's isn't clear until near the end.

In the background, Montalbano finds himself attracted to the victim's friend, Anna, who reciprocates the attraction. Livia is pressing Montalbano on his promise of marriage . . . but from a distance, and the efforts to adopt Francois are being delayed by legal problems which are driving Livia wild.

The story also has a fine comic subplot line based on Catarella's taking computer lessons which have a surprising impact on him.

I enjoyed the new character in the series, Cataldo Barbera. He's a violin virtuoso who lives a hermit's existence . . . and plays an unusual private performance for his neighbor on Friday mornings.

The book is flawed, however, by having an improbable plot in many dimensions that I found annoying. More seriously, there's a cynical view of human nature expressed here that I found powerful, but disgusting to contemplate. If you are like me, you will find the ultimate description of the murder's method and its motive to be repulsive.

The book falls far below the promise of that astonishingly fine book, The Terra-Cotta Dog, and The Snack Thief. If you read only one book in this series, make it The Terra-Cotta Dog.

Clearly, Mr. Camilleri wanted this book to speak to us about the consequences of what we do. Our actions do make a difference. He succeeded very well in making that point. I finished the book wondering about how my life would have been different if I had done things in other ways in the past. It's a thought worth considering. If that point had not come across so well, I would have graded this book at three stars . . . despite its superb writing.

Rating:
Summary: Fatal Mistakes
Review: If you decide that you want to read this book, be sure to read The Snack Thief first. Many of the references in the book don't make a lot of sense without that background. Otherwise, you will think this is a two or a three star book.

The Voice of the Violin is deftly written. It captures all of the confusing elements of a disjointed case in which the clues are deeply hidden. I didn't tumble to the full scale of the mystery until quite near the end, when Mr. Camilleri chose to make it transparent. Here's a sample of the writing from the opening paragraph: "Inspector Salvo Montalbano could immediately tell that it was not going to be his day . . . . [T]he darkness was already lifting . . . to reveal . . . a sea that looked like a Pekingese dog. Ever since a tiny dog of that breed . . . had bitten painfully into his calf . . . Montalbano saw the sea this way whenever it was whipped up . . . . His mood darkened . . . . He had to attend a funeral."

The story opens with Montalbano's futile efforts to attend that funeral in Floridia, after receiving a mangled telephone message from the ever annoying Catarella. In a day that resembles a frustration dream, Montalbano misses the funeral. The only effect of his journey is to have Gallo's efforts to evade a chicken cause the police car to clip a passenger car. Leaving a note on the car's windshield, Montalbano becomes curious when no one calls the station about making repairs. He visits the house where the car is parked and finds no one at home. As this recurs, he decides to let himself in at night with his picklocks. He finds a sight that sickens him; a beautiful nude woman has been murdered in her bed.

From there, the story takes on a Keystone Kops-like character. Montalbano must arrange for the victim to be discovered without revealing his own illegal actions. With aplomb, he recruits an anonymous phone caller and cynically decides to save his own time by calling the judge, forensics team and coroner about the body before even arriving at the house. Once there, he's sickened again by the way the policemen react to seeing the bare woman. Going against police procedures, but following his heart, he covers her with a bathrobe. That mistake leads to powerful consequences when his changing of the crime scene causes him to be removed from the case. An incompetent investigation follows that centers on a half-wit stalker. When that investigation takes a terrible turn, Montalbano calls all of his colleagues together and swears them to secrecy . . . they are taking over the investigation on their own, but it must be done totally covertly.

Montalbano finds the case to be mystifying. Why is the beautiful young wife of an older successful doctor spending all of her time alone in Sicily building a house that he never visits? The victim also seems to have acted uncharacteristically on the day of her death. Why? The men in her life all make a bad impression on Montalbano at first. A lot of valuable jewelry is missing. Is this a theft that led to a murder or a murder disguised by a theft? It's isn't clear until near the end.

In the background, Montalbano finds himself attracted to the victim's friend, Anna, who reciprocates the attraction. Livia is pressing Montalbano on his promise of marriage . . . but from a distance, and the efforts to adopt Francois are being delayed by legal problems which are driving Livia wild.

The story also has a fine comic subplot line based on Catarella's taking computer lessons which have a surprising impact on him.

I enjoyed the new character in the series, Cataldo Barbera. He's a violin virtuoso who lives a hermit's existence . . . and plays an unusual private performance for his neighbor on Friday mornings.

The book is flawed, however, by having an improbable plot in many dimensions that I found annoying. More seriously, there's a cynical view of human nature expressed here that I found powerful, but disgusting to contemplate. If you are like me, you will find the ultimate description of the murder's method and its motive to be repulsive.

The book falls far below the promise of that astonishingly fine book, The Terra-Cotta Dog, and The Snack Thief. If you read only one book in this series, make it The Terra-Cotta Dog.

Clearly, Mr. Camilleri wanted this book to speak to us about the consequences of what we do. Our actions do make a difference. He succeeded very well in making that point. I finished the book wondering about how my life would have been different if I had done things in other ways in the past. It's a thought worth considering. If that point had not come across so well, I would have graded this book at three stars . . . despite its superb writing.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Montalbano mystery
Review: Sicilian Inspector Salvo Montalbano is already irritated after taking a skin lashing from his live in lover Livia over a setback in their efforts to adopt Francois of THE SNACK THIEF Francois. Now Salvo is in the shotgun seat on a drive to a distant funeral that he does not want to attend.

Salvo has a new issue to cope with when he finds the body of a recently murdered young woman. He begins the inquiries from a distance hoping to avoid the trek. However, that technique fails so Salvo begins his onsite investigation. He finds the crime scene looks inconsistent as if it was tampered with and the report on the victim is even more contradictory. Was she a devoted wife and medical practitioner or was she a loose woman who enjoyed rough sex. Salvo is removed from the case for political reasons, but pushes his way back in when he believes the local cops are going down the wrong path.

This is a powerful tale even in a clever translation (by Stephen Sartarelli from the original Italian) that showcases one of the more intelligent police procedurals on the market today. Salvo is intelligent, witty and misbehaving as he steps on anyone who gets in his way on a case. On the other hand he takes rib shots in his personal life. Fans will take much delight with this strong humorous tale that displays why Andrea Camilleri is a great author and hopefully his Montalbano mysteries will reach American TV like it has in Italy.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Montalbano mystery
Review: Sicilian Inspector Salvo Montalbano is already irritated after taking a skin lashing from his live in lover Livia over a setback in their efforts to adopt Francois of THE SNACK THIEF Francois. Now Salvo is in the shotgun seat on a drive to a distant funeral that he does not want to attend.

Salvo has a new issue to cope with when he finds the body of a recently murdered young woman. He begins the inquiries from a distance hoping to avoid the trek. However, that technique fails so Salvo begins his onsite investigation. He finds the crime scene looks inconsistent as if it was tampered with and the report on the victim is even more contradictory. Was she a devoted wife and medical practitioner or was she a loose woman who enjoyed rough sex. Salvo is removed from the case for political reasons, but pushes his way back in when he believes the local cops are going down the wrong path.

This is a powerful tale even in a clever translation (by Stephen Sartarelli from the original Italian) that showcases one of the more intelligent police procedurals on the market today. Salvo is intelligent, witty and misbehaving as he steps on anyone who gets in his way on a case. On the other hand he takes rib shots in his personal life. Fans will take much delight with this strong humorous tale that displays why Andrea Camilleri is a great author and hopefully his Montalbano mysteries will reach American TV like it has in Italy.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: The real Columbo
Review: Sicilian Police Inspector Salvo Montalbano is sleeping as he is being driven to a funeral when his driver crashes into the back of a parked car on a rural road. When the sound of the crash fails to bring forth the house's occupants, the policemen leave a note. Much later on their return they find all as they have left it, and Montalbano is worried. He had good reason for worry for in the house is the naked body of a beautiful young woman, kneeling by the bed, her face pushed into the bed linens until she dies of suffocation.

At one point Montalbano wonders when did "detective" novels become "mystery" novels. It is a fair question since Montalbano is the archetypal detective, slowly peeling each layer of the onion until the mystery is revealed and then solved. He is an honest cop in a dishonest jurisdiction, but is not above a little self-help. Like cops everywhere he is vulnerable to bureaucratic ambition which has the effect of hindering his work.

Yet in the end, Montalbano prevails. It is altogether right that he should. And this is a book to be treasured for its ingenious plot and dry humor. Move over Lieutenant Columbo and meet one of your paisans Inspector Montalbano.

Rating:
Summary: VOICE OF THE VIOLIN - 'Notes' whodunit
Review: This is a murder mystery set in Sicily, with the aroma of Italian pastries and pasta, replete with questionable jurisprudence and misguided police procedures - and husbands, wives and other lovers.

Written in Italian and translated into English, series character Inspector Salvo Montalbano literally crashes into a murder crime scene while on his way to a funeral. This subtle humor continues as Montalbano must find a way to "out" the fact that a young, naked and dead woman is locked inside the quieted cottage.

The suspects include the husband of the deceased; a girlfriend; an out-of-town lover; and a quirky neighborhood admirer and sometimes stalker. Leaving no stone unturned, even a questionable judge and some trigger-happy cops are fair game for Montalbano's investigation.

While solving this crime, Montalbano has girlfriend problems of his own to mend, on top of his infatuation with the girlfriend of the deceased. Sometimes Montalbano's life is even too much for Montalbano. These times usually call for a good Italian meal and an unplugged telephone.

VOICE OF THE VIOLIN is irreverent humor, with an underlining belief that "the end justifies the means," as in half-truths, news leaks and 'anonymous' police tips. But it is the complexity of Montalbano, and the complexity of the whodunit storyline, along with the wonderful setting, that make this a thoughtful, enjoyable, fun and worthwhile read.

Rating:
Summary: Police mystery with an Italian flavor
Review: This is one in a series of mysteries set in Sicily featuring police Inspector Montalbano. American readers will enjoy the different cultural context and slant, including references to Italian politics, police practices, and cuisine. What's helpful here is a kind of glossary appended to the end of the book that will help American readers make sense of some otherwise obscure references.

The plot itself is well-structured, and the murder mystery is not unraveled until very close to the end of the story. There also are some endearingly offbeat supporting characters, some excellently well-placed "false leads," and a generous dose of dry humor.

The only drawbacks here are first, that just about any work of literature loses something in translation, and there are occasional odd-sounding passages that must seem far more eloquent in the original Italian. And second, I confess that the cavalcade of minor characters sometimes confused me, as their similar-sounding names began to spin around in my head. There also are a fair number of murder mystery cliches included, such as the victim being a "gorgeous blonde," etc.

Overall, however, this is a refreshing change of pace for fans of mysteries, and those interested in how the genre is treated in an Italian context will find it fascinating and satisfying.

Rating:
Summary: Police mystery with an Italian flavor
Review: This is one in a series of mysteries set in Sicily featuring police Inspector Montalbano. American readers will enjoy the different cultural context and slant, including references to Italian politics, police practices, and cuisine. What's helpful here is a kind of glossary appended to the end of the book that will help American readers make sense of some otherwise obscure references.

The plot itself is well-structured, and the murder mystery is not unraveled until very close to the end of the story. There also are some endearingly offbeat supporting characters, some excellently well-placed "false leads," and a generous dose of dry humor.

The only drawbacks here are first, that just about any work of literature loses something in translation, and there are occasional odd-sounding passages that must seem far more eloquent in the original Italian. And second, I confess that the cavalcade of minor characters sometimes confused me, as their similar-sounding names began to spin around in my head. There also are a fair number of murder mystery cliches included, such as the victim being a "gorgeous blonde," etc.

Overall, however, this is a refreshing change of pace for fans of mysteries, and those interested in how the genre is treated in an Italian context will find it fascinating and satisfying.

Rating:
Summary: Charming and deep mystery. Nice
Review: When his police car hits a legally parked car, Inspector Montabano has to hurry on to make his appointment. Still, he's surprised when he passes by that evening and sees the car, unmoved, his note still in the windshield. Acting on a hunch, he picks the nearby house's lock and discovers the reason why no one investigated. A beautiful woman lies smothered in her bed. Montabano begins an investigation, but is soon taken off the case. The police leadership wants faster results and more modern methods. But these modern methods lead to a police shooting and a cover-up--one that the Mafia quicly learn about and that threaten to give them power over the police. Acting against orders, Montabano decides to re-open the investigation. He's got to find some way to find the real killer, end the coverup, and eliminate the possibility of giving the Mafia blackmail control over the local police.

Author Andrea Camilleri takes his time with this mystery, giving us details of life in modern Sicily. The smells, tastes, and passions of Italy come through clearly in Camilleri's story-telling. Montalbano makes a fine protagonist with his strong cynical streak balanced by an idealistic desire to find the real killer and to protect his police force. Montalbano's personal problems (the failure of his attempt to adopt and the deterioration of his relationship with Livia) add to the character depth and his relationship with his fellow officers gives the story just the right comic touch.

I enjoyed the way Camilleri brought in the political aspects of police work. When necessary, Montalbano used television reporters and political pressure to get at the truth. U.S. fans will also get a kick out of the way Montalbano refers to American cops and the U.S. justice system.