It feels like the life has gone out of this series, as if Camilleri is phoning it in. There's nothing glaringly wrong with this novel (as there was with The Dance of the Seagull), but there's also not much to recommend it. Another example of the twisted brilliance of Mr Camilleri, and quite simply, una lettura perfetta… Add to this Camilleri’s trademark portrayal of the sights, sounds and culinary aspects of Montalbano’s home turf, the never ending ups and downs of his relationships with both the luscious Livia and Scandinavian temptress Ingrid, Montalbano’s melancholic musings, and the ease and comic touch with which Camilleri immerses us back into the colourful world of his regular troop of characters, and this is once again a book impossible to fault. Confronted with a huge spread of religious icons and the startling inclusion of a bizarre blow-up-doll, Montalbano once again finds himself caught up in a bizarre investigation, further complicated by the arrival of another blow-up-doll (with the inevitable Italian version of ‘Carry-On’ that this produces) and the wilful inclusion of Montalbano in a strange treasure hunt, reflected by the book’s title. A couple of elderly religious extremists begin taking pot-shots from their apartment at innocent passers by, resulting in a sudden case of immolation and a need for Montalbano to go, in the words of sidekick Catarella, all ‘Brussi Villesi’ to gain access to said apartment. So bring on The Treasure Hunt…įrom the outset, The Treasure Hunt, combines the dark and light elements that Camilleri is renowned for. Indeed, with each new book Camilleri admirably deceives us, as these tales combine in the reader a sense of the comfortably familiar, but equally he delights in intentionally unsettling us by the intervention of some strange, or more usually, hilarious moment that changes the direction of the narrative. There is something about the quality of Camilleri’s writing that there is always some slight nuance or unexpected event that catches you off-guard, revealing to the reader another facet to the character of the remarkable Inspector Montalbano.
Indeed, with each new book Camilleri admirably deceives us, as these tales combine in the reader a sense of the comforta If anyone was to ask what books would accompany me to a desert island, the entire Montalbano series to date would be a strong contender.
If anyone was to ask what books would accompany me to a desert island, the entire Montalbano series to date would be a strong contender. Shortly after, the inspector begins to receive cryptic messages in verse from someone challenging him to go on a “treasure hunt.” Intrigued, he accepts, treating the messages as amusing riddles - until they take a dangerous turn.more Montalbano is hailed as a hero when news cameras film him scaling a building - gun in hand - to capture the ancient pair of unlikely snipers.
An elderly brother and sister open fire on the piazza below their apartment, punishing the people of Vigàta for their sins. Montalbano is hailed as a hero when news cameras film him scaling a building - gun in hand - to capture the anci The sixteenth irresistible mystery in the New York Times bestselling Montalbano series.Ī hail of bullets interrupts a period of dead calm. A hail of bullets interrupts a period of dead calm. The sixteenth irresistible mystery in the New York Times bestselling Montalbano series.