Medusa (2003)

A great, comfortable Dibden crime mystery. Not too demanding but a great read. ( )

This was a real treat and somewhat of a relief because I'd tried reading the fourth installment in the Aurelio Zen series, Dead Lagoon, and was worried that I'd already read all the good books. Not to worry: this is a great entry in the series, exactly what I want out of a Zen book.

The mystery is intriguing -- a body is found in a disused military tunnel and is believed to have been there for about 30 years. Is it an accident? One may think so, but the disappearance of the body from the morgue, at the hands of government officials no less, makes Zen suspect otherwise. The involvement of a top-secret military organization also ups the stakes.

Zen as a character is amusing as usual, especially when he is struggling with technology and cars (to borrow a description of George Smiley from Smiley's People, he "lives on terms of mutual hatred with the combustion engine"). Zen is asked if his love interest is "on-line". "On what line?" Zen asks, causing me to almost roar with laughter on the bus. Later on Zen attempts to drive through morning rush hour, incurring the wrath of bumper-to-bumper commuters who know exactly where they're going and have no patience with the "bumbling amateur" who does not know the system. Little details like that are what make the character for me. He's also very resourceful in solving the crime, as he has to be in this case because his enquiries are strictly off the record.

I also like how Dibdin sprinkles in Italian dialogue, just enough to remind us that we're in Italy, and provides enough of an explanation to give the non-native speaker an idea of how that statement would be received. For example, at one point Zen says "I won't do anything to you," and the Italian sentence uses an emphatic personal pronoun: "*I* won't do anything to you," with the implication being, "…but someone else might." Very interesting for language buffs.

Overall this book is worth a read for Zen fans. ( )

The mystery at the heart of Medusa works fine. Author Dibdin sets up the pins, and detective Zen knocks them down, one by one, searching out the truth. I think the plot was supposed to show Zen making a miscalculation at a key point, but I didn't notice it. Instead, the detective felt almost ideally competent, steadily driving towards the mystery's solution. The real pleasure of the tale, though, lies in Dibdin's lyrical descriptions of places and ironic asides on regional subcultures. The other, earlier Zen novels I've read were much darker; in this one, Zen is more relaxed, and in a healthier relationship. Not sure if that reflects a temporary interlude or a permanent maturation of the character, but it makes for a satisfying read. ( )

A good read. The rapid introduction of characters made it difficult to follow immediately but it is a book you can settle into. It was recommeded to me because I am a fan of Donna Leon but the differences were quite palpable. ( )