Excursion to Tindari (2000)

An elderly couple disappears on a bus tour, a man is shot unlocking his door, and the son of a big crime boss is killed. It all comes together and is a case that makes Montalbano and his crew sick at heart. ( )

Sicily, situational-humor, verbal-humor, translated, family-dynamics, friendship, law-enforcement*****

What a complex mystery and their bureaucracy is as crazy as ours! The first murder looks like standard mafia stuff, then comes the disappearance of two pensioners. Sandwiched in between is bureaucratic nonsense and developments into the habits if the first victim that are stranger than most. As always, the team works together to get the job done and provide more than a few laughs. Great work by translator Stephen Sartarelli and by narrator Grover Gardner! ( )

Commissario Montalbano löst seinen fünften Fall.
Commissario Montalbano sind moderne Errungenschaften wie Computer und Internet hochgradig suspekt ? auch wenn dieses Teufelszeug mittlerweile selbst das Kommissariat von Vigàta erreicht hat. Als ein junger Mann ermordet aufgefunden wird und ein altes Ehepaar zeitgleich verschwindet, beweist der Commissario, dass man auch mit altbewährten Methoden modernen Kriminellen auf die Schliche kommt. Andiamo!

This is the fourth Montalbano mystery I've read and the character is definitely growing on me, as is the writing. Perhaps the excellent translator, Stephen Sartarelli, has grown more confident, but the translation of this volume is looser, more colloquial, and faster paced than earlier novels.

As usual, the novel blends a sense of place (Vigata in Sicily) with the temperamental detective, Inspector Montalbano. This time, he undertakes to understand why an elder couple who never associated with anyone went missing when they unexpectedly took a bus tour to Tindari. Was there a connection to the murder of a young man, an obvious hit job?

Along the way, Andrea Camilleri's trademark wit shows through. Between the hilarious switchboard operator Catarella and the love troubles of Montalbano's deputy Mimi, Montalbano manages his way through the bureaucracy of the Italian state and the clutches of the Mafia.

Entertaining and well written. Take a trip to Sicily with Inspector Montalbano! ( )

Inspector Montalbano appetite is dangerously flagging - meals are skipped or delayed. Or lost, understandably. Camilleri's Sicily does sound like the embodiment of interesting times, and the scenery does sound like an amazing contrast of modern skuz next to fragrant wilds. ( )