TV - Montalbano: Par Condicio

Overall a good episode, except for the ridiculousness of the staged meeting with Montalbano and the heads. A mafia don's son-in-law is found dead at the bottom of a quarry. No accident, his face was blown off before his fall. It seems to have all the signs of a mob hit. Needless to say, it starts a mob war between the Cuffaros and Sinagras. Only Montalbano doesn't think it's a mob hit at all.

Meanwhile, an elderly man reports his young Russian caregiver missing.

Catarella gets a much bigger role in this episode, a lot more character development. First, he's physically out at the quarry taking care of things. As he's searching for snails for dinner, he happens on an abandoned scooter and has the good sense to haul it to the station. As he's heading there with it, he bumps into Mimi and family on the way. And he's crucial to the hunt for the caregiver's kidnapper.

Spoilers in comments section.

TV - Montalbano: Il Gioco delle Tre Carte

Best one to date! Great story, very interesting, somewhat mysterious. Lot more silly comedy, though still ok.

Two parallel stories, both involving beautiful women: Mimi's in charge of finding an embezzler, Tarantino, who ran off with over a million euros. He's convinced the thief isn't far off, because the wife is an unbelievably gorgeous, sexy creature, so he's got her under surveillance for 3 months so far.

But he just got another case, a clear-cut hit-and-run involving an elderly man who may have been drunk. He's ready to write it off. Montalbano, however, gets a tip from the elderly guy's partner that fishy things, like crank calls, had been happening prior to his death. His investigation leads Montalbano to a 20-year old murder of one of the guy's partners by his best friend. He'd been having an affair with the partner's wife, and didn't have an alibi. So he'd spent 20 yrs in jail, and had just been released.

After spending 5 mins at Mrs. Tarantino's flat, Montalbano figures out what's going on. He also figures out the second case, where the wife had put out a hit on her husband and framed her lover. The killer had gone into exile, and had just come back, blackmailing the elderly guy who had set up the hit (wouldn't pay so got killed), and the woman who had ordered it (paid up). The killer's own father killed him because he couldn't believe what a murdering monster he'd spawned.

TV - Montalbano: Il Senso Del Tatto

Pretty good episode. Blind guy dies, big black guide dog Orlando ends up outside. Montalbano immediately sniffs out something odd. Leads him to a 'vacation' with Livia to outlying island where he uncovers a desperate hotel owner, a fisherman who catches nothing but has state of the art computers and multiple TV setup. Turns out to be a sordid ring of drug smuggling by the blind guys who hide the product in their canes, with a barking seeing eye dog as a distraction. Orchestrated by a very respectable advancing political figure. The scene where Montalbano asks where Orlando is, and gives the guy a choice of 2 guns/scenarios was really good. They find him in an undercave dog fighting ring at the end. Catarella is so cute in his outrage at the dogs' treatment. Nice.

Book - Rounding The Mark

Good read. Most brooding book so far in the series, though not as dark as Aurelio Zen. Camilleri's seriously outraged with the establishment and taking it out in this book. His disillusionment with the 'establishment' starts to reach a breaking point. The most character development yet, including his own physical limitations.

The police force's excessive use of force and frame-up job at the G8 summit gives law enforcement a black eye, which Montalbano takes as a personal affront to his own professional reputation. While he's taking his usual swim, he bumps into a corpse. In addition, he also crosses paths with a illegal immigrant boy whose behavior puzzles him. These two people intersect in the course of his investigation, thru a sordid world of human trafficking, to a 'blockbuster' kind of ending, which was a little letdown. Doesn't matter, though, excellent book overall.

Book - The Patience Of The Spider

Very ambivalent about this book. Can't decide whether I like it or not. Merits a second reading later.

It's definitely the most introspective one in the series, and departs significantly from previous books. For the first time, Montalbano's not solving a murder, but a kidnapping. And he's not really supposed to be solving anything. He's recovering from a gunshot wound, Livia's come to nurse him, and Mimi's taken over his duties temporarily. He's instead consulting with the investigative head.

His disillusionment is strongest in this work, as he tries to understand a hatred and revenge so naked that it overrode all other considerations.

TV - Montalbano: Gli arancini di Montalbano

Man, is Montalbano sexy! This was one of the best episodes I've seen so far: tight story, good pacing, good script. Even the issue of illegal Albanians is nicely woven into the story without sounding preachy.

Montalbano's very popular: everyone's invited him to celebrate New Year's with them. Sadly, he's stuck going to Paris with Livia. Even worse: he'll be missing Adelina's deep fried rice croquettes! Luckily (?!?), an accident with 2 fatalities gives him the perfect excuse to stay and investigate all the way up to New Year's Eve, when he gets to sample his housekeeper's food with her family. Meanwhile, he keeps getting Mimi into hot water with Beba. And he uncovers a tale of revenge where a bastard child (the auto mechanic) screws his dad's wife, sets them both up to die in a 'malfunctioning' car, and frames the legitimate son. When he knows he's been found out, he shoots himself in front of his beloved mother's grave.

TV - Montalbano: Tocco d'Artista

Not one of the better ones for me, because I didn't get the whole Sicilian vendetta thing (yeah, yeah, Godfather I/II/III notwithstanding). One brother's elaborately planned revenge against the other for something done decades back when they both liked the same girl. He commits suicide, but makes it look like his brother murdered him.

TV - Montalbano: Gatto e Cardellino

Really predictable story, but always sooooo enjoyable. Many comic moments in this one, really fun to watch. A rash of odd mysterious old women muggings/shootings by a church turns out to be the setup work of the hubby who paid someone to off his wife. Some guy disappears and presumed dead, but Montalbano sniffs out the real story: Idiot doctor got some girl preggers, disappears with wife after providing for girl at church.

Wow, that Mimi's some hound dog!!

TV - Montalbano: La Gita a Tindari

Another great, funny acting job by Montalbano that had many funny moments. First one Hubby's seen, and he thought it was really well-done, much better than most of the US TV drivel. He's reading The Shape of Water now. That's a huge compliment, the man's not a big mystery reader.

Coincidentally have just gotten to this book now, and it'll be very interesting to see how it's similar/diverges from the TV version.

Plot: Guy gets shot outside his apt building. Older couple disappears, also from the same building. Obviously related. Thru the maze of clues, an audience and phone call from the local mafiosi capo, a horrifying trade in live body parts is uncovered.

Book - Voice of the Violin

Very good book. Well-thought out plot, story bit pedestrian but very tiny flaw. Entertaining read, just laugh-out-loud funny and so sad in places.

Woman is suffocated in her own home. Evidence of consensual sexual activity, and she's naked. Clothes nowhere to be found. Extremely odd. And how does a famous maestro recluse factor into it?

Book - The Snack Thief

Great book, but a wee bit confusing. Writing is absolutely delightful. A dream. One flaw is that it was so convoluted that he had to use the literary device of explaining the entire situation to the commissioner (us). That's weak. But I really didn't care, can be overlooked.

A Tunisian gets killed in a boat off international waters. Dispute over what happened and where. Some guy gets stabbed in elevator. Seemingly unrelated. Montalbano puts it together, rescuing a young boy along the way, whom Livia completely loses her heart for.

Book - The Terracotta Dog

GREAT book! What a sad story, but told with a good dose of humor, and not bogged down with moribund sentimentality. OMG, I laughed aloud several times. Acerbic wit flows from the pages, and I LOVE the sparse writing style. Brief, pointed but extremely evocative.

Book - The Shape of Water

Excellent book! Really fun and easy to read, quick, acerbic wit and fun tongue-in-cheek snappy lines. Translation little off, I could tell in places where the translation was word-for-word, and should have been given a different English phrase altogether, but minor quibbles - not enough to distract from the overall work.

Really liking the Montalbano character.

TV - Montalbano: La Forma Dell'acqua

Very good show, pretty good story, can't wait to read the book. Sly, funny, sharp and sardonic dialogue. Sexy, sexy man.

Rest of the Montalbano series

Came in the mail today. Yippee.

TV - Montalbano: Il Giro Di Boa

Luca Zingaretti is sexy as hell. Great as Montalbano. Even if the story was pretty obvious, it was very engaging and kept my interest. A few parts were cheesy, but flaws aside, well done. Beautiful scenery shots. Good supporting cast.

Bought all the books, English translation. Can't wait to get into them. Would have been better in the original Italian, I'm sure. Darned. LOVE that accent.