Tangled Web UK Review January 2008
Crimini: The Bitter Lemon Book of Italian Crime Fiction by
Giancarlo De Cataldo
pbk out December 07
(Bitter Lemon Press)
at £8.99
Bitter Lemon provides us with nine varied stories from the canon of Italian crime
fiction; stories by Niccolo Ammaniti, Andrea Camilleri, Massimo Carlotto, Carlo
Lucarelli, Marcello Fois, and others. If I told you one concerned a man involved in far-
left politics, who was falsely accused of murder, acquitted then convicted (no double
jeopardy in Italy), who then fled to Mexico and was tortured in a case of mistaken
identity, returned to Italy, served his sentence and was pardoned, you would think I was
detailing one of the stories, and think it far-fetched. It wasn't – that is the real life of
Massimo Carlotto. These stories are about ordinary, often inept criminals but
extraordinary situations.
We have the case of the drug-addicted cosmetic surgeon who in an emergency
stashes his cocaine in the bosom of the woman whose boobs he is enhancing. Emerging
form a short prison sentence for fraud, he is determined to recover his coke stash in
increasingly bizarre ways. In another tale, Bruno, a phone engineer, picks up a call
intended for another Bruno altogether, and finds his life and the life of his new girl-friend
tragically changed. But can he convince the police and the gang chasing him that it is all
just a case of mistaken identity? There is a story of an inept kidnapping that turns nasty,
only saved from disaster by the genuine care the woman has for the young boy she is
"borrowing", and the efforts of the Lithuanian street musician who helps her extricate
herself from the problem. Foreigners figure large in several stories, where the Italian
underworld is seen to be taken over by Croatian gangsters and Chinese triads.
Each story has its own distinct mood, but all sparkle with a particular sheen, a
sense of panache and style that is quintessentially Italian. Each is populated with
characters that could only be Italian – the attractive female Flying Squad member who
strips naked to show she has no bug on her, the young and doomed anarchist, the
politician who uses his position to get his way with the police. I have my favourites
among the stories, you will have your own. I guarantee this anthology will induce
everyone who reads it to hunt out more from their most popular authors.
(
Ian Morson
Author of Falconer books and short listed for 1999 Ellis Peters Historical Crime Dagger)
Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online
