thrillers

I very much enjoyed this book. It will appeal to and be sought out by readers of series crime novels set in vividly depicted locations. Readers of Michael Dibdin's Aurelio Zen series, which features another Rome-based cop, Donna Leon's Inspector Brunetti, and Barbara Nadel's Istanbul cop, Inspector Ikmen should enjoy this as well.

The identity of the killer is unknown to the reader for about the first half of the book. It is then revealed to the reader, so in that sense there is no last-page denoument. However, there are other mysteries around motivation that propel the mystery forward and keep the reader guessing til (almost) the end!

If you are squeamish about fairly graphic depictions of violence you may not be as drawn to this book. I compare it to some of the scenes in, for example, Carol O'Connell's 'Killing Critics', featuring New York cop Mallory.

Hewson manages to depict a sense of place very successfully, so Rome assumes an identity as a 'character' alongside the human protagonists. Anyone with an interest in the art of Caravaggio will be equally enthralled, as Nic Costa, the young main character cop, is an afficianado. There is some vivid imagery involving several of the paintings of that 17th century Roman 'badboy'.

The story opens in a Vatican reading room where a professor brandishing both a gun and an epidermis is shot to death by the Vatican guards. Shortly thereafter, two more bodies are found killed in a most grotesque manner. Nic Costa, a young Roman detective is assigned to the case. At the forefront of the murders is university professor Sara Fornese. Sara is linked to each of the victims. The puzzle deepens as more people are murdered, each one representative of the death of a martyr of the Church. Sara is put into Nic's protective custody while trying to unravel truth from fiction.

This is one of the more unusual thrillers that I have read in a long time due to the setting and the uniqueness of the characters. The story has more than one mystery embedded within, and the beautifully maintained suspense increases until the very end. Hewson has woven an intense, complex plot that takes us on a realistic journey into the life of abuse and co-dependency. This was an intriguing debut for the protagonist of Nic Costa. The only real complaint is that the violence was very, very graphic. I would recommend this book to readers who are not squeamish

A serial killer is wandering the sweltering streets of Rome when Nic Costa and Luca Rosta begin their investigation into a series of murders depicting scenes of martydom from various painting - which all seem connected to Professor Sara Faranese; Nic has to discover this connection while being increasily drawn to Sara.

I found the Italian police both frustrating and intriguing along with the inner workings of the Vatacian and Cardinal Denney's relationship with Sara (which confuses Nic even more for Sara is a very complex and sexually active women.)

You'll find yourself asking 'why' around every corner as you attempt to figure out this more than interesting, more than run of the mill, more than the same of crime drama - mystery - and it'll be worth every page you turn!