"Murder on a hot Florence night"

It's the month of August and in Italy everyone is off on vacation except the crooks and the carabiniere. Marshal Guarnaccia is called to the home of one of the better known crooks, Paulo Paoletti. His eldest daughter has just been found murdered.

The household atmosphere is very strange even under these circumstances. The dead woman has a three year old son, but her mother and sister refuse to care for him. Several Eastern European women who wind up caring for him. Senora Paoletti is obviously intoxicated, but her daughter says she never touches a drop. Several shady characters appear and the Marshal discovers the family fortune seems to be founded on a very upscale strip club. He must follow a complex set of relationships to find out why Sylvana was murdered.

Magdalen Nabb sets her books in Florence, and clearly she enjoys showing you around. This is her thirteenth and, unhappily, final book. The marshal is clearly an old friend, whose character is well established and fully rounded. If you can't go traveling this summer, a short visit to Florence is in order

Reviewed by Susan Geear
Posted February 10, 2009