Death in August

Inspector Bordelli, Book 1

By: Marco Vichi, Stephen Sartarelli - translation

Narrated by: Tim Bruce

Crime fiction packed with Italian flavour, Death in August is the first Inspector Bordelli mystery, set in 1960s Florence - perfect for fans of Andrea Camilleri or Donna Leon.

Florence, summer 1963. Inspector Bordelli is one of the few policemen left in the deserted city. He spends his days on routine work and his nights tormented by the heat and mosquitoes. Suddenly one night, a telephone call gives him a new sense of purpose: the suspected death of a wealthy signora. Bordelli rushes to her hilltop villa and picks the locks. The old woman is lying on her bed - apparently killed by an asthma attack, though her medicine has been left untouched.

With the help of his young protégé, the victim's eccentric brother and a semiretired petty thief, the inspector begins a murder investigation. Each suspect has a solid alibi, but there is something that doesn't quite add up....

©2002 Ugo Guanda Editore (part of GeMs) (P)2018 Hodder & Stoughton Limited

Fun listen

Interesting cast of characters / story tellers propel the story amid the backdrop of post war struggles.

Not much depth

If you’re interested in an Italian environment, that part is ok. But there’s not much depth in terms of murder mystery. Enjoyable enough but not a stand out.

Fun quirky book

I enjoyed the quirky characters and the dogged determination to prove the killers. There was a somewhat disturbing and unnecessary sexual scene that did nothing to advance the plot. I will read the next and see how it goes.

Very fun

Great story and great narrator. Enjoyed it a lot . A wonderful start to the series.

Not a good book in my opinion... waste of money

I can't decide what was worse... the nearly pointless story or the droning narration. I would exchange this book, but apparently Audible has put a limit on exchanges (although I can't find that policy anywhere) . Sadly, this means I'm stuck with this awful book and will have to be incredibly picky about how i use my credits from here on out. No more trying new Authors.