{"id":19504,"date":"2022-01-02T09:33:01","date_gmt":"2022-01-02T14:33:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=19504"},"modified":"2022-01-02T09:34:41","modified_gmt":"2022-01-02T14:34:41","slug":"riccardino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/19504","title":{"rendered":"Riccardino"},"content":{"rendered":"

Riccardino<\/a><\/em> (2020\/2021) Andrea Camilleri<\/a> translated by Stephen Sartarelli (Inspector Montalbano Mystery)<\/p>\n

\"Riccardino\"<\/a>Andrea Camilleri died in 2019. He had written this book and sent it to his editor, to be published after his death.<\/p>\n

This is the final novel with Inspector Montalbano as its protagonist. I first started writing it in July 2004 and finished it in August 2005. I will not write any more in the series. I regret this, but at eighty years of age, one cannot avoid the fact that many, too many things must come to an end.
\n…
\nThen, in November 2016, after turning ninety-one and feeling surprised at still being alive and still wanting to keep writing, I thought it might be a good idea to \u201cadjust\u201d the story of Riccardino. I\u2019ve lost my eyesight and therefore had no choice but to ask my friend Valentina to read it to me aloud. As I was listening I became surprised at my own words. I no longer remembered the story, which I found good and unfortunately still relevant. And in fact I changed nothing in the plot. But I did find it necessary to bring the language up to date.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This book is unlike any other Montalbano story.<\/p>\n

For one, Camilleri inserts himself into the story.<\/p>\n

Montalbano suddenly felt extremely agitated. Some years back he\u2019d had the brilliant idea to tell a local writer the story of a case he\u2019d conducted, and the guy had immediately spun it into a novel. Since hardly anyone reads anymore in Italy, nothing came of it. And so, being unable to say no to that tremendous pain-in-the-ass of a man, he\u2019d gone ahead and told him about a second case, and then a third and a fourth, which the author then wrote up in his way, using an invented language and working from his imagination.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He doesn’t just break the third wall in this story, he demolishes it and then dances on the rubble.<\/p>\n

Of course, we get all our favorite characters and Montalbano tropes.<\/p>\n

The door crashed hard against the wall, a bit of plaster fell to the floor, the inspector leapt to his feet, and Catarella begged his pardon, saying his hand had slipped. The usual ritual, in other words.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fazio, feeling denied the pleasure of reciting all of Milioto\u2019s personal particulars from the get-go, leapt up from his chair as if bitten by a tarantula.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It is a romp, and the bits where Montalbano and Camilleri talk are delightful.<\/p>\n

You put up a good fight, Inspector. But let\u2019s end it right here. I can\u2019t show off too much erudition, since I\u2019m considered a genre writer.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I need to think a bit more about the ending, and how I feel about it, but overall I found it quite satisfying. I’m sad there will be no more books, but happy we were left with this story to close the series.<\/p>\n

Publisher: Penguin Books
\nRating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Riccardino (2020\/2021) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli (Inspector Montalbano Mystery) Andrea Camilleri died in 2019. He had written this book and sent it to his editor, to be published after his death. This is the final novel with Inspector Montalbano as its protagonist. I first started writing it in July 2004 and finished it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[12,292,204,8,42,38],"tags":[94,95,54],"class_list":["post-19504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-10","category-ebook","category-good","category-mystery","category-police","category-translated","tag-andrea-camilleri","tag-inspector-montalbano","tag-italy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-54A","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5241,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/5241","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":0},"title":"The Shape of Water","author":"Michelle","date":"May 3, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Shape of Water (1994\/2002) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli This is the first Inspector Montalbano story, and was supposed to be the only Montalbano story, however, the character got away from the author, and we now have many books to enjoy. \u201cInspector Montalbano? This is Mr. Luparello.\u201d \u201cWhat\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mystery"","block_context":{"text":"Mystery","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/mystery"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/SHape-of-Water.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":872,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/872","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":1},"title":"Excursion to Tindari","author":"Michelle","date":"December 29, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Excursion to Tindari (2000) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli A young man is found dead just outside his front door in what seems to be a mafia killing. This event would have passed almost unnoticed, except that a distraught man calls to report that his parents--who live in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/Excursion-Tindari.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":929,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/929","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":2},"title":"The Paper Moon","author":"Michelle","date":"January 27, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"The Paper Moon (2005) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli I am sad. I have now read all the Inspector Montalbano books that have been published and translated into English. August Heat comes out later this year, but after that? No more Inspector Montalbano for me--at least until the next\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mystery"","block_context":{"text":"Mystery","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/mystery"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/Paper-Moon.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5248,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/5248","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":3},"title":"The Snack Thief","author":"Michelle","date":"May 10, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Snack Thief (1996\/2003) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli Obviously, Camilleri didn't stop after the second book, so we have the third in the series, which finds Montalbano investigating the stabbing death of an elderly man, while elsewhere, a fisherman is shot to death in a typically international incident\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/Snack-Thief.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":841,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/841","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":4},"title":"The Terra Cotta Dog","author":"Michelle","date":"November 30, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"The Terra Cotta Dog (1996) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartaelli In the second Inspector Salvo Montalbano book, Montalbano is called by his friend Gege--the head of local prostitution--to meet, because Gege has something he has been asked to discuss with Montalbano. From here, Montalbano is drawn into organized crime,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mystery"","block_context":{"text":"Mystery","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/mystery"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/Terra-Cotta-Dog.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":899,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/899","url_meta":{"origin":19504,"position":5},"title":"The Patience of the Spider","author":"Michelle","date":"January 9, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"The Patience of the Spider (2004) Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli The problem with Inspector Montalbano books is that if I pick one up, I tend to read the entire book in an evening. Which isn't so good on a week night. 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