The Shape of Water
Summary:
Silvio Lupanello, a big-shot in Vigàta, is found dead in his car with his pants around his knees. The car happens to be parked in a part of town used by prostitutes and drug dealers, and as the news of his death spreads, the rumors begin. Enter Inspector Salvo Montalbano, Vigàta’s most respected detective. With his characteristic mix of humor, cynicism, compassion, and love of good food, Montalbano battles against the powerful and corrupt who are determined to block his path to the real killer. [summary from https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/289737/the-shape-of-water-by-andrea-camilleri/]
Group Reviews/Comments:
Thumbs in the middle. I liked the title, and how it was referenced in the book. Fast read, and easy. And the mystery was interesting as was the morality of the inspector. Didn’t like how sex was used in this book. Something about it seemed off somehow. Solution was interesting as was how inspector dealt with it. Liked Montalbano as a character.
I liked it. it was a fast read. Very much like a soap opera—so much going on. Corruption, mafia, sex, etc. Hard to follow where he was going throughout the novel if you didn’t know geography of Sicily. I liked the humor too.
Thumbs in the middle. There were a lot of characters for a really short book. Didn’t like a few of the characters. Hard to keep track of non-western names.
Thumbs up. Montalbano so interesting. Having been in Sicily I feel it had a good sense of place. I like the eccentric characters—pimps, corrupt politicians, etc. Characters of detectives brought out more in subsequent novels.
Thumbs down. A quick read. I don’t remember hardly anything about it though. Just not anything to hold my interest.
Thumbs up. Would read some more. Felt like a farce. The Italian names were hard. I liked the mystery.
A good first book in series, but maybe not great.
Very hard to keep track of the characters–and convoluted, sexist, racist, vulgar, and everyone is corrupt. Ugh.
I enjoyed it. I liked the political part of the story, although at times it was confusing. It seemed like a perfect Sicilian-based story. The Swedish woman heavy handed and stereotypical. An okay first book in series, look forward to further in series.
Thumbs down. But because of the translation, not the story. But I enjoyed how Montalbano worked inside of the corrupt system. From a mystery standpoint, I enjoyed how the solution was disclosed. It was hard to figure out his motivation in seeking out an answer to a question that didn’t need to be asked.
It wasn’t for me, and I found the beginning very boring. I felt that it picked up once we met with the window and the Swedish woman, but it still didn’t deliver in the end for me. I understand that it’s a first in series and since I liked the Inspector, I might give the second book a chance.
It took me a week to get through the first part of the book. Did anyone notice that a page consisted of three to five sentences, because that is how long the sentences were? The beginning was missing emotion but the detective delivered when he tried to make all things right and fair. He made up for the terrible beginning. It seems like the first book is always a hit-or-miss, because the author is trying to establish character, plot…everything else. If I had to read the second book, I would.
[It] was rather silly, it’s redeeming quality was that was short. Thumbs down.
I couldn’t finish it.
Quick read for me and I really love the wit, reminds me of a Dickens kind of humor. Almost finished with it and can’t wait to see how it ends!
