Davide Longo

* I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book. *

Commissario Arcadipane is called out to attend the discovery of some bones at a Torino building site. The powers that be quickly decide that these are war dead, and ask that the bones be given to them so that the victims can be identified and their relatives notified. Arcadipane is not convinced, and hangs onto one bone that looks like it has a more recent provenance.

Investigations point towards a cell of leftist students who were involved in a bombing, many of whom disappeared. Arcadipane asks his retired friend Bramard to help, since he was involved in the original arson inquiry. He also ropes in Isa, a rebellious young police officer with advanced investigative skills.

I liked this book, both for its unusual setting and for the way Longo rounded his characters and used their personal flaws to help drive his plot. The plot itself ended up a long way from where I thought it would go, and had a few unexpected twists. I believe that there is an early novel focusing on Bramard, which I intend to seek out.

… (mais)

2-2023
Me ha decepcionado, esperaba otra cosa.
La parte de personajes es un poco confusa, los malos en concreto. No entiendes muy bien lo que hablan, ni dónde quieren llegar. He leído más opiniones, porque he llegado a pensar que me fallaba la comprensión lectora, y veo que le ha pasado a más gente que han leído el libro.
El final ha sido rapido, llegas a pensar que la edición que tienes entre manos, se ha comido algún capítulo. Y si no es el caso, no logro entender ese final tan rápido sin explicación alguna.… (mais)

Longo schildert ein Italien nach dem Zerfall: Die staatliche Ordnung ist zusammengebrochen, die Grenzen sind dicht, es herrscht Mangel und Gewalt. In dieser nicht allzu fernen Zukunft sucht der ehemalige Universitätsprofessor Leonardo seinen Platz und erlebt die Verrohung der Menschen und die Reduktion auf das Essentielle...

Longo gelingt es, den Leser in eine apokalyptische Atmosphäre zu versetzen, seine Analyse der menschlichen Entwicklung in Krisenzeiten ist glaubhaft, die geschilderten Eskalationsstufen nachvollziehbar. Longos Werk ist letzlich eine schlüssige Warnung, dass Sicherheit und Konsum nicht auf ewig garantiert sind.

"Der aufrechte Mann" braucht den Vergleich mit McCarthys "Die Straße" nicht zu scheuen, Longos Roman ist meines Erachtens sogar weitaus stimmiger.… (mais)

Twenty years ago Corso Bramard had it all. He was a cop in Turin with a beautiful wife & much loved daughter. Then the serial killer he’d been hunting entered the Bramard household & took it all away.
Now he’s a teacher who spends days off tempting fate with risky climbs in the local mountains. His quiet insular life is shaken up when he receives a new piece of evidence that could finally identify the killer after all these years.

Those looking for a fast paced police procedural with car chases & things that go boom should walk away. This is a work of literary fiction where Corso’s hunt for the killer merely provides the frame upon which hangs the story of this character & his nemesis. In alternate chapters, we follow the killer & gradually learn why he is ready to reveal himself. It’s like watching a chess game between 2 well matched players as we wait for each to carefully make their next move.

The prose is descriptive & at times poetic. We spend a lot of time in Corso’s head as he ponders everything from his past decisions to the mundane details of daily life. He’s a man who was gutted by loss & searches for a reason to go on. Since his wife died he’s been sitting on the sidelines, observing everything in an effort to feel something. As his friend Cesare observes, “he’s not made for other people”.
The author provides contrast by surrounding the taciturn Corso with a colourful cast that includes a former colleague, a brassy young cop & barkeep Cesare. Dialogue is kept to a minimum & the characters seem to instinctively understand the importance of what’s left unsaid.

By the end Corso comes to understand what happened 20 years ago. A big final twist rocks his world & provides a glimmer of hope that he may choose to begin living again.… (mais)