Gold, Frankincense and Dust: A Commissario Soneri Investigation by Valerio VaresiMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Commissario Soneri, Valerio Varesi's Parma detective, was new to me. Books in translation are always a little dependent on the ability of the translator to communicate the little nuances of the plot, but this is done well.
This is a decent story, centring on the discovery of a burnt out body near an autostrada pile-up, and that of an elederly man who has died on a bus heading back and forwards to Romania. Are the two deaths linked? Along the way, the book touches on the role of Roma gypsies in Italian society and how they're treated, but essentially this is a good old-fashioned detective yarn with credible characters.
It was also short, always a good thing when you're looking at a new author. I'd read more Soneri books, for sure.
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Gordon Lawrie, December 2017.
