Murder most unfortunate : a Rick Montoya Italian mystery

Format:

Book

Title:

Murder most unfortunate : a Rick Montoya Italian mystery

Author:

Wagner, David P author

ISBN:

9781464204340

9781464204364

Edition:

First edition.

Publication:

Scottsdale, AZ : Poisoned Pen Press, 2015.

Physical Description:

173 pages ; 23 cm.

Series title(s):

Rick Montoya Italian mysteries.

Summary:

"Winding up an interpreter in Bassano del Grappa at a conference on artist Jacopo da Bassano, a famous native son, Rick Montoya looks forward to exploring the town. And it would be fun to look into the history of two long-missing paintings by the master, a topic that caused the only dust-up among the normally staid group of international scholars attending the seminar. Bassano has much to offer to Rick the tourist, starting with its famous covered bridge, an ancient castle, and several picturesque walled towns within striking distance. He also plans to savor a local cuisine that combines the best of Venice with dishes from the Po Valley and the surrounding mountains. These plans come to a sudden halt when one of the seminar's professors turns up dead. Rick is once again drawn into a murder investigation, this time with a pair of local cops who personify the best and the worst of the Italian police force. At the same time he's willingly pulled into a relationship with Betta Innocenti, the daughter of a local gallery owner, who is equally intrigued by the lost paintings. They quickly realize that the very people who might know the story are also the main suspects in the murder--and that someone not above resorting to violence is watching their every move.

Subject(s):

Americans -- Italy -- Bassano del Grappa -- Fiction.

Painting -- Italy -- Fiction.

Seminars -- Fiction.

Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction.

Bassano del Grappa (Italy) -- Fiction.

Geographic Term:

Bassano del Grappa (Italy) -- Fiction.

Italy.

Italy -- Bassano del Grappa.

Genre:

Detective and mystery fiction.

Fiction.

Mystery fiction.

Electronic Access:

http://davidpwagnerauthor.com/

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Silver Falls Library	MYS WAGNER	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Rick Montoya, an American translator travelling through Italy, tries to spend his days reveling in art but soon finds himself wrapped up in a scandal

Wrapping up an interpreter job in Bassano del Grappa at a conference on artist Jacopo da Bassano, Rick Montoya looks forward to exploring the town. And it would be fun to look into the history of two long-missing paintings by the master, a topic that caused the only dust-up among the normally staid group of international scholars attending the seminar.

Bassano has much to offer to Rick the tourist, starting with its famous covered bridge, an ancient castle, and several picturesque walled towns within striking distance. He also plans to savor a local cuisine that combines the best of Venice with dishes from the Po Valley and the surrounding mountains.

These plans come to a sudden halt when one of the seminar's professors turns up dead. Rick is once again drawn into a murder mystery, this time with a pair of local cops who personify the best and the worst of the Italian police force.

At the same time he's willingly pulled into a relationship with Betta Innocenti, the daughter of a local gallery owner, who is equally intrigued by the lost paintings. They quickly realize that the very people who might know the story are also the main suspects in the murder--and that someone not above resorting to violence is watching their every move.

In David P. Wagner's signature style, Murder Most Unfortunate offers a thrilling investigation while allowing you to enjoy the food, drink, and culture of Italy without traveling yourself.

Other books in the Rick Montoya Italian Mysteries:

Cold Tuscan Stone

Death in the Dolomites

Murder Most Unfortunate

Return to Umbria

A Funeral in Mantova

Author Notes

David P. Wagner is a retired foreign service officer who spent nine years in Italy, learning to love things Italian. Other diplomatic assignments included Brazil, Ecuador, and Uruguay, as well as two hardship postings to Washington, D.C. He and his wife, Mary, live in Pueblo, Colorado.

Reviews (4)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Wagner's adequate third mystery featuring translator Rick Montoya (after 2014's Death in the Dolomites) finds Rick just finishing up a job as an interpreter at a conference in Bassano del Grappa, Italy, devoted to native artist Jacopo da Bassano. When someone fatally dispatches professor Lorenzo Fortuna, the conference's most prominent participant, Rick believes Fortuna's murder is linked to a pair of lost Jacopo paintings, which disappeared during the chaos in northern Italy toward the end of WWII. After cozying up to the police, Rick persuades Betta Innocenti, the gorgeous daughter of a local art dealer, to help him investigate. The many suspects range from Italians-a curator, a seminar panelist, a banker-to foreigner scholars. A second murder raises the stakes. A subplot involving Rick's Italian ex-girlfriend, Erica Pedana, stretches out the already thin narrative. Wagner does a better job of showcasing the beauty of Bassano than he does constructing an effective whodunit. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Review

Interpreter Rick Montoya (Death in the Dolomites, 2014, etc.) earns an unexpected vacation when an art conference ends in murder. By most accounts, the seminar in Bassano del Grappa was a rousing success, especially for Stefano Porcari, whose bank had sponsored the event, and Paolo Tibaldi, whose museum played host. Scholars from around the world met to discuss the works of Jacopo Bassano, the region's most famous native son. Even wealthy businessmen like art dealer Franco Sarchetti enjoyed the discussion, especially when scholars debated the fate of Jacopo's two missing paintings. But for professor Lorenzo Fortuna, the conference's most argumentative participant, the afterglow is short-lived, since he's killed soon after the seminar ends. Inspector Giuliano Occasio, who misses no opportunity to throw his weight around, forbids all the participants to leave Bassano until the case is solved. While British scholar George Oglesby, German Karl Muller, and American Jeffrey Randolph fume, Rick entertains himself by exploring Bassano's Piazza Monte Vecchio, the Piazza Garibaldi, the Museo Civicoand by striking up a friendship with Betta Innocenti, daughter of another local art dealer. Rick's Po Valley idyll draws to an unexpected close when he realizes Occasio is focusing on him as chief suspect. Occasio's second-in-command, Detective Alfredo DiMaio, appeals to Rick's Italian side, warning him to seek intervention from his uncle, a high-ranking member of Italy's art police. But Rick's American side wins out, and with Betta's help, he springs the restless scholars by solving the case. Like many overseas regionals, Wagner's latest is part puzzle, part travelogue, likely to appeal most to readers who want a proxy visit to Italy. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

In his third outing (following Death in the Dolomites, 2014), Italian American translator Rick Montoya once again finds himself putting his linguistic skills to use in solving a crime. Having recently returned to Italy, Montoya travels to Bassano del Grappa to serve as a translator for international scholars at a conference on the artist Jacopo da Bassano. He's asked to help the local police interview suspects when one of the conference speakers is murdered. Professor Lorenzo Fortuna rubbed nearly everyone the wrong way, but what could he have said or done that would be worth taking a life? Could it have something to do with the two missing paintings that are still the grail to Jacopo collectors? Montoya finds a bellisima tour guide in Betta, the adventurous daughter of a local gallery owner. Though he spent his childhood in Rome, Montoya proudly kicks around Italy in the cowboy boots he brought with him from the years he spent in New Mexico. He is an easygoing, empathetic protagonist with just enough American irreverence to keep his Italian colleagues entertained.--Keefe, Karen Copyright 2015 Booklist

Library Journal Review

Returning in his third outing (after Death in the Dolomites), Rick Montoya travels to Bassano del Grappa to work as a translator at an art seminar. When one of the attendees ends up dead, Rick can't keep himself from investigating, along with Betta -Innocenti, the daughter of a local gallery owner. Rick, as always, is a charming sleuth. © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.