And Then You Die

by Michael Dibdin

Book Overview

Having survived an explosive assassination attempt, Italian police detective Aurelio Zen finds himself convalescing at a Tuscan seaside resort town, where he is under orders to lie low until he is to... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375719253
• ISBN13: 9780375719257
• Release Date: September 2003
• Publisher: Vintage Crime/Black Lizard
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Read "Blood Rain" first

After we've been literally to hell and back with Aurelio Zen in "Blood Rain", this book is positively languid by comparison. But looks can be deceiving. Zen is supposed to be spending time healing anonymously after the last book, but someone is killing people all around him, possibly in tragic cases of mistaken identity. As with "Blood Rain", this book is a loving look at Italy with unsentimental descriptions of the corruption and political problems that baffle other Westerners while Italians take them for granted. It isn't as good as "Blood Rain" but deserves to be read with it as a set piece.

A long-awaited entry in a great series

At last Aurelio is back, and better than ever! Aurelio Zen is one of my favorite characters and I heartily recommend ANY books in Michael Dibdin's series about this wonderful Italian "just a common policeman." Locales and backgrounds, as the stories move him around the country, are so richly drawn it's like traveling in Italy while having a great adventure. Plots are never simply black & white, but many layered, and the characters are complex. The previous entry (Blood Rain)caused tremendous consternation among my friends who are also fans: "How could Michael Dibdin do it; do you think he really killed off Aurelio? Trust yourself to Mr. Dibdin's writing skill and climb aboard for great ride. We were so excited when the new book came out we didn't even plan to share copies; we each went out and bought our own--it was worth it. We hope Michael Dibdin is well-started on the next one.

dark wit prevails

Fans will be pleased to know that Italian detective Aurelio Zen survived the bombing that ended the last book in the series, "Blood Rain," though his life is still at risk as he waits, incognito, to testify at an American Mafia trial. Forced to enjoy a traditional Italian beach holiday, Zen occupies the same beach chair on the same strip of sand each day, conducting a mild flirtation with his beach neighbor, until the people around him - those who take his beach chair, for instance, begin to die. Dibdin's trademark humor and dark wit is in good form as Zen parries a flirtation and worries about traveling to America, a place the Roman Empire never occupied (so why would anyone else want to?), endures an exile on a prison island and a bizarre side trip to Iceland, "the end of the earth." This book winds up an ongoing plot line in an ingenious, over-the-top twist that sets the scene for the next chapter in Zen's eventful life.

Finally, Zen becomes a man of action

Through most of the prior installments of the A.Zen saga, our hero is portrayed as a cerebral fellow given to melancholy and self doubt. His close brush with death in Sicily and the passing of his mother have changed him, some how, into a man of decisive action. This rather short novel is split, in my mind, in two parts - before Rome and after. Before, the story revolves around the mystery of murders that seem to be some how tied to Zen. Coincidence? Was he betrayed? Is he being set up by his enemies within the Mafia or maybe even the Police? All of the carefully crafted suspense leads up to a confrontation in the streets - one that gives us our first gimpse of a new Zen, a man capable of physical and well as mental gymnastics. Afterward, he returns to Rome, but instead of reverting to form, he stays that new man. One whose actions are more focused and decisive (at least for him!) The ending is pure Dibdin with more than a few close calls and surprises to keep you turning the pages. But regular readers need not fear these changes. The author remains a master of dialogue and the conversations between Zen and his new love, Gemma, show he has a great ear for not only what people say but how they say it. I only wish the book was a few pages longer (the only reason for 4 stars). At under 200 pages, the end arrives too soon. I wanted more and anxiously await the next installement - I hope it comes before my next trip to Italy!

And Then You Almost Die

The last installment in this series by Michael Dibdin gave fans of this Aurelio Zen series a reason to pause. Zen however is most certainly back, using a variety of names other than his own, as he mends from the bomb that nearly ended his run as one of the better detectives that exist only on paper. The folks that wanted Zen dead have not changed their mind, and in this surprisingly humorous book, a series of bodies fall within a few feet of Zen, victims of occupying the wrong spot on a beach or seat in a plane.I have read all the books in the series and this newest addition is easily among the best. Zen has shared his life in a hopelessly corrupt and bureaucratic Italy, the occasional girlfriend and his colorful mother. This time we learn more about Aurelio, as he is required to travel to The United States. It is here we learn of Aurelio's classical view of where travel is appropriate; specifically, reasonable places to go are limited to those areas once in control of The Roman Empire. If the Romans never bothered with America, why should he? And to fly across an ocean is simply madness.His destination is Los Angeles an area he becomes comfortable with seeing because he imagines it as rather a bucolic locale with a great number of Catholics. His rationale for Catholics versus Protestants has less to do with which is better and more to do with the devil you know.As he has with the other installments of this series Michael Dibdin spins a great tale, maintains the tension and suspense, and essentially misdirects the reader through much of the book. Happily for Aurelio he finds a companion, and they become bound together by a combination of love and bizarre events. I hope this new female character appears again for she is a match for Aurelio, and adds a great new personality to the series.