Cosi Fan Tutti: An Aurelio Zen Mystery

by Michael Dibdin and Michael Kitchen

Book Overview

An Aurelio Zen Novel Michael Dibdin's overburdened Italian police inspector has been transferred to Naples, where the rule of law is so lax that a police station may double as a brothel. But this time, having alienated superiors with his impolitic zealousness in every previous posting, Zen is determined not to make waves. Too bad an American sailor (who may be neither American nor a sailor) knifes one of his opposite numbers in Naples's harbor, and...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679779116
• ISBN13: 9780679779117
• Release Date: June 1998
• Publisher: Vintage Crime/Black Lizard
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

It?s about what you are not thinking

Da Ponte wrote a libretto for the opera the composer called "The School For Lovers". Michael Dibdin titles each chapter with a title from the libretto in Italian, and in the contents gives the English approximation. An estimate, a guess, any thought that suggests ambiguity is appropriate for this Aurelio Zen mystery, for neither the reader nor those fictional characters of "Cosi Fan Tutti" really know what is happening either.When the protagonist in the series is reduced to thinking, "Not only was the plot slipping from his grasp, even the names of the cast appeared unfamiliar" you either are holding a great tale, or the thoughts of a writer who is in over his head. In the hands of a lesser talent this would often suggest a book that has lost direction and has resorted to rhetorical thought, as some gimmick for obscuring what is at heart a story gone amiss. But this is Michael Dibdin, and control of plot is never an issue for him.Like a great play or opera the story arrives at its denouement, and then seemingly every player is brought together and the true and final facades are taken away. But for the Author this is not enough, for in the previous book he plants in Aurelio's mind a doubt of the worst sort, which appears to be solved at the end. A Priest leans over Zen's stricken Mother, the Confession, and then the question as to whether the Mother would like the Right of Extreme Unction. The Mother of course responds with "is there more Brandy", the "Priest" is a mature changeling of sorts, and everything you thought you knew, is twisted. All your thoughts are held up to a mirror, and they are not backward gibberish, but Michael Dibdin true plot, having once again the final resounding laughs at the reader's expense, and delight.Michael Dibdin has yet to repeat one of his sleights of thought he baffles his reader's with, and with only 1 installment left to read I doubt there will be repetition. His writing is wonderful, to use a climber's term he continually presents false summits, the corner you turn is never the last until you are convinced it is not, and his mirrors reflect what he wants them to, not what light and nature intend.My enthusiasm for this man's work continues unabated, his work is simply excellent.

Not your average mystery

If you're expecting your traditional whodunit, this ain't it. Dibdin is definitely not a formula writer and it's impossible to know exactly what to expect when Aurelio Zen is involved. This case is a classic, It's well-written with plot lines within plot lines of which Zen, or you, may or may not be aware. It doesn't matter anyway because this book was, to put it simply, a lot of fun to read.

A detective story of character and humor

A literate and thoroughly enjoyable read if you like (a) opera, (b) Italy, (c) humor, or (d) classical Chandler/Hammet mysteries. The violence is limited (thankfully), the characterizations are sharp and funny, and the parallels to the Mozart opera, though not necessary to enjoy the book, provide an extra layer of delight. Dibdin is probably not for everyone; if you like exceptional tension or violence, this is not for you. But if you enjoy very skillful use of language and turns of phrase, along with a burlesque of Italian (and other) life, you are sure to enjoy this.

What you always expected about Italy's cops, with a twist

Reading Aurelio Zen out of sequence is as sensible as the mystery in this book. And figuring out which of the several plot lines represents the mystery is half the fun. Picaresque is the only description for Zen. And the other characters! You get to meet every Italian you've ever known, with a couple of true-to-life foreigners thrown in. Truly delightful if you have a sense of humor and a taste for the absurd. A disaster if you like a lot of senseless violence and macho language in your mysteries. Aurelio Zen has a new fan in me.

A true image of Naples

This is the best of the Aurelio Zen mysteries. Zen is not your normal literary detective. He frequently has no more idea what is going on than the reader, and that is his charm. In Cosi Fan Tutti, Dibdin manages to write an excellent mystery, be funny and describe the normally hidden side of Naples all in one. This is a wonderful book.