Death Under a Tuscan Sun

Michele Ferrara #7

by Michele Giuttari

In his dark and fetid prison cell, serial killer Daniele de Robertis plans his retribution. The betrayals he has suffered haunt his dreams until, one night, he escapes. In a small, beautiful village in the Tuscan countryside a prominent lawyer and his wife are murdered. As the police inspect the scene they find nine terrifying nine women, slaughtered. It is Florentine Police Chief Michele Ferrara's worst a case involving the untouchable men and women at the top of Italian society, a dark and powerful cult which knows no bounds, and mounting victims. Amongst a web of obsession, manipulation and violence, Ferrara must face his demons. Death Under a Tuscan Sun is an incredibly gripping and atmospheric work of detective fiction, written with incomparable authenticity by former Florentine police chief Michele Giuttari. Originally published in Italian as Il Cuore Oscuro di Firenze .

Genres: Crime, Italy, Fiction, Mystery

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2015

About the author

Michele Giuttari is former head of the Florence Police Force (1995-2003), where he was responsible for re-opening the Monster of Florence case and jailing several key Mafia figures. He is now a special advisor to the interior minister in Rome, with a remit to monitor Mafia activity.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first saw this on the shelf at the bookshop, I uhmed and ahhed about whether to get it but since it was 3 for £5 it found its way into my basket. And I am so glad it did. I wasn't that convinced when I started reading it as Giuttari's experience as a detective in Italy meant that the writing was packed with details of the frustrating justice system and the barriers faced by Police Chief Michele Ferrara. But as the story progressed I was sucked in and before I knew it, I was hooked. The story is slow to build (that could be partly due to this being translated from Italian, I bet it sounds nicer in Italian too) but as it rolls along you can't help but find yourself rooting for Ferrara as he faces corruption and scandal on a grand scale and has to find a way to bring some of Italy's most powerful men to justice. Set against the beautiful backdrop of Florence the ugliness of the crimes Ferrara finds himself uncovering are all the more dramatic and show that even in one of the most beautiful and cultured cities in the world, there is always a dark heart somewhere. An excellent read and an author I'm definitely going to look out for in future.

[Tandy Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great series in its' genre and the last in the series and I feel I shall miss the machinations of the politics and criminal fratenity of Florence-and despite this want so much to visit the city myself.

[Karen Bartlett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Translated from Italian, this comes from one of the leading crime writers in Italy, himself a former Chief of Florentine police, and so writes with a high degree of authenticity.
A successful lawyer and his wife are found murdered in their Tuscan villa, along with a folder containing photos of women who seem to have been murdered during some sort of satanic/sexual rituals. Chief Superintendent Michele Ferrara of the Florentine Squadra Mobile is investigating the case, and soon realises that his efforts are being hindered by someone higher up than him, and that many wealthy and influential Italian's are caught up in the dark and powerful cult that is at work here.
A great page-turning thriller, made even more appealing to me purely because of the setting.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story but a bit of sexism in the characterisation. Women are all described in terms of their appearance regardless of their job or personality. Originally written in Italian, some of the language seems lost in translation, ii’s possibly aiming for a poetic turn that isn’t quite pulled off. But the storyline is intriguing & comes to a satisfying close.

[Mark Baines · Rating 2 out of 5]

Starts a builds well, drawing on reference to other cases without being clear if this is part of a series and therefore the others are required (earlier reading). Interesting insight into the workings of the Italian police forces and the judiciary, none of which makes sense but interesting all the same. The book builds well and then it seems like the author has a deadline to meet as the book accelerates into final, that is rather unsatisfactory in the abrupt way it is achieved and the lack of flowing prose that was the tempo of the first half of the book. almost as if chapters of 10 pages now are delivered in 3 pages or the author was rushing to a deadline.
Decent enough relaxation for all that.

[Alan Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

A rather disappointing end to the series. The books are a unique blend of clichéd, formulaic and disjointed plot, lacking in believable dialogue. The characterisation is painful and laughably amateurish (all the British policeman being Knighted being just one example).

This author tries to go with a plot that is big and bold, but in reality just turns out to be over stretched and unbelievable rather than enjoyable and exciting. It's a tough he's tried to throw in whatever he thinks will shock the reader, just for the sake of it. There are so many holes, loose ends and aspects of the story that just don't make sense.

[Giovanna Walker · Rating 2 out of 5]

A CoVid iso read. Ok for that. Black magic, with a smattering of satanism. Writing ok, translation ok. some lazy editing - chapter 11 - Friday 18 October; Chapter 13 - Friday 15 October. Some spelling mistakes and double use of the same word. A lot of smoking by the lead officer....novel wraps up quickly at the end. Meh. If he's the 'leading Italian crime writer' (quote from the Times)...hmmm. I wouldn't read any of his other books.

[Kathie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up in a Florence bookstore, hoping to find an engaging protagonist fighting crime in one of the world’s most beautiful and historic cities, interspersed with Florentine culture and food, in the spirit of Venice’s Brunetti or Sicily’s Montalbano. Instead I found a one-dimensional workaholic police commissioner, at odds with his chief prosecutor and determined to get to the truth. I found the plot twists to be tedious and was glad to finally reach the conclusion.

[Rich · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not sure about this one. I mean, it was good, don’t get me wrong but I’m so confused..
I just felt like it wasn’t flowing right and have lost parts of the story.
Very jumpy and lots of characters to try and remember. I’ve read it in the wrong order and that’s why I’ve struggled, I discovered this after finishing!

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this a book that I was never quite involved in. Decent enough read but the plot just seemed a bit too OTT in parts. Maybe I am just naive but I can't even start to imagine that there is this level of corruption and power amongst a group of satanist pedophiles so it made the book difficult to engage with.

That said, it was a reasonably interesting police procedural.

[Ann Tonks · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've enjoyed Mr Giuttari's novels featuring Michele Ferrara before but I couldn't get past the first couple of chapters of this one. It was all so dark and nasty that I didn't want to spend any time with the characters or the on the story journey.

[Abi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ridiculous.

[Anne Vaughan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read x

[Miss J C Rowe · Rating 3 out of 5]

But rushed at the end but still enjoyable

[Chris McGarrry · Rating 5 out of 5]

brilliant book

[Evander · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read it to complete the series, really.

[Leigh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't get past the first few chapters, I found them so dreary.

[Jane Crampton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Michele Giuttari he is a wonderful writer. His experience as a police officer shines from the pages and gives great depth to his characters and plots. This book is not a disappointment, it is fast paced, a real page turner.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow to get started, but once it did it became un-put-downable. I did think at one point I would not be able to stick with this book, as it was a VERY slow starter. I am glad that I did though, because once it got going (which for me was not until a third of the way through) it was an exciting, dramatic and interesting read.
It has a hint of Dan Brown, with the theme of secret societies, sacrificial murders, people in power abusing their status. However, the details of the murders are brief as are details of the secret society.
It does read as though the author wanted to get too much into the plot which resulted in skimming over some areas with not enough detail. There were a few too many characters for me to keep track of and new ones kept being introduced. Also, you can tell it is written by somebody who has worked in the police/justice departments in Italy as there is a lot of presumed knowledge. All of that being said, I would recommend it to readers who enjoy a good thriller and I will be looking out for other books by the same author.

[Peta-Dee Rawlinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always Michele Giuttari doesn't disappoint. Firstly I couldn't wait to read it, then I couldn't wait to get to the end to find out what happened and now I'm gutted that I've finished it. A sign of a good author and a very good storyline I think.

[Callum Clement · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murder, mystery, Mafia & all tied together with doses of black magic & esotericism. Ferrara tries his best to solve the crimes, despite obstacles being put in his way by his corrupt superiors. Another classic of the genre, told by a classic author of the genre.

[Martina Lennon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Lee-Anne Mager Mager · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely fantastic read! even the gory bits.

[Phyllida · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of the best so far and I am not sure where the series will go from here if it continues. The new translator is far better than the one who translated the first five books.

[Jean]

Too heavy for me read