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Commissario Soneri #5
La pension de la via Saffi
À quelques jours de Noël, alors que la morsure du froid envahit Parme, Ghitta Tagliavini, la vieille propriétaire d’une pension du centre-ville est retrouvée assassinée dans son appartement. L’enquête est confiée au commissaire Soneri mais cette affaire fait ressurgir un drame enfoui : c’est dans cette pension pour étudiants de la via Saffi qu’il rencontra jadis sa femme, Ada, tragiquement disparue peu après leur mariage.
En s’enfonçant dans le brouillard épais comme on traverserait un miroir, Soneri va découvrir un univers bien plus sordide que ses souvenirs. L’aimable logeuse se révèle être une femme sans scrupules, enrichie par la pratique d’avortements clandestins et derrière la modeste pension, se cache en réalité un monde vivant de haine et de chantage, frayant avec le cynisme de cercles politiques corrompus.
Pour trouver l’assassin, le commissaire devra se confronter à l’épreuve du temps et à la vérité sur la vie et la mort d’Ada. Car qui est cet homme qui pose à côté d’elle sur cette photographie jaunie ?
En s’enfonçant dans le brouillard épais comme on traverserait un miroir, Soneri va découvrir un univers bien plus sordide que ses souvenirs. L’aimable logeuse se révèle être une femme sans scrupules, enrichie par la pratique d’avortements clandestins et derrière la modeste pension, se cache en réalité un monde vivant de haine et de chantage, frayant avec le cynisme de cercles politiques corrompus.
Pour trouver l’assassin, le commissaire devra se confronter à l’épreuve du temps et à la vérité sur la vie et la mort d’Ada. Car qui est cet homme qui pose à côté d’elle sur cette photographie jaunie ?
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2004
17 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
About the author
Valerio Varesi
65 books45 followersValerio Varesi, nato a Torino nel 1959, vive a Parma e lavora nella redazione de La Repubblica di Bologna. Romanziere eclettico, è il creatore del commissario Soneri, protagonista dei polizieschi che hanno ispirato le serie televisive "Nebbie e delitti" con Luca Barbareschi (distribuite anche negli Stati Uniti). I romanzi con protagonista Soneri sono tradotti in tutto il mondo, e nel 2011 Valerio Varesi è stato finalista al CWA International Dagger, il premio internazionale per la narrativa gialla. Parallelamente Varesi ha iniziato la propria personale ricognizione della recente Storia italiana con tre romanzi generosi e appassionanti: La sentenza, Il rivoluzionario e Lo stato di ebbrezza
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
July 7, 2023
I have read all the books of Commissioner Soneri and I can now say that he fully enters the team of my 4 favorite Italian commissioners, namely Schiavone, Bordelli and Zarotti. If you read Soneri's investigations, DO NOT watch the television transposition: Luca Barbareschi has nothing to do with the idea that you will make of Soneri by reading it.
In this adventure, Soneri is involved in a really complicated case.
We are as usual in Parma, few days before Christmas, when Soneri is informed of the death of Ghitta Tagliavini (the affittacamere, in fact); Soneri had known Ghitta long before, when he attended her hotel with who would later become his wife. The hotel has now become a shabby hotel for clandestine couples, frequented by rich, powerful and corrupt people.
Soneri's investigation appears immediately difficult and his personal involvement will make it a journey into his past for him. Soneri will discover that Ghitta, an unscrupulous and money-hungry nurse, had helped long time before his wife to abort and that rough intervention had meant that his wife did not survive her first birth many years later. When Soneri reconstructs all this background, he cannot forgive himself for not having understood, for not asking his wife more about her previous relationship, before she died during the birth of their child. Soneri is even more introspective than usual in this book and we readers are also inclined to make reflections that go beyond the bare investigation, and this is the beauty of Soneri's investigations. The book is a thriller-noir, but you also feel other feelings, you are immerse in the sadness of the foggy city, in the melancholy that Soneri feels and you can appreciate the author's style, so capable of putting the reader into the history, so much so that you can reconstruct environments and atmospheres as if you were there. The investigative part is the pivot on which the book is centered, but through the reflections of Soneri, Valerio Varesi offers us ideas of daily life, of social denunciation, of sociological changes too fast to be absorbable, so as to become imbalances, in which as usual, live corrupt politicians and institutional figures who are only opportunistic. Valeri (and Soneri) appear somewhat resigned in this panorama, even if it is intimately known that Soneri will never give up, and in his own way he will always fight this drift.
In this adventure, Soneri is involved in a really complicated case.
We are as usual in Parma, few days before Christmas, when Soneri is informed of the death of Ghitta Tagliavini (the affittacamere, in fact); Soneri had known Ghitta long before, when he attended her hotel with who would later become his wife. The hotel has now become a shabby hotel for clandestine couples, frequented by rich, powerful and corrupt people.
Soneri's investigation appears immediately difficult and his personal involvement will make it a journey into his past for him. Soneri will discover that Ghitta, an unscrupulous and money-hungry nurse, had helped long time before his wife to abort and that rough intervention had meant that his wife did not survive her first birth many years later. When Soneri reconstructs all this background, he cannot forgive himself for not having understood, for not asking his wife more about her previous relationship, before she died during the birth of their child. Soneri is even more introspective than usual in this book and we readers are also inclined to make reflections that go beyond the bare investigation, and this is the beauty of Soneri's investigations. The book is a thriller-noir, but you also feel other feelings, you are immerse in the sadness of the foggy city, in the melancholy that Soneri feels and you can appreciate the author's style, so capable of putting the reader into the history, so much so that you can reconstruct environments and atmospheres as if you were there. The investigative part is the pivot on which the book is centered, but through the reflections of Soneri, Valerio Varesi offers us ideas of daily life, of social denunciation, of sociological changes too fast to be absorbable, so as to become imbalances, in which as usual, live corrupt politicians and institutional figures who are only opportunistic. Valeri (and Soneri) appear somewhat resigned in this panorama, even if it is intimately known that Soneri will never give up, and in his own way he will always fight this drift.
January 3, 2017
Four and a half stars. Varesi is an exemplary writer, who deserves every inch the acclaim of prize winning literary authors. This latest in the Soneri series is not only a cunningly crafted crime story but a thought provoking, wistful meditation on youthful passion, awkward ageing and the compromises we all make in the journey between the two. A book I shall cherish and hold dear forever.
January 23, 2022
Zbliżają się Święta Bożego Narodzenia, senne miasteczko we Włoszech, na komisariacie nic się nie dzieje. Ludzie przygotowują się do świętowania, toteż życie na włoskich ulicach zamarło. I pewnego dnia, kiedy komisarz Soneri myśli, że już nic większego się nie zdarzy... do komisariatu przychodzi pewna staruszka, która pilnie chce się widzieć właśnie z nim. Soneri jednak zbywa ją. Staruszka rozmawia więc z jego podwładnym Juvarą. Jak się okazuje zgłasza ona, że coś dziwnego dzieje się z jej sąsiadką. Pewnie sprawa nie zainteresowałaby komisarza Soneriego, gdyby nie znał sąsiadki tej staruszki - Ghitty. I pewnie nie zaangażowałby się w całą sprawę gdyby nie to, że za bardzo dotyczy ona jego przeszłości... Podejmuje się więc śledztwa, które krok po kroku sprawia, że zaczyna odkrywać coraz głębsze tajemnice. Tajemnice Ghitty, tajemnice grubych ryb w mieście, a nawet te dotyczące jego... żony.
Do plusów opowieści na pewno zaliczyłabym dość dynamicznie rozwijającą się historię, sprawiającą, że do ciut ponad połowy książki czyta się ją z zainteresowaniem. Kolejnym plusem jest to, że zastosowano rzecz rzadką w kryminałach - bo ofiarą morderstwa jest staruszka (przeważnie jeśli ginie kobieta to jest ona młoda i piękna - chyba, że za dużo tego typu kryminałów przeczytałam).
Plusem jest też to, że akcja toczy się we Włoszech, z włoskim klimatem, włoskimi ulicami i całą tą otoczką. Myślę, że gdyby nakręcono film na podstawie tej opowieści pewnie historia na ekranie byłaby nawet ciekawsza od samej książki i oddałaby ten śródziemnomorski klimat.
A teraz minusy. Tak jak napisałam historia jest wartka do nieco ponad połowy książki. A co potem? A no cała opowieść zwalnia potężnie. Nasz komisarz Soneri prowadząc śledztwo coraz głębiej wikła się w coraz bardziej polityczne sprawy. I tu nie byłoby w tym nic dziwnego, gdyby nie fakt, że coraz bardziej autor odbiega od tematu od którego zaczął. Gubią się gdzieś po drodze wątki - nawet te, które tak interesowały a dotyczyły przeszłości komisarza. Autor skupia się na wątkach politycznych, a czytelnik jest coraz bardziej znużony, wkurzony i poirytowany. Gdzieś po drodze ginie sprawa tajemniczych aborcji, tak samo jak gubi się wątek równie tajemniczej co wrednej Elwiry (w początkowych rozdziałach jednej z najciekawszych postaci pod względem charakteru).
Kolejny minus - tyczy się wydawnictwa. Mamy Włochy, włoskiej narodowości postaci, autor używa więc włoskich określeń. Dlatego z jakiej paki nie pokuszono się o wyjaśnienie w przypisach co bardziej nie zrozumiałych określeń? Ktoś tu zapomniał, że nie każdy zna biegle włoski. Pomijam już zwroty typu "dottore" czy "commissario", które są niemal na każdym kroku - można się domyślić, ale dla przykładu... [cytuję]: "Gdyby urodził się wcześniej pewnie byłby arditi".
Tak jak w wymienionym przykładzie, tak w kilku podobnych irytuje brak przypisów.
Oceniam książkę ogólnie jako przeciętną. Mimo, że jej pierwsza połowa (pierwsze 7 rozdziałów) zasługuje na ocenę wyższą to jednak cała reszta pod koniec zaczyna psuć pierwsze wrażenie. A czytelnik chce jedynie jak najszybciej skończyć, żeby dowiedzieć się jaki finał ma ta historia. No właśnie. Mimo, że tempo historii w ostatnich dwóch rozdziałach naprawia to, co popsuło się od ósmego, to jednak ten upragniony finał jest również rozczarowujący.
Opinia opublikowana na moim blogu:
https://literackiepodrozebooki.blogsp...
Do plusów opowieści na pewno zaliczyłabym dość dynamicznie rozwijającą się historię, sprawiającą, że do ciut ponad połowy książki czyta się ją z zainteresowaniem. Kolejnym plusem jest to, że zastosowano rzecz rzadką w kryminałach - bo ofiarą morderstwa jest staruszka (przeważnie jeśli ginie kobieta to jest ona młoda i piękna - chyba, że za dużo tego typu kryminałów przeczytałam).
Plusem jest też to, że akcja toczy się we Włoszech, z włoskim klimatem, włoskimi ulicami i całą tą otoczką. Myślę, że gdyby nakręcono film na podstawie tej opowieści pewnie historia na ekranie byłaby nawet ciekawsza od samej książki i oddałaby ten śródziemnomorski klimat.
A teraz minusy. Tak jak napisałam historia jest wartka do nieco ponad połowy książki. A co potem? A no cała opowieść zwalnia potężnie. Nasz komisarz Soneri prowadząc śledztwo coraz głębiej wikła się w coraz bardziej polityczne sprawy. I tu nie byłoby w tym nic dziwnego, gdyby nie fakt, że coraz bardziej autor odbiega od tematu od którego zaczął. Gubią się gdzieś po drodze wątki - nawet te, które tak interesowały a dotyczyły przeszłości komisarza. Autor skupia się na wątkach politycznych, a czytelnik jest coraz bardziej znużony, wkurzony i poirytowany. Gdzieś po drodze ginie sprawa tajemniczych aborcji, tak samo jak gubi się wątek równie tajemniczej co wrednej Elwiry (w początkowych rozdziałach jednej z najciekawszych postaci pod względem charakteru).
Kolejny minus - tyczy się wydawnictwa. Mamy Włochy, włoskiej narodowości postaci, autor używa więc włoskich określeń. Dlatego z jakiej paki nie pokuszono się o wyjaśnienie w przypisach co bardziej nie zrozumiałych określeń? Ktoś tu zapomniał, że nie każdy zna biegle włoski. Pomijam już zwroty typu "dottore" czy "commissario", które są niemal na każdym kroku - można się domyślić, ale dla przykładu... [cytuję]: "Gdyby urodził się wcześniej pewnie byłby arditi".
Tak jak w wymienionym przykładzie, tak w kilku podobnych irytuje brak przypisów.
Oceniam książkę ogólnie jako przeciętną. Mimo, że jej pierwsza połowa (pierwsze 7 rozdziałów) zasługuje na ocenę wyższą to jednak cała reszta pod koniec zaczyna psuć pierwsze wrażenie. A czytelnik chce jedynie jak najszybciej skończyć, żeby dowiedzieć się jaki finał ma ta historia. No właśnie. Mimo, że tempo historii w ostatnich dwóch rozdziałach naprawia to, co popsuło się od ósmego, to jednak ten upragniony finał jest również rozczarowujący.
Opinia opublikowana na moim blogu:
https://literackiepodrozebooki.blogsp...
June 1, 2016
I do like this author but somehow found this a bit dull perhaps the translation or lack of depth or quirkiness in some of his others... Well written good book just didn't click for me this time
October 27, 2017
Woman Much Missed -A Commissario Soneri Investigation
By Valerio Varesi
This is Varesi’s fourth Soneri novel translated into English.
There is more to this seemingly straight-forward murder. The victim has ties back into Italy’s recent violent history and it’s Communist terror cells and into the greed and graft of Parma’s “good and great”.
Commissario Soneri navigates the many twists and turns of this devious plot. Varesi has considerable skills in defining his characters and drawing word pictures of Parma leading into a wet and foggy Christmas.
Some reviewers have commented about the book being “hard going”; I agree with this approach but I suggest that you stick with it. The naming of the murderer is, I feel, a bit of an anti climax, not because it’s obvious but because it’s only part of a bigger picture that Soneri has no control over. A really interesting plot for a crime novel.
Towards the start of chapter 13, we’re told: The enquiry into Ghitta’s murder was complete, but in no sense did Soneri feel victorious. He knew that for the rest of his life he would carry the scares of the case... Perhaps this is a fitting punishment for his jealous snooping into the scares that led to the death of his wife Ada. Trust would have been a better strategy but Commissario Soneri could never indulge in that. His maudlin view of the world dictates how he goes about his investigations; the murder of Ghitta Tagliavini.
In the end, Soneri thinks that Ghitta’s killer was not stupid, but rather a weak man in search of some cause which would make sense of his life. Perhaps a kindred spirit?
A Woman Much Missed is like more English translations of Varesi’s books — much missed!
Regards,
Peter
November 10, 2023
L'affittacamere' (Italian title) by Valerio Varesi is a detective story set in the city of Parma, where Commissioner Soneri investigates the murder of Giuditta Tagliavini, the elderly owner of a boarding house where many years earlier he had met the woman who was to become his wife, Ada, who died a few years later.
The story unfolds between two narrative planes: the first concerns the investigation into the murder, the second focuses on the political and social reality of the 1970s, a period when the boarding house was frequented by young university students and girls from the nursing school. In this context a web of love affairs, encounters and political struggles develops, until time empties the boarding house, which turns into a brothel.
Varesi's writing is impeccable in conveying the atmosphere of the time and describing the social changes that took place afterwards. The novel is characterised by a slow and reflective narrative, but one that manages to keep us glued to the pages until the end. The investigation of the crime is intertwined with reflection on the evolution of society and the hidden truths that emerge after years. Commissioner Soneri finds himself involved despite himself in an investigation that also delves into his past, from which uncomfortable truths emerge that he would not like to face.
'L'affittacamere' is a well-written and engaging detective story that does not disappoint expectations and stands the test of time.
Read in Italian.
The story unfolds between two narrative planes: the first concerns the investigation into the murder, the second focuses on the political and social reality of the 1970s, a period when the boarding house was frequented by young university students and girls from the nursing school. In this context a web of love affairs, encounters and political struggles develops, until time empties the boarding house, which turns into a brothel.
Varesi's writing is impeccable in conveying the atmosphere of the time and describing the social changes that took place afterwards. The novel is characterised by a slow and reflective narrative, but one that manages to keep us glued to the pages until the end. The investigation of the crime is intertwined with reflection on the evolution of society and the hidden truths that emerge after years. Commissioner Soneri finds himself involved despite himself in an investigation that also delves into his past, from which uncomfortable truths emerge that he would not like to face.
'L'affittacamere' is a well-written and engaging detective story that does not disappoint expectations and stands the test of time.
Read in Italian.
April 7, 2018
This book may not encourage one to visit Parma given the main protagonist Commissario Soneri is harking back always to how much better times were in the neighbourhood where he met his now dead wife. However, this is a well written/translated whodunnit with strong characters not least Soneri with his love of good food and wine and his complex relationship with his girlfriend -- I refuse to go down the road of the woeful PC term partner love is not a business -- the tramp Fadiga whose use of a trolley serves him well in what appears to be permanently fog-bound Parma and so on and so forth. I am delighted to say that the landlady I had in Tours when I studied there was far less malevolent than the victim in this excellent read. which also gives interesting insights into socially conservative village life. Delighted I bought it on spec as it is very rewarding.
March 9, 2025
An old woman a found dead in her appartment a few days before Christmas and Commissario Soneri is one the case. This one happens to cross paths with his own personal history which make it make tricky and he spends the novel walking around in the mist and being moody. This is the fourth in this series I believe although my first encounter. It really is mostly the Commissario walking around and not a huge amount of action. The unfolding of the activities seems to happen mostly off scene and a step removed as if cut off ny the mist. So it was a bit of an odd one. Well written but I'm not sure I enjoyed it all that much.
Soneri threw away his cigar, which had died slowly in the damp air, and turned towards home, overwhelmed by a bitter melancholy of spirit. And so on...
Translated from the Italian by Joseph Farrell
Soneri threw away his cigar, which had died slowly in the damp air, and turned towards home, overwhelmed by a bitter melancholy of spirit. And so on...
Translated from the Italian by Joseph Farrell
December 2, 2016
This wasn't the easiest book to read. A murder investigation is tangled with political overtones and Commissario is drawn back to an old stamping ground. He recognises the dead woman as the landlady of the student house where his now dead wife used to board. In latter years the guesthouse has become a bordello and Soneri comes to wonder if that was its role when his wife lived there.
Complicating things is that Italy's two police forces are constantly trying to score easy points at the other's expense and Commissario Soneri, part of the state police force, feels constantly under threat from the officers of the carabinieri.
I hung in there until everything was resolved and the murder mystery was solved, but I can't say I enjoyed the book.
Complicating things is that Italy's two police forces are constantly trying to score easy points at the other's expense and Commissario Soneri, part of the state police force, feels constantly under threat from the officers of the carabinieri.
I hung in there until everything was resolved and the murder mystery was solved, but I can't say I enjoyed the book.
August 30, 2022
A complex story, but the best Soneri one I’ve read so far.
It’s an interesting way to discover the history of this part of Italy- communist and fascists in 1922, and the effects of actions from previous times. Corruption, intrigue, old love affairs, revenge and pride.
It was good to find more about Soneri too and to enjoy and understand how he operates and how he sees the world. His relationship with Angela is both intriguing and heartening as he comes to terms with the past he believed he had.
The MacLehose edition I read had some annoying typos which were not so bad as to detract from the beautifully written text.
It’s an interesting way to discover the history of this part of Italy- communist and fascists in 1922, and the effects of actions from previous times. Corruption, intrigue, old love affairs, revenge and pride.
It was good to find more about Soneri too and to enjoy and understand how he operates and how he sees the world. His relationship with Angela is both intriguing and heartening as he comes to terms with the past he believed he had.
The MacLehose edition I read had some annoying typos which were not so bad as to detract from the beautifully written text.
April 8, 2024
Una indagine dai ritmi più lenti del solito e dalle atmosfere più dimesse. Si avvicina il Natale, Angela insiste per festeggiare la ricorrenza ma Soneri ha la testa altrove. Sta indagando sull'omicidio di una anziana affittacamere che riaccende mai sopiti ricordi. Ha frequentato quella antica pensione dove alloggiava sua mogli quando era ancora allieva infermiera e scoprire che l'anziana Ghitta Tagliavini esercfitava anche come mammana e guaritrice lo turba e riporta alla mente ricordi e sospetti. Si troverà ad indagare tra reati attuali e reati passati in una bassa più nebbiosa del solito.
May 18, 2018
I enjoyed this, the final of the four translated Commissario Soneri novels (so far).
Whilst a very enjoyable read, I ha e rated it a three star because for me there too much personal issues which detracted from the plot. The only negatives about this series is the miserable sod who is the main character, if he wasn't so sullen and withdrawn the books would be perfect.
This book was very heavy on the inner turmoil which detracted from it in my opinion. The weakest of the four because of it.
Whilst a very enjoyable read, I ha e rated it a three star because for me there too much personal issues which detracted from the plot. The only negatives about this series is the miserable sod who is the main character, if he wasn't so sullen and withdrawn the books would be perfect.
This book was very heavy on the inner turmoil which detracted from it in my opinion. The weakest of the four because of it.
April 1, 2019
History of Parma through a murder.
A murder of an old landlady in a pensione brings out feelings and memories in the investigating Commissario Soneri. The murder seems like there will be a relatively easy case to solve. But research shows a large number of various characters that over a long have had dealings with the victim. This novel takes the reader into a journey of Parma stretching over many layers of society and the involved players. A fascinating read indeed!
A murder of an old landlady in a pensione brings out feelings and memories in the investigating Commissario Soneri. The murder seems like there will be a relatively easy case to solve. But research shows a large number of various characters that over a long have had dealings with the victim. This novel takes the reader into a journey of Parma stretching over many layers of society and the involved players. A fascinating read indeed!
January 1, 2023
Koszmarnie mi się czytało tą książkę. Napisana jest nudnym i ciężkim językiem. Główny bohater jest wyjątkowo antypatyczny. Główny wątek rozrasta się coraz bardziej, jednak autor zamiast skupić się na historii, zostawia wprowadzone przez siebie wątki, tak aby wprowadzić jeszcze więcej historii pobocznych. Których naturalnie nie rozwija.
Moim zdaniem to literacka Śmierć w Wenecji, której nie da się nikomu polecić…
Moim zdaniem to literacka Śmierć w Wenecji, której nie da się nikomu polecić…
December 14, 2024
Letto quasi per caso non troppo attratto dal fatto di aver visto in TV le serie del commissario Soneri interpretato Barbareschi……in effetti il personaggio e le storie si sviluppano in modo da tenere sempre l’attenzione alta e svelare personaggi di provincia e di montagna soprattutto con le loro forti personalità. Ben scritto e la lettura è scorrevole e piacevole.
April 25, 2023
Il classico giallo all'italiana con il commissario malinconico che occupa il 95% dello spazio e l'indagine che sembra quasi un'aggiunta posticcia. Ce ne sono cinquecento milioni e in gran parte mi annoiano, gli avrei dato una stellina di meno se Varesi non fosse uno scrittore competente.
September 29, 2023
I had high hopes for this Italian series but won’t bother reading a second. I think the English translation is the problem for me. Quite awkward and stilted - could be good in the original Italian as the story was pretty good
December 24, 2024
Un polar comme on les aime. Un commissaire vieillissant et sans illusion, un meurtre d'une vieille femme qui le ramène à son passé, Parme et ses ruelles, la société qui change et qui saccage le passé. Vivement les autres tomes !
August 16, 2017
The interior world of Commissario Soneri...
I could only give this book two stars for various reasons. Without knowing the turbulent history of Italy's "years of lead", wh
I could only give this book two stars for various reasons. Without knowing the turbulent history of Italy's "years of lead", wh
September 10, 2020
Si scava nel privato del commissario Soneri e si delinea una certa Parma segreta, la Parma dei bordelli di una volta. Tra malinconico e straziante; aspirazioni vagamente simenoniane.
January 7, 2021
I think one Soneri story is enough for me.
December 18, 2021
Soneri has to come to terms with his past as he solves this case
January 5, 2023
Trama intrisa di malinconia , che fa da collante tra l'indagine ed il passato del commissario Soneri.
Tutto sommato un giallo italiano normale come ce ne sono tanti
Tutto sommato un giallo italiano normale come ce ne sono tanti
February 23, 2025
Commisario Soneri investigates the murder of a woman, in his own lonely way, whilst agonising about the past. Somewhat low key but a good read.
December 22, 2019
Soneri is one of my top ten of foreign detectives. His descriptive ambles through the via's he knows well truly bring Italy to life. That and the food, the bureaucracy, the tempestuous relationships, the petty rivalry and deadly grudges too. The mysteries are pretty good too.
May 3, 2023
Un bel giallo d'atmosfera questo di Varesi, in una Parma invernale sempre ammantata di nebbia, tra ricordi, vecchi appartamenti, viuzze acciottolate, personaggi malinconici ed un'umanità vivida e varia che si arrabatta tra meschinità, illusioni e desideri.
Ben scritto e ben congeniato, con i personaggi del Commissario e della sua compagna tra i miei preferiti. Spero che la Mondadori pubblichi anche gli altri della serie.
Ben scritto e ben congeniato, con i personaggi del Commissario e della sua compagna tra i miei preferiti. Spero che la Mondadori pubblichi anche gli altri della serie.
May 14, 2018
Second roman mettant en scène Soneri dans la ville brumeuse de Parme, je découvre le personnage.
A quelques jours de Noël, Ghitta Tavgliavini, la vieille tenancière de la pension de la via Saffi, ne répond plus. Et pour cause, on retrouve son corps sans vie, étendu dans la cuisine de son appartement.
En charge de l’enquête, le commissaire Soneri parcourt les rues de la ville en mettant à jour, au fil de ses pérégrinations, tout un réseau de corruption dont les connections transitent par la pension.
Mais au-delà des accointances et des compromissions, le commissaire Soneri se replonge dans les dédales troubles des souvenirs douloureux de sa jeunesse. Car c’est à la pension de la via Saffi qu’il a rencontré sa femme Ada, décédée en accouchant d’un enfant mort-né.
Le brouillard trouble la mémoire mais n’atténue pas la douleur et le désir de vengeance.
Roman complexe mêlant passé et présent, lutte politique et avortements clandestins, ce roman nous emmène dans les petits rues de la ville où tentent de vivre immigrés de fraîche date et anciens.
Mais la campagne n’est jamais loin, avec son lot de rancoeurs portées depuis des générations et dont il est difficile, sinon impossible de se défaire.
La cuisine italienne n’est pas en reste, et j’ai découvert de nombreux plats traditionnels. L’auteur sait mêler l’utile à l’agréable.
Une belle découverte grâce au stand des Editions Agullo au Salon du Livre Paris cette année.
L’image que je retiendrai :
Celle des confessions au petit matin dans une église froide et presque vide.
http://alexmotamots.fr/la-pension-de-...
A quelques jours de Noël, Ghitta Tavgliavini, la vieille tenancière de la pension de la via Saffi, ne répond plus. Et pour cause, on retrouve son corps sans vie, étendu dans la cuisine de son appartement.
En charge de l’enquête, le commissaire Soneri parcourt les rues de la ville en mettant à jour, au fil de ses pérégrinations, tout un réseau de corruption dont les connections transitent par la pension.
Mais au-delà des accointances et des compromissions, le commissaire Soneri se replonge dans les dédales troubles des souvenirs douloureux de sa jeunesse. Car c’est à la pension de la via Saffi qu’il a rencontré sa femme Ada, décédée en accouchant d’un enfant mort-né.
Le brouillard trouble la mémoire mais n’atténue pas la douleur et le désir de vengeance.
Roman complexe mêlant passé et présent, lutte politique et avortements clandestins, ce roman nous emmène dans les petits rues de la ville où tentent de vivre immigrés de fraîche date et anciens.
Mais la campagne n’est jamais loin, avec son lot de rancoeurs portées depuis des générations et dont il est difficile, sinon impossible de se défaire.
La cuisine italienne n’est pas en reste, et j’ai découvert de nombreux plats traditionnels. L’auteur sait mêler l’utile à l’agréable.
Une belle découverte grâce au stand des Editions Agullo au Salon du Livre Paris cette année.
L’image que je retiendrai :
Celle des confessions au petit matin dans une église froide et presque vide.
http://alexmotamots.fr/la-pension-de-...
June 25, 2012
E' il secondo libro che leggo di Varesi, scoperto grazie alla serie televisiva "Nebbie e delitti".Purtroppo non mi convince, al punto che preferisco la trasposizione TV al libro.
Già con il primo avevo avuto la stessa impressione, ma ho voluto dargli un'altra possibilità. Niente da fare: il protagonista non mi convince, così come la sua compagna e la nebbia che copre la città, protagonista assoluta.
E dire che a me la nebbia piace, con quel senso di isolamento ovattato che in alcune mattine d'inverno mi da l'impressione di fluttuare in un mondo inventato.
Ma Soneri è scostante, non si lascia amare. Il modo di scrivere a mio avviso troppo lento, troppo strascicato, pessimista e senza speranza.
Per quanto non ami Barbareschi, il suo Soneri riesce ad appassionarmi più di quello scritto (ed è tutto dire). E lo stesso Angela, la sua compagna, e le storie raccontate dall'autore.
Già con il primo avevo avuto la stessa impressione, ma ho voluto dargli un'altra possibilità. Niente da fare: il protagonista non mi convince, così come la sua compagna e la nebbia che copre la città, protagonista assoluta.
E dire che a me la nebbia piace, con quel senso di isolamento ovattato che in alcune mattine d'inverno mi da l'impressione di fluttuare in un mondo inventato.
Ma Soneri è scostante, non si lascia amare. Il modo di scrivere a mio avviso troppo lento, troppo strascicato, pessimista e senza speranza.
Per quanto non ami Barbareschi, il suo Soneri riesce ad appassionarmi più di quello scritto (ed è tutto dire). E lo stesso Angela, la sua compagna, e le storie raccontate dall'autore.
September 7, 2012
A bit of a strange book. I am sure that many will not like it but it was up my alley. The pace is real slow and the style of work of Soneri is a bit strange - he almost let's the case solve itself. But what I like was the melancholic, foggy ambience of the book. The main plot forces Soneri to delve into his past and he discovers that the past is mostly a set of our delusions. I liked his thoughts and attitude but it was a bit strange that most characters he encountered had some profound considerations regarding the past, politics, old age, shattered dreams and such.
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