La ballata di Mila

Mila Zago #1

by Matteo Strukul

Due gang di criminali che si contendono il territorio veneto: quella dei Pugnali Parlanti, affiliata alle triadi cinesi, e una cosca locale che fa capo al sanguinario Rossano Pagnan. In mezzo a tutto questo una donna spietata e pronta a sparigliare le carte.
Abbandonata dalla madre, violentata da una banda di criminali che le ha massacrato il padre, Mila Zago è una killer a sangue freddo, un'assassina definitiva. Cresciuta dal nonno sull'altopiano dei Sette Comuni secondo i codici di un'educazione marziale, è tornata dal passato per attuare una vendetta esemplare. Per far questo, nella più classica delle tradizioni, metterà cinesi contro veneti in un doppio gioco che ricorda un classico del cinema come Per un pugno di dollari.
Forte di un ritmo sincopato e rapidissimo, di scene d'azione mozzafiato, di continui cambi di prospettiva e di un intreccio a orologeria, La ballata di Mila rinnova il pulp-noir italiano attraverso una storia sabot/age che riesce a indagare con attenzione il fenomeno della mafia cinese a Nordest e lancia nel mondo editoriale un nuovo personaggio femminile, formidabile e dirompente, che spezza le consuete geometrie narrative: Mila Zago aka Red Dread.

Genres: Crime, Thriller, Mystery, Pulp

224 pages, Paperback

First published August 24, 2011

About the author

Matteo Strukul is an Italian author of historical fiction. His work has been translated into twenty languages and was awarded with the Premio Bancarella - won in the past by Ernest Hemingway, Ken Follett and Umberto Eco among others - and the Premio Salgari two of the most prestigious literary prizes in Italy. His Medici Family tetralogy was an international bestseller saga with millions of copies sold around the world. He teaches Interactive Storytelling at the Link University in Rome.

Matteo earned a PhD in European Law of Contracts at the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and lives between Padua and Berlin with his wife Silvia.

Visit Matteo Strukul’s website at www.matteostrukul.com and follow him on Twitter at @matteostrukul.

Reviews

[Orsodimondo · Rating 2 out of 5]

BALLATA PULP IN NO DIESIS


Mila Zago

Una volta gli sceneggiatori ritagliavano gli articoli di giornale e li depositavano alla SIAE – così sono nati molti film (io invece non lo feci e ci ritrovammo in due a fare la stessa cosa. Poco male).
Articoli e notizie di cronaca sono alla base di molti film, e romanzi.
Specie quelli gialli, polizieschi, thriller, noir.
In questo caso si sono mischiate un po’ le carte: qualche notizia, qualche dato, e tanto fumetto e cinema di serie B.


Mila Zago

Il lancio pubblicitario recita Una collana dedicata alle storie che il nostro paese non ha più il coraggio di raccontare, generi diversi per rompere la crosta del non detto: sabotare il quotidiano su temi inquietanti eppure rigorosamente taciuti.
Mi chiedo davvero quale sarebbe la grande verità rivelata in questo romanzo: gli unici spunti presi dalla cronaca, sono fatti noti e risaputi: nel nordest c’è criminalità organizzata, locale e straniera (in questo case cinese).
Alla faccia dello scoop!?
C’è chi sostiene che il noir è il giornalismo d’inchiesta del terzo millennio.
Magari hanno ragione: ma presumo che fare inchieste non esuli dal sapere scrivere. Almeno un poco.
Tanto più se pubblichi per una casa editrice e non un quotidiano.



Comunque, sorvolando sul lancio, la collana, e compagnia varia, volendo ci si può divertire a leggere questo esordio di Matteo Strukul: siamo in pieno pulp, per chi lo apprezza, ritmo serrato, niente tempo perso in psicologia, sangue pallottole lame e cazzotti a go go, senza escludere le arti marziali e i pugnali volanti.

Lei veste in latex e spandex, preferibilmente canottiere, ovviamente è uno schianto con gli occhi verdi (ettipareva, ‘sti artisti della parola le incontrano tutte loro, a noi non ne lasciano nessuna), i cattivi sono più neri di una notte senza luna né stelle nella savana, i loro cani sono peggio di lupi, il bowling non è un gioco innocente ma fa male, la tortura è attività quotidiana, uccidere è più facile che pettinarsi, nel tempo che perdi ad accenderti una sigaretta qualcuno potrebbe già averti fatto a fettine da usare in qualche cocktail.
E avanti così con amenità simili.



Peccato che come al solito, se l’azione incalza troppo, ci sia bisogno dello spiegone: qui sotto forma di un diario/lettera della protagonista Mila a una donna magistrato (in tutto e per tutto, la parte più infelice di questo libro).

Mi piacerebbe che questo genere di libri se non altro smettesse di usare espressioni tipo Ma che pensi, di essere dentro un film? oppure Mica siamo al cinema qui! Mi piacerebbe che chi li fabbrica prendesse cognizione che non solo l’intreccio e il montaggio di libri simili è tutto debitore del cinema, ma è la scrittura stessa che sembra proprio una sceneggiatura (brutta): manca solo il numero di scena e l’indicazione di interno/esterno.

Chi ha scritto si è divertito più di me che ho letto.
Meglio di niente.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two rival gangs fight for control of northern Italy's underworld and at the center of it all is a mysterious redhead named Mila. Will anyone be left standing when Mila is finished?

I got this from Netgalley and Exhibit A.

The Ballad of Mila reads like a combination of Fistful of Dollars and Kill Bill. The story is that of a wronged woman who trains for years, arranges for her mortal enemies to nearly annihilate one another, then swoops in to finish things up. Sound pretty good?

Mila is a deadly heroine from the Lisbeth Salander school of ass kicking. Not only is she a fearsome martial artist, she's also good with swords, knives, the Colt .45 and sniper rifles. That's what you get when you're raised by your WWII veteran grandfather after you see your father murdered, I guess.

The villains are suitably vile, though both are attached to their families. I almost felt sorry for them given how they had no chance against Mila. And therein lies the rub. Mila is such a bad ass that I was kind of bored. While the blood and gore was fun, Mila escaped almost without a scratch.

This book feels like more like a Hard Case title than an Exhibit A one. Hell, it feels more like a Hard Case more than most of the recent Hard Case releases as well. It's a fun pulpy action story. As long as you're not expecting the second coming of The Big Sleep, it should make for a few enjoyable hours of reading. 3 out of 5 stars.

[Mia Searles (The Muses Circle) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review and more can be found on my blog here: The Muses Circle

My Review: Kill Bill. The Fifth Element. Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. La Femme Nikita. What do these films/books have in common? Strong, memorable female characters that kick major ass. And I am absolutely thrilled to add The Ballad of Mila by Italian author Matteo Strukul to the list.

Here is what I liked. No matter what the language, Matteo Strukul obviously has mastered the ability to describe scenes in vivid detail. Whether he's illustrating a fight, a person, or trying to inspire a particular emotion, his use of personification and similes will have you pausing to admire such expressive rhetoric. Here are a few examples I found myself highlighting as I read:


"The short blade flew through the air like a hungry tongue, swinging fast in a macabre, shining dance."

"That day, I cried all my tears. All those I had been granted, a lifetime's worth."

"The shiny blue Ford Focus was speeding angrily through roads built over the ancient Roman borders as if it had a grudge against the asphalt."

"She kept moving on her feet, elegant and lethal. She swayed like a reed under the moonlit cloak of a night sky patterned with pale stars."


I also thoroughly enjoyed Mila's journal entries. Once I started the book and realized that the story was not entirely in her POV, I wondered how the author was going to give us Mila's backstory. That is the beauty of her journal entries. Strukul strategically works them in, so that as the story progresses, the puzzle pieces of Mila's life start to click into place. The entries also helps the reader to understand why she sets certain events in motion.

I couldn't help but be fascinated by the whole historical/political backgrounds of the Chinese/Italian criminal empires. The story takes place in Italy and there is no one more corrupt then Rossano Pagnan. But his days as the most notorious mob boss in Italian history are numbered because Guo Xiaoping, leader of a gang of Chinese assassins have been spreading across the Veneto region. And Guo wants nothing more than to knock Pagnan off his bloody throne. I will be the first person to admit I had no idea that the Chinese had immigrated to Italy and that there was this whole underground war between the two cultures. It's great when a novel entertains you, but it's even more awesome when you learn something, especially when it is unexpected.

I was also impressed with Matteo Strukul's knowledge of weapons, specifically firearms. Heckler & Koch USP Tactical, Knight's Armament Company Silencer, Colt .45, P38 Special, Semiautomatic Glock 17 loaded with 9mm Parabellum bullets, Armalite AR 15 assault rifle-- yeah, just to list a few. And I must say, there is something kind of sexy about Mila knowing and handling some of these deadly weapons.

More than anything else in the story, I absolutely loved our heroine. I know I already said it, but I'll say it again, Mila Zago is totally badass. Some may think that her lack of emotion throughout the story is unrealistic, but just be patient. It's towards the end of the novel that you begin to see some of her vulnerability shine through.

I want to talk about her physical appearance which plays an important part in the book. This is how she is described:


"A bombshell: medium height, red dreadlocked hair, green eyes; sheathed in leather trousers and a tight jacket perfectly highlighting her curves. Breathtakingly hot."


She also frequently wears yellow tinted shades or "specs" which are significant and explained later in the novel. Known as The Red Fury and Red Dread, Mila's physical appearance is so important because it not only serves as a distraction in the very male dominated world she involves herself in, but men take beautiful women for granted all the time, as if a female's beauty can be her only attribute. This makes Mila a lethal enemy...and perhaps later a powerful asset.

Aside from her striking looks, Mila has spent years training, mastering, molding herself into a deadly assassin with one goal in mind-- avenge the death of her father and make those who brutally raped her pay. And God help those who get in her way:


"The Red Fury jumped in the air and kicked him smack in the groin. Ottorino fell to his knees then crumpled to the floor like a puppet broken by a moody child. She didn't waste any time. Took the Heckler & Koch, grabbed him by the hair and dragged him outside like a pig's carcass."


Reading Mila's story reminded me so much of some of my other favorite strong female characters, The Bride in Kill Bill, Leeloo (who also has the reddish/orange dreads) from The Fifth Element, Nikita from La Femme Nikita, and perhaps most of all, Lisbeth Salander from Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Yet while I see bits and pieces of these other women in Mila, Matteo Strukul was still able to create a female character that has unique qualities of her own.

So here is what I had some issues with. There were way too many random, abrupt shifts in character POV. I can handle reading the perspective of Mila and the two main villains, Pagnan and Guo. But for some ungodly reason, the author gave almost every single character in the book their own POV moment. One minute you're seeing things through Mila's perspective, then for 2 or 3 sentences you are her victim, then it shifts to another person in the room, then back to Mila-- and so on and so forth without any kind of warning or paragraph/chapter break. It definitely affected the flow of the story.

While I really enjoyed Guo Xiaoping as one of the villains, I had a hard time taking Pagnan seriously. He is supposed to be this scary Italian crime boss but some of the things he says throughout the story sound completely juvenile such as here:


"Mule, we're in deep doodoo, you should already be at the hospital and instead you start a game of twenty questions?"


Deep doodoo??? Really? From my understanding, The Ballad of Mila was originally a graphic novel, written in Italian. The author decided to expand it into a novel and the finished product was translated into English. While some lines work well in a graphic novel, especially with illustrations to go along with them, others may not translate well and I think that is what the problem is here and in a few other places in the story.

My only other complaint is something that trouble's Mila later in the book that conflicts with her character. There is a scene where Mila has to watch Pagnan feed one of the Chinese gang members to his dogs. She goes as far as saying to herself that, "it was too much, even for her." This, in my opinion, totally contradicts her character. Mila is an assassin, a woman who has chopped off the hands of a man, cauterized the wounds, cut some heads off, put them in bags, and delivered them personally, etc. Yet she can't stomach watching a man being eaten by dogs? Yes, it's disturbing, but her reaction just felt out of character.

The Ballad of Mila is a smart, fast paced thrill ride that has all the elements of a cult classic. Mila is a fierce heroine that may remind you of other famous strong female characters but can stand on her own thanks to author Matteo Strukul molding her with care. My only heads up to potential readers is to remember that this novel was translated from Italian to English and contains some words/phrases that you may not have come across before. The Ballad of Mila is the first book in a potential series. I can't wait to read book 2!

Mia @ The Muses Circle

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

MAJOR SPOILERS

I don’t usually talk about ratings or my justification, however, for THE BALLAD OF MILA I want to make an exception. I give this 4/5 stars; the concept is pure pulp noir; a young woman is witness to her cop father’s murder and is subsequently rapped by the killers. She devotes her life to learning martial arts turning her into a living breathing weapon for the purpose of vengeance. It’s a steadily forming process that takes devotion, discipline and detachment – and author Matteo Strukul ensures Mila’s addictive and compulsive personality matches that requirement perfectly. She’s an efficient, effective, and elusive killer – an absolute assassin.

What lets THE BALLAD OF MILA down is her placement within context of the plot. We first get a glimpse of Mila at a service station; a presumably chance meeting by which she expertly eradicates two known associates of the criminal underworld. She takes off in a stolen vehicle loaded with cash, the owner of which happens to be an Italian mob boss (and also the person ultimately responsible for the heinous acts thrust upon her life previously) who doesn’t take too kindly to loosing the sum. She eventually contacts the mob boss, making a deal that will see her and his loyal band of killers take out the Triads, a 14K gang of ruthless Chinese killers moving in on the Italians turf.

There’s more to it but what THE BALLAD OF MILA boils down to is; a killer elite realising her potential and taking aim at Chinese and Italian mobsters to avenge her father’s death and save her homeland of unwanted interlopers.

Mila is a cool calculated character with enough sass and instinct to make her instantly likable. Additionally she’s someone that cries for a series of stories by virtue of her profession, particularly at novel’s end.

My main gripes are:
• She appears for no apparent reason (though we learn later why she wants to destroy the Italian mobsters, this initial introduction lacked justification)
• Heads of both the Chinese and Italian mobs take her into their confidence with little or no question – had they dug deeper, justified their easy acceptance, THE BALAD OF MILA would’ve been a 5 star read.

THE BALLAD OF MILA could’ve been something special but just stopped short in my opinion. Perhaps the author wanted to hold something back for the future instalments with Mila as a hired assassin, who knows. Either way, this is a must read for modern splatter pulp fans than like their fiction sexy and gory.

[WortGestalt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ich fand ihn gar nicht so schlecht, diesen kurzen Thriller. Ein bisschen so, als würde man an einer Landstraße stehen und ein LKW rast mit überhöhter Geschwindigkeit und laut hupend an einem vorbei. Muss man nicht haben, ist aber irgendwie ein Erlebnis. Cool fand ich die comic-artige Inszenierung der Action-Szenen, die wirkungsvoll überzeichnet sind. Protagonistin Mila ist kein Racheengel, sondern eine Todesgöttin, die zwar ein sehr dünnes weil abgenutztes Motiv mitbringt, mich dafür aber an die gute Kampfmaschine Milla Jovovich in ihrer Rolle als Alice in "Resident Evil" erinnerte und damit eine Art Sympathieübertragung bei mir stattfand. Insofern, schnelle und kompromisslose Story ohne viel Tiefe, dafür aber schön knallig und wummig.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

How about a bit of the ultra-violence? That's all this book is, pure and simple.
In short, it's an Italian noir in which two mafia families (one of which is Chinese!) are facing off, with Mila stuck in the middle. There's a lot more to it, of course.
The translation was odd in several places, with not-quite-right metaphors and idiomatic expressions. Still, it was not a bad read overall.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am totally in love with the character of Mila Zago from The Ballad of Mila.  She is calm, cool, confident, and capable.  From the moment she first appears, walking head-long into a volatile situation, taking charge, and then throwing the results down in the police officers' faces, I was hooked.  I wouldn't want to meet her -- she is singularly focussed and you are either a target, or in her way.

This book reads so smoothly.  I read it in two sittings, but only because I had spent time finishing up another book on the first day of reading this.

Mila is on a mission to join a brotherhood of bounty hunters, but first she needs to clean up her community of two rival mob gangs, one which was responsible for the slaughter of her dedicated cop father.  She withdraws from ordinary life and trains and trains and trains to become a killing machine.  People will compare this to the film Kill Bill for the obvious reason: she's a cool, killing, femme fatale.  But Mila is so much smoother than Uma Thurman.

But Mila is pretty much the only thing that makes this story work.  Our bad guys, and there are plenty of them, are not smart.  In fact, they seem so dim-witted that we can't help wonder how they got to be criminal leaders?  And because they are so dim, we know there will be no problems for Mila along the way -- we almost wish they'd be capable of putting up a fight just so we could see what she's really able to do.

Mila keeps a journal, which is almost a very long, detailed letter to a police officer/prosecutor, of her plans and jobs.  She also records the things she does, to have an accurate record of the events.

This journal at first seemed like a real cop-out on author Matteo Strukul's part.  It was a convenient way to tell us Mila's back story but I do think Strukul could have worked it in to the story a little more naturally, rather than just dumping a bunch of information on us in one sitting.  Some of the latter journal entries were a little more interesting because they hinted at what was to come, rather than just telling us some history.

There is blood.  Plenty of blood.  And there is everything gruesome and cringe-worthy that you can imagine:  Decapitation. Animal mauling. Torture. Rape. Slaughter.  It made me think that we need a "grindhouse" category for splatter-fiction such as this.

One of the things that really made Mila so attractive (beside the description of her physical beauty) was that despite the very calm, cool exterior, we do get to look at her thoughts and on more than one occasion she questions whether or not she can continue or perform the violent action.  This humanizes her to the reader and lets us see her as a person rather than just a killing machine.  I felt is was a really smart move.

We are clearly set up for more Mila Zago stories, and believe me...I'll bite!  I want to see her in action again, though I hope she'll be challenged a little more the next time.

Looking for a good book?  This fast-paced, bloody, action-thriller has a heroine that you can rally behind and root on from the safety of your easy chair.

This review originally published in the blog Looking For a Good Book.

[Kumiko Lei ~Lost In A Book~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed at Lost In A Book

Alright, I'll admit it, I saw the cover and hit the request button without reading the blurb. I didn't even read the blurb after I was approved for it.

Why would I do such a thing? Well, I have a little cover lust problem, and I thought this cover was freaking bad-ass.

This is not my typical read. This is not a romance. This is a balls-to-the-wall, revenge filled, graphic, bloody, crime novel.

Mila Zago, who is she? She is a bad-ass, katana swinging, gun shooting, punch throwing Italian chick with the biggest balls I've ever seen. She is awesome. I think I may be in love with her.

When you get right down to it, this story is Italian Mafia vs. Chinese Gang vs. Mila Zago.

I have so many thoughts running through my head where this book is concerned. I really did enjoy it. It was bloody and violent and I did do some cringing. Despite all of that, I still liked it and I didn't want to stop reading it. This is supposed to be the first in a series about Mila and I think I may continue on with it. Its a good break from my usual.

I did have a couple of things that bugged me with it. One being the racial slurs in the beginning. They did seem to die off and I wasn't really sure what their purpose was. The other thing was all of Mila's "matrix-like" skills. The author explained her strength and all with the training she had but some of it just seemed unreal. Those were my only gripes. Other than that, I really did enjoy this.

If you're looking for something with a kick-ass heroine and you can handle the violence you will ultimately like this.

*Copy received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[John of Canada · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mindless violence and crummy editing.They should have hired Violet to do the translation.Probably took less time to write than for me to read.

[GONZA · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mila è la versione italiana della sposa di Kill Bill, vendetta e katana compresa (peccato l'assenza di Hatori Hanzo). Il nordest, che sembra uscito dalle pagine di Carlotto fanno da sfondo alla sua furia vendicatrice di gorgone un po' sborona, ma simpatica alla fine e ora non vedo l'ora di leggere il secondo libro in cui ci dovrebbe essere il contatto con la gilda di "difensori del bene". Niente di nuovo sul fronte occidentale, ma almeno non è il solito commissario della grande città, come ora ce ne sono tanti.

[Ponya(´◉౪◉`) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Il primo libro è completamente diverso da quelli più recenti. Il romanzo è ambientato in zone del padovano in cui mi sono ritrovata (essendo della zona).
Ritmo abbastanza incalzante e per fare un paragone (se proprio devo) è un Kill Bill tutto veneto. Un libro di pura azione, niente accenni storici, niente romanticismo. Solo la protagonista e la sua vendetta.

Per fare una citazione del libro, Mila (la protagonista) scrive nel diario:
"io sarò Furia e Tormento.
Io godrò del male che saprò infliggere a coloro che hanno commesso il male.
Io mi nutrirò di questo. La mia crudeltà sarà la mia forza. E tanto più saprò mutilare, torturare, schiantare, tagliare, fare a pezzi, assassinare, tanto più il mio sorriso sarà dolce e scintillante.
Occhio per occhio.
Dente per dente."

[Francesco Sapienza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una piacevolissima scoperta, letteralmente. Con scene infernali, finite di leggere in un angolo di paradiso.

[Gabriel Rolland · Rating 4 out of 5]

La Nikita veneta

[Salfaraz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. Short and brutal.

[Antonella Montesanti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mila e' stata una piacevolissima sorpresa!
Certo definire questo libro piacevolissimo farà storcere il naso a chi non ama la violenza, che non si può mai giustificare.....o quasi....
La storia di Mila e' agghiacciante , pulp-itante, per definirla alla Tarantino, ma non si riesce a non innamorarsi di questa rossa dal fisico perfetto , ma con un cuore completamente prosciugato della sua linfa vitale dagli eventi in cui rimane coinvolta da piccola.
Mi ha spiazzata anche il fatto di affiancare ad episodi efferati la descrizione di paesaggi incantevoli e pieni di natura verdissima e rilassante e posti di montagna mozzafiato.
Un bravo all'autore Matteo Strukul che ho avuto l'occasione di conoscere personalmente alla fiera del libro a Torino lo scorso anno ed ora sicuramente continuerò la lettura degli altri due libri usciti dopo di questo perché Mila intriga, incuriosisce, si fa amare.

[Luca Cresta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esplosivo, crudo, molto coinvolgente, un romanzo action veramente di primissimo livello.
Una protagonista indimenticabile, una "stone killer" alla Antonia Lake del Professionista. Mi è piaciuta la disamina del fenomeno dell'infiltrazione dei cinesi nell'economia del nostro paese, molto accurata ma non noiosa e funzionale alla storia. Un grnadissimo teso che non può mancare ai tanti appassionati del genere.

[Baldurian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strukul ha confezionato una storiella pulp abbastanza canonica (la vendetta, i criminali in guerra fra loro, la violenza gratuita, il tocco orientaleggiante) che, nel modesto panorama italiano, sicuramente fa una buona impressione. La ballata di Mila è un romanzuccio molto tarantiniano (pure troppo!), sicuramente imperfetto ma divertente da leggere.

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like this one. I actually bailed at 50%. I love the heroine, but there's really very little of her. It seems to focus more on the bad guys and there are too many of them. I became confused as to who was who, who did what.... too many POVs.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting premise, garment workers in Italy being forced out by Chinese immigrants.

The start of the Vandetta is well handled. I am reading an English translation. It is probably better in the original.

[Burgoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall rather disappointing, with some problematic dealings with Chinese characters.

http://fedpeaches.blogspot.com/2014/0...

[Josef Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting and violent novel

For a full review, please go to http://www.examiner.com/review/the-ba... and follow me on Twitter @josenher

[DunklesSchaf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Schnell und grausam, aber ansonsten halt nichts.

[Maria Chiara Maestri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un esordio veramente interessante. Mila Zago è un personaggio iconico e complesso. Lo stile è agile e alterna il racconto alle memorie giudiziarie che Mila scrive per il GIP che si occuperà del caso