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Born to Lose: Tales of Gigi
Some people make crime pay, Gigi barely makes enough to cover the rent.
Through a series of vignettes, flash fiction and short stories, Born to Tales of Gigi charts the adventures of Gianluigi ‘Gigi’ Moretti, a talented criminal with little charm and even less luck, as he strives to make his fortune, or even enough to pay his rent, in Turin during the 1970s.
Layered with historical intrigue, illegal action and cultural mores, this collection combines crime with a hint of comedy and will delight and thrill in equal measure.
This short story collection is perfect for fans of the humour employed by Andrea Camilleri in his Montalbano series, the crime mysteries of Philip Gwynne Jones and the cynicism of Massimo Carlotto. Not to mention, fans of 1970s eurocrime and polizioteschi films and of course, Cat O’Nine Tails by Dario Argento.
What people are saying about Born to Tales of
“A glorious return to the golden years of the giallo and the poliziesco as we follow the oddly lovable Gigi the Loser through the landscape of 1970s Turin. Highly recommended!”
Philip Gwynne Jones
Author of the Venice based Nathan Sutherland series.
"Bold, clever and at times, funny. I found myself utterly transported. For me, brilliant writing is the ability to make you keep turning the pages and Turner achieves just that wit this collection of stories."
Awais Khan
Award-winning author, TED speaker and founder of The Writing Institute
Born to Tales of Gigi is a short story collection of eleven comedy-crime tales set in Italy. All of the stories take place in Torino during the turbulent Years of Lead.
Through a series of vignettes, flash fiction and short stories, Born to Tales of Gigi charts the adventures of Gianluigi ‘Gigi’ Moretti, a talented criminal with little charm and even less luck, as he strives to make his fortune, or even enough to pay his rent, in Turin during the 1970s.
Layered with historical intrigue, illegal action and cultural mores, this collection combines crime with a hint of comedy and will delight and thrill in equal measure.
This short story collection is perfect for fans of the humour employed by Andrea Camilleri in his Montalbano series, the crime mysteries of Philip Gwynne Jones and the cynicism of Massimo Carlotto. Not to mention, fans of 1970s eurocrime and polizioteschi films and of course, Cat O’Nine Tails by Dario Argento.
What people are saying about Born to Tales of
“A glorious return to the golden years of the giallo and the poliziesco as we follow the oddly lovable Gigi the Loser through the landscape of 1970s Turin. Highly recommended!”
Philip Gwynne Jones
Author of the Venice based Nathan Sutherland series.
"Bold, clever and at times, funny. I found myself utterly transported. For me, brilliant writing is the ability to make you keep turning the pages and Turner achieves just that wit this collection of stories."
Awais Khan
Award-winning author, TED speaker and founder of The Writing Institute
Born to Tales of Gigi is a short story collection of eleven comedy-crime tales set in Italy. All of the stories take place in Torino during the turbulent Years of Lead.
- GenresCrime
147 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 10, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 26, 2025
Gigi the loser lives the hard, desperate, violent life of a petty crook. Life kicked him into the gutter and, unsatisfied, continues to kick and stomp and spit on him. Trying to navigate this has made Gigi who he is. He knows the cops and the cops know him. Too well. He knows the streets of 70s Torino and the streets know him. He’s as much a part of the city’s fabric as the piazzas and Torino FC. And he still can’t hack it.
In telling Gigi’s tales, Turner captures the atmosphere and energy of poliziotteschi, with a bit of the procedural aspects of gialli, a bit of slapstick, and lots of J&B thrown in. Some stories are vignettes, told with humor and a sharp eye to the political and class issues of northern Italy in the 70s. These tales are artfully layered and deceptively simple. Other stories—like Luck Be a Lady and Stolen Time—are more plot-oriented and involved. The longest, To Killer a Prosecutor, forms the centerpiece of the book.
An excellent read. Fans of Argento will recognize the character from Cat O’ Nine Tails.
In telling Gigi’s tales, Turner captures the atmosphere and energy of poliziotteschi, with a bit of the procedural aspects of gialli, a bit of slapstick, and lots of J&B thrown in. Some stories are vignettes, told with humor and a sharp eye to the political and class issues of northern Italy in the 70s. These tales are artfully layered and deceptively simple. Other stories—like Luck Be a Lady and Stolen Time—are more plot-oriented and involved. The longest, To Killer a Prosecutor, forms the centerpiece of the book.
An excellent read. Fans of Argento will recognize the character from Cat O’ Nine Tails.
February 18, 2025
Gigi is a "common" criminal, but he loves himself some coffee, & it is not the American morning addiction-way either, Gigi knows his coffee.
Gigi is reminiscent of the slapstick of the 1950-60s, clean (not targeting any cultural/ ethnic group) humour of simpler times of comedy. The Tales of Gigi, however, are also a reminder that the times in general were hardly simpler, & life was as tough as ever.
"Born to Lose : Tales of Gigi" by Marek Z. Turner starts with the introduction to the concept of the character Gigi, & I went & watched the movie, after reading the first two short stories.
This is a collection, & the stories vary in length, seriousness of the situation, & hilarity too. Apart from the slapstick, there is a lot of subtle humour, like regarding the political situation, & the image & defintion of "Reds", the power of the Police, & the real-life position of a flashy mafioso.
One thing I found a bit odd is that the narration changes between the stories. Some of these have been published before, but as a collection, it was a bit strange, "Running on Fumes", "137 Words to Salvation" & "The Card Sharps" are in 1st person, & the rest in 3rd person narration.
"To kill a prosecutor" is the longest of the collection, & has an interesting build-up, with both thriller & comedic elements, as promised by the description of the book.
I found "A real pizza work" the funniest, followed by "A Cop's sting" & "Running on fumes".
"Dance of Suspicion" & " Luck be a lady" were a little predictable.
The sequence of the stories serves well to introduce Gigi to the readers, & by the time they reach "To kill a prosecutor", Gigi is established as human & multifaceted, though bumbling for the reader's entertainment. By the time they reach "Stolen Time", which is the last piece, they know a little bit about Gigi's childhood, & witness him face a completely impossible situation.
The writing is well-paced, & peppered with the right amount of Italian words, phrases, cultural quirks & food & drink names, some of which I enjoyed looking up, for example "Caffè corretto", while some I simply read through, it is perfectly possible to understand & enjoy the story without getting the exact phrases.
Overall, the humour is good, & there is crime thriller in places. It's an easy, light read, which can be spread over several days too, if one so likes, because each story is separate.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Gigi is reminiscent of the slapstick of the 1950-60s, clean (not targeting any cultural/ ethnic group) humour of simpler times of comedy. The Tales of Gigi, however, are also a reminder that the times in general were hardly simpler, & life was as tough as ever.
"Born to Lose : Tales of Gigi" by Marek Z. Turner starts with the introduction to the concept of the character Gigi, & I went & watched the movie, after reading the first two short stories.
This is a collection, & the stories vary in length, seriousness of the situation, & hilarity too. Apart from the slapstick, there is a lot of subtle humour, like regarding the political situation, & the image & defintion of "Reds", the power of the Police, & the real-life position of a flashy mafioso.
One thing I found a bit odd is that the narration changes between the stories. Some of these have been published before, but as a collection, it was a bit strange, "Running on Fumes", "137 Words to Salvation" & "The Card Sharps" are in 1st person, & the rest in 3rd person narration.
"To kill a prosecutor" is the longest of the collection, & has an interesting build-up, with both thriller & comedic elements, as promised by the description of the book.
I found "A real pizza work" the funniest, followed by "A Cop's sting" & "Running on fumes".
"Dance of Suspicion" & " Luck be a lady" were a little predictable.
The sequence of the stories serves well to introduce Gigi to the readers, & by the time they reach "To kill a prosecutor", Gigi is established as human & multifaceted, though bumbling for the reader's entertainment. By the time they reach "Stolen Time", which is the last piece, they know a little bit about Gigi's childhood, & witness him face a completely impossible situation.
The writing is well-paced, & peppered with the right amount of Italian words, phrases, cultural quirks & food & drink names, some of which I enjoyed looking up, for example "Caffè corretto", while some I simply read through, it is perfectly possible to understand & enjoy the story without getting the exact phrases.
Overall, the humour is good, & there is crime thriller in places. It's an easy, light read, which can be spread over several days too, if one so likes, because each story is separate.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
January 20, 2025
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
If bad luck were an Olympic sport, Gigi Moretti would have more gold medals than a fish has scales. Born to Lose is the story of this unlucky criminal whose life is basically one long blooper reel. Every time Gigi tries to pull off a crime or catch a break, something ridiculous happens—he trips, gets caught, or just plain screws up. It’s like the universe has a personal vendetta against him.
But here’s the thing: Gigi is so bad at being a criminal, it’s impossible not to like him. In between his epic failures, he roams bars and coffee shops, hunting for a decent cup of coffee like his life depends on it (and honestly, it might be the only thing he’s good at).
I enjoyed the way the author described Gigi’s accidents, falls and slapstick moments, I often giggled out loud. The author has a talent for making Gigi’s pain our pleasure—you can’t help but laugh when Gigi falls face-first into trouble, literally and figuratively.
I did feel some scenes were too lengthy and ‘over described’ such as the house burglary where he meets his match. I felt it was a little too long in the tooth.
But what I loved most is how the book doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s just a fun, wild ride through the world of a guy who’s probably better suited to being a coffee critic than a criminal. If you’re into dark humour and love rooting for the underdog—even when the underdog can’t stop tripping over his own feet—you’ll enjoy Born to Lose.
If bad luck were an Olympic sport, Gigi Moretti would have more gold medals than a fish has scales. Born to Lose is the story of this unlucky criminal whose life is basically one long blooper reel. Every time Gigi tries to pull off a crime or catch a break, something ridiculous happens—he trips, gets caught, or just plain screws up. It’s like the universe has a personal vendetta against him.
But here’s the thing: Gigi is so bad at being a criminal, it’s impossible not to like him. In between his epic failures, he roams bars and coffee shops, hunting for a decent cup of coffee like his life depends on it (and honestly, it might be the only thing he’s good at).
I enjoyed the way the author described Gigi’s accidents, falls and slapstick moments, I often giggled out loud. The author has a talent for making Gigi’s pain our pleasure—you can’t help but laugh when Gigi falls face-first into trouble, literally and figuratively.
I did feel some scenes were too lengthy and ‘over described’ such as the house burglary where he meets his match. I felt it was a little too long in the tooth.
But what I loved most is how the book doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s just a fun, wild ride through the world of a guy who’s probably better suited to being a coffee critic than a criminal. If you’re into dark humour and love rooting for the underdog—even when the underdog can’t stop tripping over his own feet—you’ll enjoy Born to Lose.
March 19, 2025
My favourite of Marek's books so far (which is by no means a low bar).
A series of short-short and short stories tracking the (mis)adventures of one of 1970's Italy's perennial petty criminal losers, it finds Gigi frequently in trouble. Sometimes of his own making, sometimes not. Marek deftly weaves between humour, melancholy, and genuine threat with style. It's hard to get this right, but the collection nails it.
Funny, sad, thrilling, and above all entertaining, I highly recommend it. A great idea and character, well executed.
A series of short-short and short stories tracking the (mis)adventures of one of 1970's Italy's perennial petty criminal losers, it finds Gigi frequently in trouble. Sometimes of his own making, sometimes not. Marek deftly weaves between humour, melancholy, and genuine threat with style. It's hard to get this right, but the collection nails it.
Funny, sad, thrilling, and above all entertaining, I highly recommend it. A great idea and character, well executed.
February 4, 2025
We have a bunch of short, sharp stories here.
Gigi is a hapless petty criminal with a smidgeon of a conscience.
He just wants to get by, but whatever he turns his hand to goes wrong.
Gigi's misdemeanours are both witty and amusing and you can't help wishing he could just get a lucky break, despite him being on the wrong side of the law.
His anecdotes made me smile and roll my eyes in equal measure, all while learning more about Italy than you'd ever get in a guide book! Thank you to BookSirens for the ARC and this is my honest opinion.
If you're looking for something different and light hearted then this is the book for you.
Gigi is a hapless petty criminal with a smidgeon of a conscience.
He just wants to get by, but whatever he turns his hand to goes wrong.
Gigi's misdemeanours are both witty and amusing and you can't help wishing he could just get a lucky break, despite him being on the wrong side of the law.
His anecdotes made me smile and roll my eyes in equal measure, all while learning more about Italy than you'd ever get in a guide book! Thank you to BookSirens for the ARC and this is my honest opinion.
If you're looking for something different and light hearted then this is the book for you.
March 7, 2025
A glorious ‘giallo’ caper set in Turin during the violence and political turmoil of 1970s Italy. The series of short, evocative escapades starring ‘Gigi’ Moretti are as hilarious and as frustrating as a Peanuts comic strip.
Gigi stumbles out of prison and into ill-conceived plans hatched in bars over the morning espresso and pastries. Back-firing Alfa Romeo, pink sports papers, Camorra hit men and a flashing Martini sign.
Charlie Brown never got to kick the ball, or kiss the girl; but will our hapless career burglar ever get to go straight? You’ll have to read Born to Lose: Tales of Gigi to find out …
Gigi stumbles out of prison and into ill-conceived plans hatched in bars over the morning espresso and pastries. Back-firing Alfa Romeo, pink sports papers, Camorra hit men and a flashing Martini sign.
Charlie Brown never got to kick the ball, or kiss the girl; but will our hapless career burglar ever get to go straight? You’ll have to read Born to Lose: Tales of Gigi to find out …
January 25, 2025
In an era when gritty, violent, downbeat crime stories are a dime-a-dozen, it's kind of refreshing to read something with a more gentle touch. Oh, not that hapless second-story man Gigi is a gallant criminal, he's just too clumsy and too cursed to pull off any job without making a mess of things.
Author Marek Turner has compiled this collection of short stories and flash fiction into a very readable form. Each independent vignette, set in Italy during the 1970s, follows the unlucky thief as he tries to score some kind of job that will pay his rent, get him a new car, or otherwise improve his crappy standard of living. And each vignette shows that crime really doesn't pay.
There are 11 stories, with my favorites being A Cop's Sting and A Real Pizza Work. I gravitated towards those two as they were the most slapstick of the bunch, but A Cop's Sting also managed to blend in a little pathos with the humor. Some of the stories really accent the humor while others make the comedy more subtle, but none are mean-spirited or excessively violent.
The writing can be a little stiff at times, with a lot of minute detail expended toward describing a character's actions. I felt this slowed the progress of the longer stories in the collection, particularly To Kill a Prosecutor, which involved Gigi robbing the apartment of a prominent prosecutor and finding himself trapped inside when an assassin arrives.
Anyone looking for straight-up comedy might be disappointed with the more measured take at humor in these stories, but anyone looking for a bit of crime fiction less grim than your average noir will probably appreciate romping around with Gigi.
Just don't let his luck rub off on you once you're done with the book.
Author Marek Turner has compiled this collection of short stories and flash fiction into a very readable form. Each independent vignette, set in Italy during the 1970s, follows the unlucky thief as he tries to score some kind of job that will pay his rent, get him a new car, or otherwise improve his crappy standard of living. And each vignette shows that crime really doesn't pay.
There are 11 stories, with my favorites being A Cop's Sting and A Real Pizza Work. I gravitated towards those two as they were the most slapstick of the bunch, but A Cop's Sting also managed to blend in a little pathos with the humor. Some of the stories really accent the humor while others make the comedy more subtle, but none are mean-spirited or excessively violent.
The writing can be a little stiff at times, with a lot of minute detail expended toward describing a character's actions. I felt this slowed the progress of the longer stories in the collection, particularly To Kill a Prosecutor, which involved Gigi robbing the apartment of a prominent prosecutor and finding himself trapped inside when an assassin arrives.
Anyone looking for straight-up comedy might be disappointed with the more measured take at humor in these stories, but anyone looking for a bit of crime fiction less grim than your average noir will probably appreciate romping around with Gigi.
Just don't let his luck rub off on you once you're done with the book.
June 26, 2025
First off, I’d like to publicly thank Marek Z. Turner for reintroducing me to a subgenre of crime fiction I’d long neglected—and for that, I owe an apology. I truly enjoyed this collection of short stories, with its brilliant blend of slapstick comedy, hilarity, and classic crime fiction elements.
At the heart of it all is Gianluigi “Gigi” Moretti, a petty thief whose string of misadventures paints him as a total loser—but one you can’t help but feel a real soft spot for. His charm completely lies in his flaws, and following his escapades is as addictive as a good crime caper (with a side of laughter).
The only reason I’m giving this book four stars instead of five is purely personal: I tend to prefer full-length novels (I loved The Eighth Hill!) over short story collections. But that doesn't take away from the quality or the enjoyment of this book in any way.
My favourite stories were Running on Fumes, A Real Pizza Work, Dance of Suspicion, and Luck Be a Lady—though each story stands on its own with distinct charm and wit. The writing style is sharp, funny, and thoroughly entertaining. And of course, there’s always a strong espresso 'corretto' somewhere in the background—what’s not to love?
Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys their crime fiction with a generous double shot of humour.
At the heart of it all is Gianluigi “Gigi” Moretti, a petty thief whose string of misadventures paints him as a total loser—but one you can’t help but feel a real soft spot for. His charm completely lies in his flaws, and following his escapades is as addictive as a good crime caper (with a side of laughter).
The only reason I’m giving this book four stars instead of five is purely personal: I tend to prefer full-length novels (I loved The Eighth Hill!) over short story collections. But that doesn't take away from the quality or the enjoyment of this book in any way.
My favourite stories were Running on Fumes, A Real Pizza Work, Dance of Suspicion, and Luck Be a Lady—though each story stands on its own with distinct charm and wit. The writing style is sharp, funny, and thoroughly entertaining. And of course, there’s always a strong espresso 'corretto' somewhere in the background—what’s not to love?
Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys their crime fiction with a generous double shot of humour.
February 15, 2025
70s set crime noir meets slapstick farce in this collection of 11 stories featuring our hapless loser, Gigi Moretti.
There’s some short snappy tales here amongst a few longer stories centred around how not to get away with things. Crime rarely pays and it comes from experience.
The stand out tales for me are Running on Fumes about a getaway gig gone wrong - the ending is satisfyingly done - and A Real Pizza Work which also serves up a nice bowl of just desserts.
Marek Turner’s skill is in conveying empathy with this character before making him the butt of the joke like the tale The Card Sharps. He can also turn his hand at showing what a good guy can be with In A Real State.
Overall this is a great showcase of the flexibility and range of what Turner can do. The side characters - such as those in the longer story To Kill a Prosecutor - also hint at where he can go after this.
If you like your crime with a wry smile, you won’t go wrong with this collection.
There’s some short snappy tales here amongst a few longer stories centred around how not to get away with things. Crime rarely pays and it comes from experience.
The stand out tales for me are Running on Fumes about a getaway gig gone wrong - the ending is satisfyingly done - and A Real Pizza Work which also serves up a nice bowl of just desserts.
Marek Turner’s skill is in conveying empathy with this character before making him the butt of the joke like the tale The Card Sharps. He can also turn his hand at showing what a good guy can be with In A Real State.
Overall this is a great showcase of the flexibility and range of what Turner can do. The side characters - such as those in the longer story To Kill a Prosecutor - also hint at where he can go after this.
If you like your crime with a wry smile, you won’t go wrong with this collection.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews