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L'Alligatore #9
Blues for Outlaw Hearts and Old Whores
International secret police operations, drug trafficking, prostitution, and identity theft set the stage for the eternal struggle between Good and Evil.
Acclaimed as one of today’s best contemporary noir writers, Massimo Carlotto reaches new heights in the most complex “Alligator” novel to date. Rich with biting humor, humanity, and psychological insight, this is an exemplary noir novel from a crime writer at the top of his game.
Marco Buratti, a.k.a. the Alligator, and his partners Max the Memory and Beniamino Rossini have fallen into a trap laid by their worst enemy, Giorgio Pellegrini, a wanted man who has no intention of living as a fugitive for the rest of his life and turns state evidence, but something goes wrong. Blackmailed by a high government official, the Alligator and his partners are forced to investigate. But they’ve been framed: even if they discover who’s behind the crime, they’ll rot in prison. To survive, some rules will have to be bent, and others broken.
208 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 28, 2017
18 people are currently reading
167 people want to read
About the author
Massimo Carlotto
126 books263 followersMassimo Carlotto began his literary career in 1995 with the noir novel The Fugitive, a fictionalized account of his time on the run. In 1998 he published Le irregolari, the semi-autobiographical novel on the Argentine military regime of the Seventies. In 2001 he released Arrivederci, amore ciao, which was adapted into a movie in 2005. In 2004 he published Death's Dark Abyss, a nihilistic noir on the theme of revenge.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
May 1, 2025
SUL FILO DEL RASOIO
Cowboy Junkies.
Magnifico esempio di cross over letterario: ecco l’Alligatore, al secolo Marco Buratti, con i suoi due fidi amici e soci, Max la Memoria e Beniamino Rossini (che per ognuno che ne fa fuori aggiunge un braccialetto) incontrano l’ispettore Campagna, per ora protagonista di altri racconti, e si scontrano col sadico Giorgio Pellegrini, protagonista della sua minisaga (finora due romanzi: “Arrivederci, amore ciao” e “Alla fine di un giorno noioso”).
E funziona, eccome se funziona.
I miei tre eroi, Alligatore+Max+Rossini, sono una banda dentro le regole, le loro, e fuori dalla legalità, ispirati da un senso della giustizia che riguarda l’essere umano più che la legge, combatte lo sfruttamento e la sopraffazione.
Pellegrini è un perfido marcio corrotto sadico assassino che pensa solo al suo tornaconto e al suo piacere, si occupa di tutto quello che è sporco purché produca denaro potere e piacere.
Jane Lee Hooker
Come già succedeva nelle ultime avventure, e qui ancora di più, l’azione si sposta da Padova all’estero: in questo caso, Vienna e Monaco di Baviera, che mai potrebbero essere più diverse da quelle che conosciamo.
Il blues più che essere presente, trionfa: non solo nel titolo, ma anche nella playlist ricordata in coda al romanzo e offerta sul sito della casa editrice (ma si sono dimenticati i Cowboy Junkies!).
Layla Zoe
Ha ventidue anni questo Alligatore, e si dimostra sempre più giovane, non invecchia, anche se Carlotto nelle sue presentazioni puntualizza che invece i suoi personaggi invecchiano.
Dico che non invecchia perché arrivati alla nona avventura non c’è la minima stanchezza, tutt’altro, c’è uno smalto nuovo, più brillante che mai, la solita cura micidiale della trama, che solo Carlotto garantisce, e anche un’attenzione particolare ai personaggi, alle loro relazioni e sentimenti.
Nella penna di Carlotto, il noir non è un genere neutro, non è trastullo, più che da ombrellone è una doccia gelata: lo usa per raccontare il presente, lo stato delle cose.
Che non vanno mica tanto bene.
Anzi, vien da dire, che vanno proprio male.
Mary Gauthier
Cowboy Junkies.
Magnifico esempio di cross over letterario: ecco l’Alligatore, al secolo Marco Buratti, con i suoi due fidi amici e soci, Max la Memoria e Beniamino Rossini (che per ognuno che ne fa fuori aggiunge un braccialetto) incontrano l’ispettore Campagna, per ora protagonista di altri racconti, e si scontrano col sadico Giorgio Pellegrini, protagonista della sua minisaga (finora due romanzi: “Arrivederci, amore ciao” e “Alla fine di un giorno noioso”).
E funziona, eccome se funziona.
I miei tre eroi, Alligatore+Max+Rossini, sono una banda dentro le regole, le loro, e fuori dalla legalità, ispirati da un senso della giustizia che riguarda l’essere umano più che la legge, combatte lo sfruttamento e la sopraffazione.
Pellegrini è un perfido marcio corrotto sadico assassino che pensa solo al suo tornaconto e al suo piacere, si occupa di tutto quello che è sporco purché produca denaro potere e piacere.
Jane Lee Hooker
Come già succedeva nelle ultime avventure, e qui ancora di più, l’azione si sposta da Padova all’estero: in questo caso, Vienna e Monaco di Baviera, che mai potrebbero essere più diverse da quelle che conosciamo.
Il blues più che essere presente, trionfa: non solo nel titolo, ma anche nella playlist ricordata in coda al romanzo e offerta sul sito della casa editrice (ma si sono dimenticati i Cowboy Junkies!).
Layla Zoe
Ha ventidue anni questo Alligatore, e si dimostra sempre più giovane, non invecchia, anche se Carlotto nelle sue presentazioni puntualizza che invece i suoi personaggi invecchiano.
Dico che non invecchia perché arrivati alla nona avventura non c’è la minima stanchezza, tutt’altro, c’è uno smalto nuovo, più brillante che mai, la solita cura micidiale della trama, che solo Carlotto garantisce, e anche un’attenzione particolare ai personaggi, alle loro relazioni e sentimenti.
Nella penna di Carlotto, il noir non è un genere neutro, non è trastullo, più che da ombrellone è una doccia gelata: lo usa per raccontare il presente, lo stato delle cose.
Che non vanno mica tanto bene.
Anzi, vien da dire, che vanno proprio male.
Mary Gauthier
March 2, 2020
Carlotto himself was imprisoned, at the age of 19, for a murder he didn’t commit, and whereas I believe some of his earlier work reflected the dark observations of the legal system that it’s understandable he would have, this doesn’t. Getting past it’s awful title, it’s clunky with a plot that might be kindly called complex, a code word for frequently incomprehensible. The language lacks any subtlety and there is little or no humour, which is a criticism, though I’ve read plenty of crime novels that work without either - it’s more the combination or all these things, add in a set of unpleasant characters, and to finish it was a struggle.
Carlotto also seems out to impress with dropping in obscure blues singers. The translator favours dialect of 1950s US film noir (which I’d be interested to know is detectable in its original Italian).
Having said all that, it’s just about readable, saved by the interest in certain of the characters, a fast pace, and that it’s short.
Carlotto also seems out to impress with dropping in obscure blues singers. The translator favours dialect of 1950s US film noir (which I’d be interested to know is detectable in its original Italian).
Having said all that, it’s just about readable, saved by the interest in certain of the characters, a fast pace, and that it’s short.
November 16, 2017
Quando sento la necessità di riprendere fiato, non c’è niente di più efficace di un libro di Carlotto.
November 2, 2022
Mi è piaciuto!
Dico la verità: ero stato triggerato dal titolo, uno dei più belli che abbia mai letto (ed ecco spiegato perché son partito così avanti nella serie XD ).
Mamma che mondo nero, mamma che mondo crudo. Personaggi credibili, non c'è n'è uno che non sia cattivo. Atmosfere super noir.
Dico la verità: ero stato triggerato dal titolo, uno dei più belli che abbia mai letto (ed ecco spiegato perché son partito così avanti nella serie XD ).
Mamma che mondo nero, mamma che mondo crudo. Personaggi credibili, non c'è n'è uno che non sia cattivo. Atmosfere super noir.
September 30, 2017
Alligatore e soci in gran forma, pronti a contrastare quel gran bastardo di Giorgio Pellegrini.
Stile e scrittura perfetti, sottofondo musicale malinconico per uno dei migliori Alligatori della serie.
Stile e scrittura perfetti, sottofondo musicale malinconico per uno dei migliori Alligatori della serie.
October 11, 2017
Tre stelle perché a Carlotto, ma soprattutto all'Alligatore, voglio bene. Speravo, dopo le prove per me deludenti della serie "Le vendicatrici", di ritrovare il "vecchio" Alligatore, nonché la capacità di Carlotto di scrivere di un malvivente e dei suoi amici con la maestria che gli è propria, e che gli ha consentito in passato di rendere credibile ciò che credibile non era. In quest'ultimo libro, invece, ho trovato un linguaggio forzato, così come forzati sono apparsi gli atteggiamenti e i pensieri dell'Alligatore e i suoi sodali. Insomma, sentirli parlare tra loro scambiandosi frasi come "Avrei preferito che succedesse nel deserto delle notti d'inverno della periferia"... difficilmente aiuta a raggiungere la sospensione dell'incredulità.
Perfino il finale è scontato.
Una brutta prova, davvero.
Perfino il finale è scontato.
Una brutta prova, davvero.
January 31, 2021
La storia viene raccontata dal protagonista, Marco Buratti, ma ci sono alcuni capitoli che vengono narrati da Giorgio Pellegrini: un risultato inusuale, ma non sgradevole, dove le scene sono descritte minuziosamente senza rendere la lettura affaticante; i dialoghi tra i personaggi sono accurati, soprattutto tra Max, Marco e Rossini, e lasciano trasparire il profilo psicologico di ognuno di loro, i sentimenti, gli stati d’animo, i sogni e i desideri, ma soprattutto la loro “lotta interiore ” tra il bene e il male.
L’autore Massimo Carlotto riesce a catturare l’attenzione del lettore per tutta la durata del libro; la storia presenta molte svolte inaspettate, con colpi di scena che si susseguono e momenti di suspense che coinvolgono in forma inevitabile.
È molto interessante il carattere del protagonista principale, descritto con molta precisione e abbondanza di dettagli, portando il lettore a sentire una forte empatia con il personaggio.
Anche se Blues per cuori fuorilegge e vecchie puttane fa parte di una saga – nove libri in totale – non occorre leggere le storie precedenti. Ognuna di esse, infatti, è indipendente e autoconclusiva.
Recensione Completa su www.leggereacolori.com
L’autore Massimo Carlotto riesce a catturare l’attenzione del lettore per tutta la durata del libro; la storia presenta molte svolte inaspettate, con colpi di scena che si susseguono e momenti di suspense che coinvolgono in forma inevitabile.
È molto interessante il carattere del protagonista principale, descritto con molta precisione e abbondanza di dettagli, portando il lettore a sentire una forte empatia con il personaggio.
Anche se Blues per cuori fuorilegge e vecchie puttane fa parte di una saga – nove libri in totale – non occorre leggere le storie precedenti. Ognuna di esse, infatti, è indipendente e autoconclusiva.
Recensione Completa su www.leggereacolori.com
August 30, 2023
Ritorna in questa serie Giorgio Pellegrini, la mente distorta e perversa che avevamo incontrato ne La banda degli amanti, che è riuscita a sopravvivere alla mano armata di Rossini e adesso fa il collaboratore di giustizia dopo che una banda di narcotrafficanti stranieri che ce l'ha con lui ha seviziato e ucciso le sue due donne, la moglie e l'amante, Martina e Gemma.
Il problema è che Pellegrini collabora con una mente altrettanto tortuosa e malvagia, la dottoressa Angela Marino, un alto funzionario del ministero dell’Interno, che vuole servirsi di Buratti & company per stanare i colpevoli e poi incastrarli comunque. Idem per il poliziotto di provincia di scarso valore che utilizza come tramite, il sacrificabilissimo ispettore Giulio Campagna. Le indagini e le trattative si spostano per lo più a Vienna, dove l'Alligatore si innamora di Edith, una vecchia prostituta portoghese, e dove non tutto andrà come Angela Campagna aveva pianificato...
Il problema è che Pellegrini collabora con una mente altrettanto tortuosa e malvagia, la dottoressa Angela Marino, un alto funzionario del ministero dell’Interno, che vuole servirsi di Buratti & company per stanare i colpevoli e poi incastrarli comunque. Idem per il poliziotto di provincia di scarso valore che utilizza come tramite, il sacrificabilissimo ispettore Giulio Campagna. Le indagini e le trattative si spostano per lo più a Vienna, dove l'Alligatore si innamora di Edith, una vecchia prostituta portoghese, e dove non tutto andrà come Angela Campagna aveva pianificato...
February 28, 2022
Marco (the Alligator) and his two pals are coerced into working for a maniacal Italian police inspector who is using their old enemy Pellegrini as a way to take down multinational criminal activity. As usual, eveyome underestimates the Gang of 3 and their archaic code of the outlaw. They play everyone off against everyone else and the Inspector’s scheme doesn’t fare well. Marco also falls in love - again.(“Old whore” btw refers to prostitutes who service older men apparently.)
August 13, 2018
Letto in un pomeriggio, l'alligatore e i suoi soci mi stanno simpatici, il libro scorre, tralasciando qualche caduta qua e là ma il finale è una ca....ta pazzesca,
January 3, 2023
Blues for Outlaw Hearts and Old Whores by Massimo Carlotto is one of the Alligator series, and as noir as you’re going to find. Wasn’t sure if I was going to synch with the story, but nothing less, I would get some blues ...
Buratti. “inside a record shop. The owner was an old rocker with shifty eyes and a face that bespoke a steady diet of hard drugs. “What’re you looking for?” he asked in German. “Women blues singers,” I said in English, “are all I listen to right now.” He pointed to a rack, but I didn’t budge. “I’m looking for something new, but I don’t like combing through CDs. I’m open to suggestions.” … “No way you know this one. Finnish blues.” I scanned the cover. Ina Forsman. A redhead, tattoos on her arms. “I’ll take it if you let me have a listen.” “Be my guest,”… “Ina had the perfect voice for songs like “Bubbly Kisses.” For a while now all I’d been relishing, heart and ears, were women singers.” … “ At a certain point I yanked off the headphones. The rocker looked at me, concerned. I waved my hand to ensure him everything was fine, but I offered no explanation. It wasn’t as if I could tell him that affairs of the heart must be swept aside when you’re about to kill a man. That I wouldn’t pull the trigger myself didn’t matter.”
Three Outlaw Hearts. “A few minutes before 7 P.M. Old Rossini forced open the wrought iron fence. We preferred dinnertime to late night, convinced that the neighbors would be snug in their homes, distracted by the hum of the TV and the noise in the kitchen. It was Max who noticed another photo tacked to the door of the antique solid oak closet in the bedroom. Giorgio Pellegrini smiled down at us, his arms crossed. It was the same photo we’d been handing out. Somehow he’d gotten hold of a copy, realized that sooner or later we’d find him, and split. It was the owner of the house, naked, wrapped in several layers of nylon. Her smile from the photograph had been replaced with a horrible grimace. We were no experts, but she must have been dead for days. Max shuddered, his eyes fixed on the plastic cocoon shrouding the body of the latest woman to pay a high price for having met Handsome Giorgio.”
Outlaws - Cops. “Calling Inspector Giulio Campagna was never a good idea. But who was I to complain? I was the one who’d gone looking for him in a pinch. Campagna was as strange as the Hawaiian shirts he sported. He had his own theories about policing and justice. His regularly brusque, irritating tone could try the patience of a saint, but back when we’d written the final chapter in Pellegrini’s criminal activity in Padua, he’d stood up for us.” … “Maybe because I was on my third or fourth beer. Pellegrini is a man of a thousand surprises, and on that occasion he didn’t disappoint: he wanted to hire us to investigate the murders of his wife and mistress. Martina and Gemma. I knew them well. After their master had fled, they’d taken over management of La Nena, the restaurant Giorgio had opened and made famous. After arguing back and forth, I declined the job, but he laughed me off: “I know you, Buratti, I’ve seen how you operate. You’re obsessed with the truth. You won’t turn this down.” … “From what I could glean the two women had been tortured and strangled in the restaurant cellar. The night’s earnings had been found in Gemma’s purse, and no one doubted that Pellegrini had been the real target. Evidently, the two victims didn’t know where he was hiding out, and their executioners ran out of patience.” … “If that cop in league with Pellegrini was planning on playing us for suckers, she was sorely mistaken. We weren’t about to barter away our dignity. Not for the world. “We’ll go for broke,” said the Old Gangster. In seventies-era gang-speak that meant risking it all: freedom, life.”
Padua. “According to a recent study of people’s emotional wellbeing, if you were to judge by emoticons, Padua was the saddest city in Italy. I believed it. Padua was beautiful, comfy as an old slipper, but in the last few years it had lost the bite that had once made it interesting.”
To Vienna. “My friends were waiting for me in the living room, smoking and drinking. Grappa for Max, vodka for Rossini. The bottle of Calvados was still sealed. They hadn’t forgotten. Kindnesses among people who care about one another. What greeted me across the doorstep was real warmth. Details, I thought, are what make the difference in people’s lives. Solitude can be unrelenting sometimes; it had always scared me more than death itself.” … “Judging from their accents they were from Puglia. They described a Vienna I’d never know, since beautiful places and fine art weren’t on my criminal itinerary. Luckier people find nourishment in beauty and culture. It’s a form of resisting the prevailing squalor. One necessary for bearing the idea that this world won’t ever get better, according to Max. I shielded myself with the blues but knew it wasn’t enough. Beauty and crime are incompatible, even if you’re one of the good guys, even if your intention is to set things straight, right some wrong.”
Enter Old Whore. “Suddenly I realized that Edith had arrived and was having fun scrutinizing me. “Do you like them?” she asked in English, pointing to the tourists. “I don’t see a pretty girl among them.” “I was envying their lightheartedness.” “Do you always have deep thoughts first thing in the morning?” I didn’t answer. I was too busy drinking her in. Aside from the color of her hair, which she now wore in a ponytail, she was a completely different woman from the one I’d met in the hotel bar.”
… “But the odds of meeting another woman like her were as good as the odds of escaping Pellegrini and Dottoressa Marino’s trap unscathed. By the time I got back to the table with her tray I’d dismissed any doubts. But it wouldn’t take much to ruin the whole thing. Which is exactly what happened when I asked, given her last name, whether she was Austrian.” … “ She lowered her voice to an incomprehensible murmur then shot to her feet. “I’m still her old whore. She can trust me,” …
“I was upset. I kept asking myself how the hell I’d allowed myself to act that way. I’d managed to thread pearls of stupidity in almost scientific fashion. Once I calmed down I began to brood on Edith’s reaction.” … “She was terrified and, as far as I could tell, she had unsuccessfully attempted to escape mistreatment at the hands of Frau Vieira before. She’d paid dearly for that rash decision. Edith had referred to herself as an “old whore,” an appellative typically reserved for prostitutes who prospered in their prime and later, to remain marketable, zeroed in on clients of a certain age. And tastes. That’s why that night she’d transformed herself into a copy—prettier for that matter—of Tempest Storm.”
Outlaw Honor. “Beniamino ran a hand over his face. “You can’t help them all, but if you find one who’s in real trouble, you can’t just look the other way either, right?” Right. That was our fate. And that principle didn’t only apply to prostitutes. Whenever we came across a sad story, we tried to give it a dignified ending.” … “ “Unfortunately, first we have to save ourselves before we can be of use to Edith,” he went on. “But in the meantime, we can try to find out more about her case.” “Frau Vieira,” Max uttered with disdain. “Sounds like a kapo name.” I was relieved. And grateful. And proud that we were willing to go for broke for a woman only one of us had met at a bar.”
Max in the Kitchen. “ The liver dumplings dropped like stones in our stomachs, but we didn’t mention it. We were nervous and disinclined to joke around. When the Fat Man asked our opinion out loud, I managed to steer a middle course. On the whole the meal was good, I swore. But he wasn’t convinced. “You sound like an old Christian Democrat,”
Women: Italian Cop & Spaniard. “I couldn’t help but muse over the fact that the vile women in this whole affair, Angela Marino and the Spaniard, were to die for. Straight out of a film from the ’40s.”
… “From what we hear you guys are a couple cards short of a deck,” she said. “You’re a failed singer, your friend in the hall is a retired smuggler, and the one waiting in the car is an obese terrorist.”
“Would you like to know what this short deck thinks?” “Pellegrini murdered Slezak to attract attention,” I said, choosing my words carefully to drive home the point. “He was after the credentials that he needed to enter into contact with another criminal organization—the real target of the operation.” “If what you claim is true, that means that the order to kill my husband came from the Italian police.” “Not necessarily. It may have been Pellegrini’s idea. Of course, someone allowed it to go down.”
Crime & Politics. “our meeting would be brief, no beating around the bush. Most illegal activities revolved around a staggering heap of idle chatter. Criminals did nothing but talk. Just like politicians. Maybe that was why the two were often considered interchangeable. Experience had taught me that the more you go on negotiating, the more likely you were to fail.”
Dénouement. “Despite all the reasons I could marshal to justify our being on that hill, I felt deeply dismayed at how cynical this business had made me. In a matter of minutes human beings would be dead, thanks to a strategy that I had devised, patiently, and for irreproachable reasons. But it was the hard-heartedness with which I was confronting this epilogue that gave me pause. And now that the floodgates of truth had opened, it wasn’t hard to see that my infatuation with Edith was nothing more than the antidote to keep the poison, which was turning me into a different and lesser man, from reaching my heart. That outlaw heart, which enabled me to meet life with my head held high.”
Outlaw Takeaways. “For the first time in my life I was forced to team up with cops and drug dealers,” began Old Rossini, hoarse from fatigue and tension. “I’m well aware that we had no other choice and that we’d already resigned ourselves to ‘go for broke,’ but I want to be clear—” “It won’t happen again,” Max preempted him, “that goes for me too. Over the last few years we’ve been sucked into a vortex of cases where the line between our principles and everything we can’t abide has become thin, sometimes nonexistent.” It was my turn to say something. “The truth is that the world around us has changed. For the worse. And it’s harder and harder to survive without stooping to make comprises.”
Drink & Reflection. “I was seated at a table at the Libarium in Cagliari. I was drinking an Alligator. Seven parts Calvados, three parts Drambuie, plenty of crushed ice, and a slice of green apple to nibble on when you’re done, to console yourself that the glass is empty. The recipe was concocted by the creative genius Danilo Argiolas, owner of the joint.” … “ The surgeon did what he could, over time it would fade, but she needn’t get her hopes up. It didn’t bother me. I was growing increasingly fond of Edith. We’d just begun to sleep together, and I was hopelessly in love with the most beautiful and bewitching woman in the world.” … “ The Old Gangster called often for news of Edith. He never asked about me. He knew I was happy to watch her coming back to life, and that by concentrating on her, I could put off having to reckon with myself.” … “ Max wasn’t in touch as often. He wrote me a long email to say that he had returned to Padua. He had decided to “momentarily” leave the mountain and the woman he loved in order to throw his weight behind a party in the local election. He used words like hope, change, turning point. Despite grueling disappointments and the price that he’d paid in the past, the Fat Man continued to believe that politics could still play a positive role in the country. And give meaning to his life.” … “ My outlaw heart knew it all along. Every day was a gift, and I’d get over another goodbye. There was an old blues song by James Carr that summed up my situation: At the dark end of the street That’s where we always meet Hiding in shadows where we don’t belong Living in darkness to hide our wrong . . .”
Blues…Noir…The End.
Playlist. THE ALLIGATOR’S FAVORITE WOMEN OF THE BLUES: Cee Cee James—Blood Red Blues, Low Down Where the Snakes Crawl Barbara Blue—Sell My Jewelry Gina Sicilia—Sunset Avenue, It Wasn’t Real Anni Piper—More Guitars than Friends Janiva Magness—Love Wins Again Ana Popovic—Trilogy Rita Chiarelli—Breakfast at Midnight Ina Forsman—Ina Forsman Fiona Boyes—Box & Dice, Blues in My Heart Deb Callahan—Sweet Soul-Shaun Murphy—It Won’t Stop Raining Meena—Tell Me Zora Young—The French Connection Shemekia Copeland—Turn the Heat Up Ruthie Foster—Promise of a Brand New Day, Joy Comes Back Debbie Davies—Key to Love Melanie Mason—Bendin’ the Blues Robin Rogers—Back in the Fire Kellie Rucker—Ain’t Hit Bottom Eden Brent—Ain’t Got No Troubles Jane Lee Hooker—No B! EG Kight—Southern Comfort Nicole Hart & Anni Piper—Split Second Julie Rhodes—I’d Rather Go Blind ... Sue Foley—Love Comin’ Down Layla Zoe—The Lily Kelley Hunt—New Shade of Blue Shannon Curfman—What You’re Gettin’ Into Lisa Mann—Chop Water Mary Gauthier— ok Goodreads Truncated, but still enough here to last me a while.
Buratti. “inside a record shop. The owner was an old rocker with shifty eyes and a face that bespoke a steady diet of hard drugs. “What’re you looking for?” he asked in German. “Women blues singers,” I said in English, “are all I listen to right now.” He pointed to a rack, but I didn’t budge. “I’m looking for something new, but I don’t like combing through CDs. I’m open to suggestions.” … “No way you know this one. Finnish blues.” I scanned the cover. Ina Forsman. A redhead, tattoos on her arms. “I’ll take it if you let me have a listen.” “Be my guest,”… “Ina had the perfect voice for songs like “Bubbly Kisses.” For a while now all I’d been relishing, heart and ears, were women singers.” … “ At a certain point I yanked off the headphones. The rocker looked at me, concerned. I waved my hand to ensure him everything was fine, but I offered no explanation. It wasn’t as if I could tell him that affairs of the heart must be swept aside when you’re about to kill a man. That I wouldn’t pull the trigger myself didn’t matter.”
Three Outlaw Hearts. “A few minutes before 7 P.M. Old Rossini forced open the wrought iron fence. We preferred dinnertime to late night, convinced that the neighbors would be snug in their homes, distracted by the hum of the TV and the noise in the kitchen. It was Max who noticed another photo tacked to the door of the antique solid oak closet in the bedroom. Giorgio Pellegrini smiled down at us, his arms crossed. It was the same photo we’d been handing out. Somehow he’d gotten hold of a copy, realized that sooner or later we’d find him, and split. It was the owner of the house, naked, wrapped in several layers of nylon. Her smile from the photograph had been replaced with a horrible grimace. We were no experts, but she must have been dead for days. Max shuddered, his eyes fixed on the plastic cocoon shrouding the body of the latest woman to pay a high price for having met Handsome Giorgio.”
Outlaws - Cops. “Calling Inspector Giulio Campagna was never a good idea. But who was I to complain? I was the one who’d gone looking for him in a pinch. Campagna was as strange as the Hawaiian shirts he sported. He had his own theories about policing and justice. His regularly brusque, irritating tone could try the patience of a saint, but back when we’d written the final chapter in Pellegrini’s criminal activity in Padua, he’d stood up for us.” … “Maybe because I was on my third or fourth beer. Pellegrini is a man of a thousand surprises, and on that occasion he didn’t disappoint: he wanted to hire us to investigate the murders of his wife and mistress. Martina and Gemma. I knew them well. After their master had fled, they’d taken over management of La Nena, the restaurant Giorgio had opened and made famous. After arguing back and forth, I declined the job, but he laughed me off: “I know you, Buratti, I’ve seen how you operate. You’re obsessed with the truth. You won’t turn this down.” … “From what I could glean the two women had been tortured and strangled in the restaurant cellar. The night’s earnings had been found in Gemma’s purse, and no one doubted that Pellegrini had been the real target. Evidently, the two victims didn’t know where he was hiding out, and their executioners ran out of patience.” … “If that cop in league with Pellegrini was planning on playing us for suckers, she was sorely mistaken. We weren’t about to barter away our dignity. Not for the world. “We’ll go for broke,” said the Old Gangster. In seventies-era gang-speak that meant risking it all: freedom, life.”
Padua. “According to a recent study of people’s emotional wellbeing, if you were to judge by emoticons, Padua was the saddest city in Italy. I believed it. Padua was beautiful, comfy as an old slipper, but in the last few years it had lost the bite that had once made it interesting.”
To Vienna. “My friends were waiting for me in the living room, smoking and drinking. Grappa for Max, vodka for Rossini. The bottle of Calvados was still sealed. They hadn’t forgotten. Kindnesses among people who care about one another. What greeted me across the doorstep was real warmth. Details, I thought, are what make the difference in people’s lives. Solitude can be unrelenting sometimes; it had always scared me more than death itself.” … “Judging from their accents they were from Puglia. They described a Vienna I’d never know, since beautiful places and fine art weren’t on my criminal itinerary. Luckier people find nourishment in beauty and culture. It’s a form of resisting the prevailing squalor. One necessary for bearing the idea that this world won’t ever get better, according to Max. I shielded myself with the blues but knew it wasn’t enough. Beauty and crime are incompatible, even if you’re one of the good guys, even if your intention is to set things straight, right some wrong.”
Enter Old Whore. “Suddenly I realized that Edith had arrived and was having fun scrutinizing me. “Do you like them?” she asked in English, pointing to the tourists. “I don’t see a pretty girl among them.” “I was envying their lightheartedness.” “Do you always have deep thoughts first thing in the morning?” I didn’t answer. I was too busy drinking her in. Aside from the color of her hair, which she now wore in a ponytail, she was a completely different woman from the one I’d met in the hotel bar.”
… “But the odds of meeting another woman like her were as good as the odds of escaping Pellegrini and Dottoressa Marino’s trap unscathed. By the time I got back to the table with her tray I’d dismissed any doubts. But it wouldn’t take much to ruin the whole thing. Which is exactly what happened when I asked, given her last name, whether she was Austrian.” … “ She lowered her voice to an incomprehensible murmur then shot to her feet. “I’m still her old whore. She can trust me,” …
“I was upset. I kept asking myself how the hell I’d allowed myself to act that way. I’d managed to thread pearls of stupidity in almost scientific fashion. Once I calmed down I began to brood on Edith’s reaction.” … “She was terrified and, as far as I could tell, she had unsuccessfully attempted to escape mistreatment at the hands of Frau Vieira before. She’d paid dearly for that rash decision. Edith had referred to herself as an “old whore,” an appellative typically reserved for prostitutes who prospered in their prime and later, to remain marketable, zeroed in on clients of a certain age. And tastes. That’s why that night she’d transformed herself into a copy—prettier for that matter—of Tempest Storm.”
Outlaw Honor. “Beniamino ran a hand over his face. “You can’t help them all, but if you find one who’s in real trouble, you can’t just look the other way either, right?” Right. That was our fate. And that principle didn’t only apply to prostitutes. Whenever we came across a sad story, we tried to give it a dignified ending.” … “ “Unfortunately, first we have to save ourselves before we can be of use to Edith,” he went on. “But in the meantime, we can try to find out more about her case.” “Frau Vieira,” Max uttered with disdain. “Sounds like a kapo name.” I was relieved. And grateful. And proud that we were willing to go for broke for a woman only one of us had met at a bar.”
Max in the Kitchen. “ The liver dumplings dropped like stones in our stomachs, but we didn’t mention it. We were nervous and disinclined to joke around. When the Fat Man asked our opinion out loud, I managed to steer a middle course. On the whole the meal was good, I swore. But he wasn’t convinced. “You sound like an old Christian Democrat,”
Women: Italian Cop & Spaniard. “I couldn’t help but muse over the fact that the vile women in this whole affair, Angela Marino and the Spaniard, were to die for. Straight out of a film from the ’40s.”
… “From what we hear you guys are a couple cards short of a deck,” she said. “You’re a failed singer, your friend in the hall is a retired smuggler, and the one waiting in the car is an obese terrorist.”
“Would you like to know what this short deck thinks?” “Pellegrini murdered Slezak to attract attention,” I said, choosing my words carefully to drive home the point. “He was after the credentials that he needed to enter into contact with another criminal organization—the real target of the operation.” “If what you claim is true, that means that the order to kill my husband came from the Italian police.” “Not necessarily. It may have been Pellegrini’s idea. Of course, someone allowed it to go down.”
Crime & Politics. “our meeting would be brief, no beating around the bush. Most illegal activities revolved around a staggering heap of idle chatter. Criminals did nothing but talk. Just like politicians. Maybe that was why the two were often considered interchangeable. Experience had taught me that the more you go on negotiating, the more likely you were to fail.”
Dénouement. “Despite all the reasons I could marshal to justify our being on that hill, I felt deeply dismayed at how cynical this business had made me. In a matter of minutes human beings would be dead, thanks to a strategy that I had devised, patiently, and for irreproachable reasons. But it was the hard-heartedness with which I was confronting this epilogue that gave me pause. And now that the floodgates of truth had opened, it wasn’t hard to see that my infatuation with Edith was nothing more than the antidote to keep the poison, which was turning me into a different and lesser man, from reaching my heart. That outlaw heart, which enabled me to meet life with my head held high.”
Outlaw Takeaways. “For the first time in my life I was forced to team up with cops and drug dealers,” began Old Rossini, hoarse from fatigue and tension. “I’m well aware that we had no other choice and that we’d already resigned ourselves to ‘go for broke,’ but I want to be clear—” “It won’t happen again,” Max preempted him, “that goes for me too. Over the last few years we’ve been sucked into a vortex of cases where the line between our principles and everything we can’t abide has become thin, sometimes nonexistent.” It was my turn to say something. “The truth is that the world around us has changed. For the worse. And it’s harder and harder to survive without stooping to make comprises.”
Drink & Reflection. “I was seated at a table at the Libarium in Cagliari. I was drinking an Alligator. Seven parts Calvados, three parts Drambuie, plenty of crushed ice, and a slice of green apple to nibble on when you’re done, to console yourself that the glass is empty. The recipe was concocted by the creative genius Danilo Argiolas, owner of the joint.” … “ The surgeon did what he could, over time it would fade, but she needn’t get her hopes up. It didn’t bother me. I was growing increasingly fond of Edith. We’d just begun to sleep together, and I was hopelessly in love with the most beautiful and bewitching woman in the world.” … “ The Old Gangster called often for news of Edith. He never asked about me. He knew I was happy to watch her coming back to life, and that by concentrating on her, I could put off having to reckon with myself.” … “ Max wasn’t in touch as often. He wrote me a long email to say that he had returned to Padua. He had decided to “momentarily” leave the mountain and the woman he loved in order to throw his weight behind a party in the local election. He used words like hope, change, turning point. Despite grueling disappointments and the price that he’d paid in the past, the Fat Man continued to believe that politics could still play a positive role in the country. And give meaning to his life.” … “ My outlaw heart knew it all along. Every day was a gift, and I’d get over another goodbye. There was an old blues song by James Carr that summed up my situation: At the dark end of the street That’s where we always meet Hiding in shadows where we don’t belong Living in darkness to hide our wrong . . .”
Blues…Noir…The End.
Playlist. THE ALLIGATOR’S FAVORITE WOMEN OF THE BLUES: Cee Cee James—Blood Red Blues, Low Down Where the Snakes Crawl Barbara Blue—Sell My Jewelry Gina Sicilia—Sunset Avenue, It Wasn’t Real Anni Piper—More Guitars than Friends Janiva Magness—Love Wins Again Ana Popovic—Trilogy Rita Chiarelli—Breakfast at Midnight Ina Forsman—Ina Forsman Fiona Boyes—Box & Dice, Blues in My Heart Deb Callahan—Sweet Soul-Shaun Murphy—It Won’t Stop Raining Meena—Tell Me Zora Young—The French Connection Shemekia Copeland—Turn the Heat Up Ruthie Foster—Promise of a Brand New Day, Joy Comes Back Debbie Davies—Key to Love Melanie Mason—Bendin’ the Blues Robin Rogers—Back in the Fire Kellie Rucker—Ain’t Hit Bottom Eden Brent—Ain’t Got No Troubles Jane Lee Hooker—No B! EG Kight—Southern Comfort Nicole Hart & Anni Piper—Split Second Julie Rhodes—I’d Rather Go Blind ... Sue Foley—Love Comin’ Down Layla Zoe—The Lily Kelley Hunt—New Shade of Blue Shannon Curfman—What You’re Gettin’ Into Lisa Mann—Chop Water Mary Gauthier— ok Goodreads Truncated, but still enough here to last me a while.
September 30, 2017
"... la vita non ha pazienza e le persone se ne vanno, in un modo o nell'altro. E io me l'ero presa comoda e le parole che dovevo dire mi erano rimaste conficcate in gola."
Quanta verità, in questa frase fatta dire dall'Alligatore nel libro. Un libro pervaso da tanta malinconia: malinconia di un mondo che sta ormai scomparendo per sempre, quello dei "cuori fuorilegge", banditi con un loro codice; malinconia per un amore impossibile, quello per la "vecchia puttana". Malinconia sottolineata per tutto il libro da una colonna sonora straordinaria (anche per me che non capisco niente di blues).
Eppure la scrittura di Carlotto non indulge mai nell'autocompiacimento: è sempre nitida, essenziale, lucida e incisiva. E proprio per questo, forse, mi colpisce di più, perché va dritta al punto e non lascia scampo.
Una storia che non poteva finire che così, con quel capitolo finale, prevedibile, ma logico. Perché anche nella realtà non accade mai che la giustizia arrivi davvero per tutti. Soprattutto nella realtà.
PS: un sentito ringraziamento a Carlotto per la 'citazione culinaria' del nostro fagiolo Gialèt. Tutti i suoi lettori feltrini (e sono tanti) gli saranno riconoscenti.
Quanta verità, in questa frase fatta dire dall'Alligatore nel libro. Un libro pervaso da tanta malinconia: malinconia di un mondo che sta ormai scomparendo per sempre, quello dei "cuori fuorilegge", banditi con un loro codice; malinconia per un amore impossibile, quello per la "vecchia puttana". Malinconia sottolineata per tutto il libro da una colonna sonora straordinaria (anche per me che non capisco niente di blues).
Eppure la scrittura di Carlotto non indulge mai nell'autocompiacimento: è sempre nitida, essenziale, lucida e incisiva. E proprio per questo, forse, mi colpisce di più, perché va dritta al punto e non lascia scampo.
Una storia che non poteva finire che così, con quel capitolo finale, prevedibile, ma logico. Perché anche nella realtà non accade mai che la giustizia arrivi davvero per tutti. Soprattutto nella realtà.
PS: un sentito ringraziamento a Carlotto per la 'citazione culinaria' del nostro fagiolo Gialèt. Tutti i suoi lettori feltrini (e sono tanti) gli saranno riconoscenti.
February 20, 2022
This is Italian noir, a novel about criminals that draws a comparison on the jacket to Raymond Chandler. I decided to read something by Carlotto after Chris Offutt (whose book The Killing Hills was one of my favorite reads of 2021) said "his understanding of the so-called criminal mind is the best in literature." High praise!
Fair to say I was underwhelmed by this book. It's one of a series whose protagonist is a former crook turned private investigator named Marco Buratti (aka The Alligator). Buratti and his two cronies have a deadly rivalry with a master criminal named Giorgio Pellegrini, and in this book Pellegrini draws them into an international drug-running operation, where they have to steer clear of both the cops and the crooks to clear their name.
Buratti's gang is highly competent, and normally I enjoy books like this, but the plot was a little obtuse, and Buratti himself is kind of boring. It's possible I just picked a weak entry in the series, but be that as it may, I think I'm done with Carlotto after this.
Fair to say I was underwhelmed by this book. It's one of a series whose protagonist is a former crook turned private investigator named Marco Buratti (aka The Alligator). Buratti and his two cronies have a deadly rivalry with a master criminal named Giorgio Pellegrini, and in this book Pellegrini draws them into an international drug-running operation, where they have to steer clear of both the cops and the crooks to clear their name.
Buratti's gang is highly competent, and normally I enjoy books like this, but the plot was a little obtuse, and Buratti himself is kind of boring. It's possible I just picked a weak entry in the series, but be that as it may, I think I'm done with Carlotto after this.
November 20, 2024
3 stars, Carlotto's "Blues for Outlaw Hearts and Old Whores" was enjoyable. I particularly liked the main character, Marco Buratti's, affixation on old blues. It added an interesting element to his character, how he consistently found comfort in running back to the blues. The main three "best friends" are all admirable in their own ways; despite being very serious criminals. Carlotto's positioning of a criminal as the "detective" in this mystery noir book is commendable. It was a fresh perspective and Buratti's position as a criminal allowed him liberty while acting as a detective. He was free to move and interact with anyone he saw fit to solve this case. Again, very refreshing in a genre brimming with detectives or cops as the main characters; readers gain access to the other side this time.
Overall a solid read. I don't think I'd pick it up again or heavily recommend it, but if you're looking for an interesting mystery/crime/detective noir novel: this could be the one! And points to Carlotto for a great book cover.
Overall a solid read. I don't think I'd pick it up again or heavily recommend it, but if you're looking for an interesting mystery/crime/detective noir novel: this could be the one! And points to Carlotto for a great book cover.
August 26, 2022
Another adventure featuring Marco Buratti (The Alligator), Beniamino Rossini, and Max the Memory, ex-outlaws with an old fashioned code of honor who help those who've been screwed over by the system.
But as any reader of noir knows, you cannot be an "ex" anything without getting dragged down by your past. This time our trio is forced, by an officer of the Ministry of the Interior who is using their old enemy Giorgio Pellegrini, to track down the killers of Giorgio's wife and mistress. Under the threat of prison, as well as their quest to get justice for the two innocent women, our heroes follow the trail throughout the European criminal underworld, leading to an explosive finale.
Slow burn, dark, philosophical, great characters.
But as any reader of noir knows, you cannot be an "ex" anything without getting dragged down by your past. This time our trio is forced, by an officer of the Ministry of the Interior who is using their old enemy Giorgio Pellegrini, to track down the killers of Giorgio's wife and mistress. Under the threat of prison, as well as their quest to get justice for the two innocent women, our heroes follow the trail throughout the European criminal underworld, leading to an explosive finale.
Slow burn, dark, philosophical, great characters.
March 23, 2023
I'm just getting into new age Noir and this is my first book in the post-cellphone world of crime. It is interesting to learn how international crime rings work and how the "good" guys in this world cross paths with cops and their enemies. It was kind of confusing the first few times the main character and a "bad guy" switched into first person experiences but I thought it made hating the bad guy even easier.
The ending isn't that memorable and seeing at this is the 6th book, I doubt the main character will be satisfied long with his current situation in life. I do wonder if the whole gang will come back, that'd be the only reason to get into book 7 as there's no cliffhanger to make you want more.
The ending isn't that memorable and seeing at this is the 6th book, I doubt the main character will be satisfied long with his current situation in life. I do wonder if the whole gang will come back, that'd be the only reason to get into book 7 as there's no cliffhanger to make you want more.
December 1, 2017
Bello, bello, bello. Strepitosamente bello il ritorno dell'Alligatore dopo l'intermezzo del Turista (a proposito, speriamo torni presto anche lui). Carlotto dà il meglio di sè in questo blues, e la colonna sonora "spacca di brutto" come dicono quelli che ne sanno.
La nuova avventura di Marco, Max la Memoria ed il vecchio Beniamino spazia tra Vienna e Monaco ed è davvero avvincente, tanto che si fa fatica, anche se stanchi e con le palpebre che "calano", a chiudere il libro ed andare a dormire, la sera. Finale magistrale (no, non l'epilogo dell'avventura, ma la storia di Buratti).
La nuova avventura di Marco, Max la Memoria ed il vecchio Beniamino spazia tra Vienna e Monaco ed è davvero avvincente, tanto che si fa fatica, anche se stanchi e con le palpebre che "calano", a chiudere il libro ed andare a dormire, la sera. Finale magistrale (no, non l'epilogo dell'avventura, ma la storia di Buratti).
May 20, 2018
Ho trascorso questa settimana recuperando il tempo perduto, ovvero una full immersion di Alligatore (tranne due: “Nessuna cortesia all’uscita” e “Il corriere colombiano”, che recupererò al prossimo viaggio in Italia) e le due avventure di Pellegrini, lette nel frammezzo prima de “La banda degli amanti”.
Che dire? Una storia coinvolgente, avvincente, semplicemente da non smettere di leggere!
Colpi di scena assicurati, trama intricata ma agevole nella lettura, con un finale non affrettato rispetto ad altre opere, ed una attesa sicura del prossimo capitolo dell’Alligatore..,
Che dire? Una storia coinvolgente, avvincente, semplicemente da non smettere di leggere!
Colpi di scena assicurati, trama intricata ma agevole nella lettura, con un finale non affrettato rispetto ad altre opere, ed una attesa sicura del prossimo capitolo dell’Alligatore..,
April 5, 2020
https://nbmagazine.co.uk/blues-for-ou...
Marco Buratti, ex-convict now PI and Max the Memory and Beniamino are old friends, old outlaws with a shared past and a code of honor who have gotten crosswise with an ambitious police officer and a serious bad guy. They have been approached by Giorgio Pellegrini to find out who killed his wife and his mistress. They turn him down – Giorgio is a sadistic sociopath whose path has crossed theirs before – but Giorgio has made a deal with Angela Marino, an ambitious officer from the Ministry of the Interior. He is key to her breaking a case that matters to her and she blackmails the three friends into helping by threatening to plant a serious amount of cocaine on them if they don’t comply. The action moves from Padua to Vienna to Switzerland and back, with twists and turns enough to confuse the most attentive reader. The old outlaws are tested and their survival skills are still up to the job. Unfortunately, Giorgio still has skills too.
Marco Buratti, ex-convict now PI and Max the Memory and Beniamino are old friends, old outlaws with a shared past and a code of honor who have gotten crosswise with an ambitious police officer and a serious bad guy. They have been approached by Giorgio Pellegrini to find out who killed his wife and his mistress. They turn him down – Giorgio is a sadistic sociopath whose path has crossed theirs before – but Giorgio has made a deal with Angela Marino, an ambitious officer from the Ministry of the Interior. He is key to her breaking a case that matters to her and she blackmails the three friends into helping by threatening to plant a serious amount of cocaine on them if they don’t comply. The action moves from Padua to Vienna to Switzerland and back, with twists and turns enough to confuse the most attentive reader. The old outlaws are tested and their survival skills are still up to the job. Unfortunately, Giorgio still has skills too.
June 25, 2021
Something about writing a dissertation has made me crave European crime fiction. I don't know -- this must be what pregnant women feel like when they get weird cravings. Definitely a break from the dark and sometimes dour Wallander books -- this was brutal at times, but also a little funny and brighter. While the characters are majority Italian (also very different from the Swedes), the action takes place all over Europe, although mostly in Germany and Austria. Also, the criminal element (instead of cops) is fun. Raymond Chandler? Maybe not quite that good, but in the realm.
November 24, 2017
Troppa carne al fuoco, troppi protagonisti piú o meno di rilievo e poi, per favore , fateli morire alcuni dei vostri protagonisti di successo, tanto ritornano come ha giá fatto Beniamino! Pur di non far morire le galline dalle uova d'oro il libro mi é talmente crollato nel finale che gli ho dato una stellina di meno o magari é sta cosa del successo di Walking dead che sta rovinando alcuni scrittori e non solo italiani.
October 8, 2024
Ottimo libro comke sempre, quando si tratta di Carlotto, la caduta di tono è nel secondo finale, che non svelo ma che appare un po' scontato. Soliti personaggi che sono ormai entrati nel cuore dei lettore, con l'aggiunta dell'ispettore Campagna, che sarebbe una degna aggiunta alla compagnia non fosse per la sua rigorosa morale tradizionale.
Comunque ottimo e godibilissimo.
Comunque ottimo e godibilissimo.
October 8, 2021
I must say that Massimo Carlotto's trio - Burrati, the Relic and the Fat Man are getting added to my list of top 10 characters to read about. Carlotto has an entrapping way of writing that just paints an entire movie in imagination. A Great read!
December 9, 2025
The alligator and his mates end up in Vienna, caught between corrupt cops, drug dealers and a vendetta, though they have their own revenge in mind and a lost soul to save.
Cracking pace and nothing wasted.
#italiannoir #mediterraneannoir #crimebooks #thrillerbooks
Cracking pace and nothing wasted.
#italiannoir #mediterraneannoir #crimebooks #thrillerbooks
October 10, 2017
Ero a un passo dal dare 5 stelle. Il libro mi ha ricordato "Arrivederci amore, ciao" per intensità. La concessione finale alla serialità totalmente superflua mi ha fatto cambiare idea.
October 23, 2017
Immenso Carlotto.
December 1, 2017
Manca lo sfondo locale, manca una fine degna, imperversa lo spietato cattivonissimo che più cattivo non si può. Anche no ...
January 2, 2019
Sempre piacevole, avvincente e crudo. Una storia un po' più intricata del solito, forse esageratamente. Un voto in più per la presentazione dal vivo del libro e per il fatto di averlo autografato
November 17, 2020
Molto interessante questa trama che vede ancora incrociarsi l'Alligatore e Pellegrini
November 19, 2024
To put it simply: The beginning and the middle were not doing it for me.
But- the last four chapters were enough to keep me interested!
But- the last four chapters were enough to keep me interested!
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