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Aurelio Zen #9
Medusa
348 393 9028: MEDUSA. After the heated pool, the air was distinctly cool, even down here in the sheltered terraces above lake Lugano. He keyed in the number, then turned to face the hillside behind the villa. The land rose precipitously, the contours marked by the looping line of Via Totone and its accompanying homes and gardens. There was no one in sight.
When a group of Austrian cavers in the Italian Alps come across human remains at the bottom of a deep shaft, everyone assumes the death was accidental - until the still unidentified body is stolen from the morgue and the Defence Ministry puts a news blackout on the case. The whole affair has the whiff of political intrigue.
The search for the truth leads Zen back into the murky history of post-war Italy and obscure corners of modern-day society to uncover the truth about a crime that everyone thought was as dead and buried as the victim.
If you enjoyed the Inspector Zen Mystery series you may also like The Last Sherlock Holmes Story , another crime novel by Michael Dibdin.
When a group of Austrian cavers in the Italian Alps come across human remains at the bottom of a deep shaft, everyone assumes the death was accidental - until the still unidentified body is stolen from the morgue and the Defence Ministry puts a news blackout on the case. The whole affair has the whiff of political intrigue.
The search for the truth leads Zen back into the murky history of post-war Italy and obscure corners of modern-day society to uncover the truth about a crime that everyone thought was as dead and buried as the victim.
If you enjoyed the Inspector Zen Mystery series you may also like The Last Sherlock Holmes Story , another crime novel by Michael Dibdin.
280 pages, Paperback
First published August 7, 2003
71 people are currently reading
529 people want to read
About the author
Michael Dibdin
128 books177 followersMichael Dibdin was born in 1947. He went to school in Northern Ireland, and later to Sussex University and the University of Alberta in Canada. He lived in Seattle. After completing his first novel, The Last Sherlock Holmes Story, in 1978, he spent four years in Italy teaching English at the University of Perugia. His second novel, A Rich Full Death, was published in 1986. It was followed by Ratking in 1988, which won the Gold Dagger Award for the Best Crime Novel of the year and introduced us to his Italian detective - Inspector Aurelio Zen.
Dibdin was married three times, most recently to the novelist K. K. Beck. His death in 2007 followed a short illness.
Series:
* Aurelio Zen
Dibdin was married three times, most recently to the novelist K. K. Beck. His death in 2007 followed a short illness.
Series:
* Aurelio Zen
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews
July 29, 2011
Because of the untimely, much too early, death of Michael Dibdin we are left with only eleven Aurelio Zen mysteries. I know subsconsciously I have been pacing myself, savoring each one with the knowledge that ever time I read one I get closer to the end. Masterpiece Theater has in their infinite wisdom taken the first three books and made excellent renditions for television that inspired me to pull Medusa off the shelf. Casting Rufus Sewell was brilliant. He captures the essence of the Aurelio Zen character perfectly. (Seeing Sewell in the Zen programs reminded me that I have been needing to rewatch the movie Dark City.)
Stylish is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Dibdin's writing. Zen is a cerebral, tenacious investigator who manages to work with integrity in a corrupt Roman police department. He is an outsider, being from Venice, and gains the begrudging respect of the politicians, fellow officers, and the crooks that he has to interact with. He at times, well most of the time, runs counter to the powers-that-be and finds himself tiptoeing along hoping that he doesn't end up being just another casualty in the war of corruption that dominates Italian life.
Aurelio Zen in Medusa is given a case and cautioned that powerful people in the military may be upset by what he discovers. Zen finds himself one step behind as people he needs to talk to are being eliminated faster than he can catch up with them. In true Zen form he keeps digging until he finds out enough to put the proper pressure on the right people to allow him to bring the case to a successful conclusion.
Medusa is the 9th in the series so I have only two more to go and then I will just have to start over and read them again.
Stylish is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Dibdin's writing. Zen is a cerebral, tenacious investigator who manages to work with integrity in a corrupt Roman police department. He is an outsider, being from Venice, and gains the begrudging respect of the politicians, fellow officers, and the crooks that he has to interact with. He at times, well most of the time, runs counter to the powers-that-be and finds himself tiptoeing along hoping that he doesn't end up being just another casualty in the war of corruption that dominates Italian life.
Aurelio Zen in Medusa is given a case and cautioned that powerful people in the military may be upset by what he discovers. Zen finds himself one step behind as people he needs to talk to are being eliminated faster than he can catch up with them. In true Zen form he keeps digging until he finds out enough to put the proper pressure on the right people to allow him to bring the case to a successful conclusion.
Medusa is the 9th in the series so I have only two more to go and then I will just have to start over and read them again.
November 25, 2018
Back to a solid mystery / thriller after some stranger, at times hallucinatory, entries in this series. I think Dibdin wanted a no-nonsense anti fascist story for the Berlusconi era. He still gets in some beautiful metaphoric asides, and quite a few tasty Italian expressions. The Alto Adige / South Tirol stuff had me laughing out loud on the train from Klagenfurt back to Vienna. The perfect book for a journey like that.
February 25, 2014
It seems to me that in general one expects living authors to run out of words before breath – entirely unreasonable, I know, but there it is. Dibdin died too early, making this an unexpected treat, an Aurelio Zen I thought I’d read but hadn’t, I realised leafing through it in a bookshop in Australia....
http://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpres...
http://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpres...
January 20, 2011
Not too bad. I'm finding the Zen stories a little far-fetched and the characterisation somewhat lacking. Dibdin tends to go off on discursive tangents and is often verbose about things that don't advance the plot. On the other hand, he really hasn't achieved a fully formed character in Aurelio Zen. I prefer Donna Leon's Venetian detective, Brunetti, or the Sicilian Inspector Montalbano.
January 31, 2021
An Italian criminal mystery novel that is part police procedural and part political thriller! The story centers on a murder that is entwined with a far right military cell, money laundering and deadly cover-ups and jealousies. Inspector Zen delves into the “murky history of post-war Italy and obscure corners of modern-day society to uncover the truth about a crime that everyone thought was as dead and buried as the victim.” A very enjoyable read!
February 1, 2012
This was a real treat and somewhat of a relief because I'd tried reading the fourth installment in the Aurelio Zen series, Dead Lagoon, and was worried that I'd already read all the good books. Not to worry: this is a great entry in the series, exactly what I want out of a Zen book.
The mystery is intriguing -- a body is found in a disused military tunnel and is believed to have been there for about 30 years. Is it an accident? One may think so, but the disappearance of the body from the morgue, at the hands of government officials no less, makes Zen suspect otherwise. The involvement of a top-secret military organization also ups the stakes.
Zen as a character is amusing as usual, especially when he is struggling with technology and cars (to borrow a description of George Smiley from Smiley's People, he "lives on terms of mutual hatred with the combustion engine"). Zen is asked if his love interest is "on-line". "On what line?" Zen asks, causing me to almost roar with laughter on the bus. Later on Zen attempts to drive through morning rush hour, incurring the wrath of bumper-to-bumper commuters who know exactly where they're going and have no patience with the "bumbling amateur" who does not know the system. Little details like that are what make the character for me. He's also very resourceful in solving the crime, as he has to be in this case because his enquiries are strictly off the record.
I also like how Dibdin sprinkles in Italian dialogue, just enough to remind us that we're in Italy, and provides enough of an explanation to give the non-native speaker an idea of how that statement would be received. For example, at one point Zen says "I won't do anything to you," and the Italian sentence uses an emphatic personal pronoun: "*I* won't do anything to you," with the implication being, "…but someone else might." Very interesting for language buffs.
Overall this book is worth a read for Zen fans.
The mystery is intriguing -- a body is found in a disused military tunnel and is believed to have been there for about 30 years. Is it an accident? One may think so, but the disappearance of the body from the morgue, at the hands of government officials no less, makes Zen suspect otherwise. The involvement of a top-secret military organization also ups the stakes.
Zen as a character is amusing as usual, especially when he is struggling with technology and cars (to borrow a description of George Smiley from Smiley's People, he "lives on terms of mutual hatred with the combustion engine"). Zen is asked if his love interest is "on-line". "On what line?" Zen asks, causing me to almost roar with laughter on the bus. Later on Zen attempts to drive through morning rush hour, incurring the wrath of bumper-to-bumper commuters who know exactly where they're going and have no patience with the "bumbling amateur" who does not know the system. Little details like that are what make the character for me. He's also very resourceful in solving the crime, as he has to be in this case because his enquiries are strictly off the record.
I also like how Dibdin sprinkles in Italian dialogue, just enough to remind us that we're in Italy, and provides enough of an explanation to give the non-native speaker an idea of how that statement would be received. For example, at one point Zen says "I won't do anything to you," and the Italian sentence uses an emphatic personal pronoun: "*I* won't do anything to you," with the implication being, "…but someone else might." Very interesting for language buffs.
Overall this book is worth a read for Zen fans.
September 25, 2016
Within the past few years I discovered the (deceased) author Michael Dibdin and fell in love with his writing style. Since he has passed on, there were a set number of books I would be reading, and I've read the bulk, with about 4-5 more to go. This was part of his police detective Aurelio Zen series. For whatever reason, his writing style changes with the Zen books and becomes--more Italian? I've always found them to be a bit of a slog at times and this was no different. An age old cover up of a crime among compatriots and the survivors who knew too much are being picked off one by one. Several evocative passages set in the Italian and Swiss Alps and an especially good section on a hidden walled garden of a long ago abandoned villa with it's surviving child's playhouse full of secrets. i'm glad I discovered Dibdin. Sadly, he won't be writing anything else for us to enjoy.
November 9, 2014
A good whodunnit with an ingenious plot that allows us glimpses of Berlusconi's noughties Italy contrasted with the Italy of the 1970s. This was my first Dibdin, so I maybe unfairly found myself comparing him to Donna Leon, whose Venetian detective Brunetti covers much the same ground. Dibdin is more plot-focussed, with tighter control of language than Leon, though at the expense of characterisation of the protagonist. I can still recall the tight circle of family and colleagues around Brunetti, while Dibdin's sleuth seems less fully formed, but that may be more my fault than the author's for being unfamiliar with the series, a fault I'll rectify in time.
June 3, 2016
Aurelio Zen is sent to quietly investigate an unidentified body found by Austrian cavers while they explored abandoned military tunnels in the Italian Alps. Some powerful people seem to know who this is as the body is taken from the morgue and Zen's home is being bugged.
Wonderful read, great series. So sad to finish this series as there will be no more given the author died in 2007.
- Moment of silence -
Wonderful read, great series. So sad to finish this series as there will be no more given the author died in 2007.
- Moment of silence -
November 27, 2020
It's been a long time since I read an Aurelio Zen book, so I can't comment about how this one compares to the others. Suffice it to say that the plot is maddeningly complex, and that the truth doesn't come out fully until the very end. When it does become clear it all makes perfect sense and the whole book is a rewarding read. Now I've got to dust off all those other Zen books and see how good they really were.
June 4, 2008
Dibdin's Zen novels are always worth reading, but this one uses the same basic plot as Cabal (written ten years earlier) - the red herring is a secret plot, which turns out to be totally fictitious and a cover for a more banal motive for murder. I suspect the Dibdin's real motive was to write a novel centred on the Alto Adige and Po Valley regions, which he hadn't visited before.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 20, 2017
Very Italian - rather too wordy, descriptive and without too much substance
November 28, 2020
Cabal (1992) by Michael Dibdin. I picked up a couple of the Inspector Zen novels a few years ago after seeing that a television series was to be shown based on the novels. I never saw the show and didn’t read any of the novels until now. I wish I had started on this series years ago as the books I have read are very good.
Welcome to Italy, specifically Rome. Here is where CABAL is set. A country within a country, Vatican City is a separate state totally engulfed by Rome. There s a “suicide” in St. Peter’s basilica. A man, Prince Ruspanti, falls to his death. Inspector Zen, of the Italian State police (think a FBI type of organism) is called in to give an official version of what happened. He instantly knows that it was a murder, gathers evidence, and then plays politics, not wanting to lose his job or his own life.
This novel is both a police mystery and an essay on the mystery of Italian politics. What is real and what is necessary are often two different things and Zen has been an inspector long enough to know that mere facts are not enough to come to any conclusion. The Vatican must be satisfied, as do the Roman officials, the Italian State officials and the police officials.
This is a very complicated affair as is, apparently, everything to do with politics in Italy.
But the case is interesting, and there is more death involved, and we see a side to our hero that is unexpected. Being Italy, there is also the latest fashion designer to figure into the mix, especially when Zen’s woman friend decides to wear some of ‘Falco’s’ new line.
There is also the secret society within a secret society, The Cabal of the title. Zen has to worry about these invisible threats to his work and to his life.
Personal and political angst pull our hero but he reveals himself to be a fine investigator and tightrope walker.
I enjoyed this novel far more than I thought I would.
Welcome to Italy, specifically Rome. Here is where CABAL is set. A country within a country, Vatican City is a separate state totally engulfed by Rome. There s a “suicide” in St. Peter’s basilica. A man, Prince Ruspanti, falls to his death. Inspector Zen, of the Italian State police (think a FBI type of organism) is called in to give an official version of what happened. He instantly knows that it was a murder, gathers evidence, and then plays politics, not wanting to lose his job or his own life.
This novel is both a police mystery and an essay on the mystery of Italian politics. What is real and what is necessary are often two different things and Zen has been an inspector long enough to know that mere facts are not enough to come to any conclusion. The Vatican must be satisfied, as do the Roman officials, the Italian State officials and the police officials.
This is a very complicated affair as is, apparently, everything to do with politics in Italy.
But the case is interesting, and there is more death involved, and we see a side to our hero that is unexpected. Being Italy, there is also the latest fashion designer to figure into the mix, especially when Zen’s woman friend decides to wear some of ‘Falco’s’ new line.
There is also the secret society within a secret society, The Cabal of the title. Zen has to worry about these invisible threats to his work and to his life.
Personal and political angst pull our hero but he reveals himself to be a fine investigator and tightrope walker.
I enjoyed this novel far more than I thought I would.
August 19, 2019
About five or so years ago, I saw the short-lived TV series named Dobkin’s Rome detective, Aurelio Zen, and thought it stylish and interesting but never got around to the books. Having written a book set in Italy, I thought it worthwhile to read Dobkin’s stories since I’d read a new author and learn more about Italy and how its myriad of police forces operate.
Overall, I was disappointed with this story of Zen being sent by the Ministry of the Interior sent to investigate the discovery of a body in caves dug when Italy battled the Austro-Hungarian Empire during the First World. Although the author cleverly uses the investigation to reveal the involvement of the military in the turbulence of the political scene in the seventies when the Right and the Left battled one another, the story lacked then energy to keep me really interested in its outcome.
Overall, I was disappointed with this story of Zen being sent by the Ministry of the Interior sent to investigate the discovery of a body in caves dug when Italy battled the Austro-Hungarian Empire during the First World. Although the author cleverly uses the investigation to reveal the involvement of the military in the turbulence of the political scene in the seventies when the Right and the Left battled one another, the story lacked then energy to keep me really interested in its outcome.
July 31, 2018
I mistakenly picked this book on sale because I honestly thought it’s a story about one of my favorite mythology characters, Medusa. (Missed to read the blurb. Again.) With that intimidating cover of Medusa’s severed head, of course this had to be in my bookshelf. I know, how stupid was that?! Then as I was reading it, Medusa is “Operation Medusa”, the code name of political conspiracy plan that led to murder and fraud case. Funny. So I continued reading anyway since the author has a very sophisticated way of writing, with Italy as the setting and a detective plot that is so European. Not bad though.
September 18, 2021
Better and better. I always read “series” novels in order and I almost quit this series after book 2. Aurelio Zen just seemed like he had a weak character and I had a hard time rooting for him. But two things have happened to make me love this series more with each new story. I have come to see him as a man immersed in an ethically ambiguous world who is always trying, first, to do the least harm he can, and second to maybe accomplish some thing good if he can (always an open question), and third to find some happiness along the way. In our current imperfect and ambiguous reality it seems like that is a worthy ethic. And the writing is intelligent and rich.
April 27, 2018
Very Italian but not quite as accessible as Donna Leon's Brunetti series, of which I am admittedly a huge fan. I dropped into book 9 of the series but this did not prevent me enjoying Inspector Zen and his agreeable respect for the law as it applies to his own morals.
A dead body discovered from over 30 years ago in a tunnel in the Dolimites opens the mystery. Strangely the murderer is revealed to us quite early on but not the motive, which ultimately provides the twist. Readable but not gripping.
A dead body discovered from over 30 years ago in a tunnel in the Dolimites opens the mystery. Strangely the murderer is revealed to us quite early on but not the motive, which ultimately provides the twist. Readable but not gripping.
March 26, 2021
After re-watching the Zen series on BBC I-player, received 3 of the books as a Mothers day present. A bit disorientating since many of these books currently out of print and reading them now out of sync. However first time reading an author local to me - didnt realise Michael Dibdin was a Wolverhampton lad. Thoroughly enjoyed the Italian adventure and possibly even more so with the image of Aurelio Zen in mind - Rufus Sewell looked blinking amazing! Looking forward now to moving on to Back to Bologna.
November 9, 2023
Great plot, fast-moving and surprising up to the end. I read it while sick in bed and the setting was various beautiful parts of Italy, so I feel like I traveled in my mind. It also touched upon contemporary and 1970s Italian politics and the contrast between the two. The detective was likeable, while the villain detestable but realistic. The only weird thing are the female characters and how they are described, but they’re varied enough and believable. The “crime” was unique and archetypal at the same time— won’t say anything more!
November 30, 2017
I really really admire his writing style. I don't know where this book came from, as it's book 9 in the series and I've never seen another, and I don't remember buying it, but I definitely will be seeking more Dibdin out in the future.
His use of descriptive terms, mixed with dialogue, and exquisite word choice, is everything I aspire to be as a writer. Loved it.
"Came too late, not an epiphany but a eulogy." Amazing.
His use of descriptive terms, mixed with dialogue, and exquisite word choice, is everything I aspire to be as a writer. Loved it.
"Came too late, not an epiphany but a eulogy." Amazing.
March 22, 2018
I discovered the Aurelio Zen mysteries when a few were adapted for TV, starring Rufus Sewell as Zen. I picked up several of the books at second hand bookstores over the years, wishing there were more.
This is a good installment, digging into the uncomfortable past of Italy's military and the far right groups that rose in the 1980s (and are now coming back) although of course things are not always as they seem... A good read overall.
This is a good installment, digging into the uncomfortable past of Italy's military and the far right groups that rose in the 1980s (and are now coming back) although of course things are not always as they seem... A good read overall.
April 25, 2019
I quite enjoyed Medusa, my first Zen book, but occasionally it does seem to drift off-course or turn into a travelogue. Unfortunately, I don't speak Italian, so was a little perplexed as to why there was a splattering of Italian words here and there, most of which I could guess their meaning, others I was none the wiser. I suppose they add atmosphere or a flavour of Italy.
A good story line, however, even if the ending was a little predictable.
A good story line, however, even if the ending was a little predictable.
February 24, 2025
This was probably just not for me. This was my first Aurelio Zen and he felt like a bit of a nothing character. The plot and writing were very masculine, I never knew what a room or scene looked like past the basics, but I certainly knew everything about every car that entered the story. The single female character was a total caricature that felt straight from an incel. It seemed like the book would skim past the most exciting plot points but hang on to those long drawn out moments.
August 6, 2020
3.5
Maybe they wouldn't have gone to such trouble to conceal what is basically your average murder -- in Day of the Jackal; wouldn't it have been easier to just throw a bomb? -- but Dibdin is a superior writer so it never felt as if anything was padded. And if you love reading about Italy, taking Italian trains...
Maybe they wouldn't have gone to such trouble to conceal what is basically your average murder -- in Day of the Jackal; wouldn't it have been easier to just throw a bomb? -- but Dibdin is a superior writer so it never felt as if anything was padded. And if you love reading about Italy, taking Italian trains...
June 2, 2018
First Zen book I have read although I have seen the TV series. Instead of sunny Rome the story is set in the gloomy north. I did not know that German is spoken in a part of Italy. It is nice to learn something new along with being entertained.
January 2, 2019
Another case closed in good form by Aurelio Zen.
I always look forward to reading another Aurelio Zen story. The Italian detective always seems to out wit the bad guys and keep his job even if a few questionable strings are pulled to solve the case.
I always look forward to reading another Aurelio Zen story. The Italian detective always seems to out wit the bad guys and keep his job even if a few questionable strings are pulled to solve the case.
February 11, 2020
This 9th book in the Zen series reminded me of some of the earlier books such as "Cabal". He really is at his best when navigating the unspoken world of cabals, secret organizations and power politics even though he dislikes it!
April 21, 2020
I find Dibdin isn’t such a warm writer as Donna Leon but as it’s based in Italy, still a good second best. Story is based in post war history involving a secret unit in the army. As usual, solved despite the involvement of politics and Italian society.
June 17, 2024
Enough twists and turns and history and atmosphere to claim the rights of an excellent investigative mystery. Nearly all of Italy is unveiled but the Dolomite portion was what originally drew me to the book. Aurelio Zen and I will likely interact again!!
June 27, 2017
Another excellent story from Michael Dibdin
Like all of the Aurelio Zen before it, Medusa is another gripping story that I found hard to put down.
Like all of the Aurelio Zen before it, Medusa is another gripping story that I found hard to put down.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews