Zen Omnibus: "Ratking", "Vendetta", "Cabal"

Aurelio Zen #1-3

by Michael Dibdin

Genres: Crime, Fiction, Mystery

Paperback

First published December 7, 1998

About the author

Michael 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

Reviews

[Edmund Chattoe-Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

If getting things done in Italy is even one tenth as difficult as it is portrayed here then I feel deeply sorry for the Italians. Aurelio Zen, a Venetian who still shares a flat with his mother, struggles with corruption in his often derailed or accidentally successful efforts for the forces of law and order. Venal politicians, sinister priests, incestuous industrialists and others constantly stand in his way (and regularly try to kill him.) Well plotted, atmospheric and with a wide range of characters, these are worth your time without reservations. These are the first three novels in the Zen sequence collected.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thread on the Mysteries and Crime Thrillers group (Favorite Detective/Crime/Mysteries TV Shows)triggered my memories of reading this omnibus. It is written by the (now deceased) British crime writer, Michael Dibdin. Aurelio Zen is an Italian detective working in a police department overshadowed by a corrupt Italian government. I first watched the BBC drama series (and was totally captivated by Rufus Sewell). It is one of the best detective series I have seen. I wish they had kept going with it!

The omnibus includes the novels Ratking, Vendetta, and Cabal. These stories were even better than the television adaptation. I definitely felt that I was in Italy. There are great characters, lots of twists, and enough action for the person who enjoys that. Reading the entire omnibus may seem daunting but, when it is a book that is hard to put down, you will get through it quickly.

[Ml · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only read the stand-alone The Ratking. Good enough writing, not predictable, but not quite my cup of tea.

[John collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turns out I like good detective stories.