Praise for the Marshal Guarnaccia series:This elegant series, which began in 1981 with Death of an Englishman . . . is set in Florence, a city that glows in the Tuscan sun. . . . [His] sense of estrangement accounts for Guarnaccias specialMorePraise for the Marshal Guarnaccia series:This elegant series, which began in 1981 with Death of an Englishman . . . is set in Florence, a city that glows in the Tuscan sun. . . . [His] sense of estrangement accounts for Guarnaccias special perspective on strangers, those innocents among the living and the dead.-The New York Times Book ReviewLean, elegant prose that surpasses the best of Simenon, along with a puckish view of the Florentines from Guarnaccias Sicilian perspective.-Kirkus ReviewsThe richest mystery here, however, is Florence itself, whose intricate politics and class structure Nabb parses with precision and wit.-The Washington PostGreat local atmosphere and rich characterizations.-Publishers WeeklyA superb series.
. . . A working-mans Maigret.-BooklistCrime fiction at its best.-The Sunday Times (London)Guarnaccias Florence is a delightful place to visit.-Mystery SceneSummoned by an aged woman to investigate mysterious noises in the vacant flat next to hers, Marshal Guarnaccia discovers a dying Dutch jeweler. The old lady had known him when he was a boy growing up in Florence. Could he have returned to the family home just to commit suicide? Or could the man be the victim of a cunning murderer?Magdalen Nabb was born in Lancashire. She has lived in Florence since 1975 and has written twelve Marshal Guarnaccia mysteries.
This is the second in the series.