The Blue Demon by David Hewson

Italy in Books - Reading Challenge 2011

Paperback:  391 pages

Genre:  Thriller, Mystery, Fiction

Publisher:   February 5th 2010 by Macmillan

Source: Obtained in a Charity bookshop in the UK especially for the Italy in Books Challenge

First Sentence : The garden of the Quirinale  felt like a suntrap as the man in the silver armour strode down the shingle path.

My Opinion:  The fact that it was set in places I am familiar with added to the interest considerably.

The December post for the list of books that the other people taking part are reading this month has already been posted. December Reviews

This is my last entry as the challenge reaches a successful conclusion for me, I have read and reviewed a book for every month of the year. I would like to take the opportunity to thank  Brighton Blogger of  Book After Book for hosting what has been a fun challenge to participate in.

I doubt I would ever have considered reading this title had it not been for the Italy in Books Reading Challenge for 2011.  Thrillers and mysteries are a genre I do not read a great deal of although I have a few authors of this genre I enjoy. In fact I usually only read this genre if it is one my husband has read and recommends to me. This was the case with this one and also to be honest I was hunting around our bookshelves for something set in Italy for the final book of the challenge. So although this title would maybe not be my first choice I did find it a good read and the fact that it was set in places I am familiar with added to the interest considerably.

With mainly Italian characters, lots of references to Italian history, art and culture, use of Italian and familiar places how could I fail to enjoy this novel.  Having visited some of the Etruscan tombs in this region it was fascinating to read a novel weaved around the legacy of the lost race of the Etruscans. The storyline is complex with many twists and turns and will keep you guessing right to the very end.

The story commences with the kidnapping of a government minister and his driver murdered, just days before an important  conference with leaders of the G8 in Rome. When a ritual murder takes place, performed it seems by someone dressed as The Blue Demon from Etruscan history. It is then that Detective Nic Costa suspects that a twenty year old case where a mysterious group committed a series of crimes in the style of the infamous Blue Demon of Etruscan history was never really solved. The group has reformed and are planning attacks on Rome with devastating consequences. Old Etruscan myths, conspiracy and murders old and new are all part of the investigation.

Well worth reading if you are not only a lover of all things Italian but enjoy a good mystery.

For those of you interested in learning more about the historical background, I have included a couple of links to get you started.

 The Tomb of The Blue Demons      The Blue Demons in the Etruscan Underworld.

Author Profile

DAVID HEWSON was born in Yorkshire in 1953 and left school at the age of seventeen to work as a cub reporter on one of the smallest evening newspapers in the country in Scarborough. Eight years later I was a staff reporter on The Times in London, covering news, business and latterly working as arts correspondent. I worked on the launch of the Independent and was a weekly columnist for the Sunday Times for a decade before giving up journalism entirely in 2005 to focus on writing fiction.

He has written sixteen novels, as well as several travel books. Until 2005 he was a weekly columnist for the Sunday Times until becoming a full-time author. David lives in Kent but visits Italy frequently. All 11 of his Italian books are now in development as TV movies.

Sources of information used in this post :- 

 Goodreads Author Profile     Author's Official Website  David Hewson - Blog

I also post these ‘Italy in Books’ reviews on my other blog.
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