Death in the Dolomites: A Rick Montoya Italian Mystery by David P. Wagner


I really did love Death in the Dolomites! I received an early release copy in exchange for a review and I am truly sorry it took me so long to read it. I did not realize there was a previous book in the series when I started it. I had to stop and find a copy of the first book which my library borrowed a copy for me to read. I wish I had read it a long time ago because it really has kicked up my longing for going back to Italy. This time, Rick is skiing with his college buddy Flavio in Campiglio which is great because this is an actual town in Italy. The details given by the author were so vivid that I literally could see some of it in my mind while I read. I love books that do such a wonderful job with location and imagery.

While Rick was visiting Campiglio, a police detective from a nearby town comes because another American visiting Campiglio with his sister has disappeared. The other police detective requests Rick's assistance with translating to English with the missing man's sister. I love Rick. He is a regular man who has a diverse background. He has family in Rome, an uncle who would really love for Rick to become a police detective despite Rick's mom's opinion. Rick becomes deeply enmeshed in the mystery because as things go in small towns, everyone knows everyone, even the visitors. This means not much goes on with the investigation that everyone in town doesn't see or hear about. This becomes quite dangerous for Rick. I found it very interesting that everyone underestimated Luca, who was an obviously intelligent man that came to the same conclusion for who was the murder as Rick but, through different means and experiences. Flavio was also a great character in this book and I hope to see more of him in future books. I am a huge fan of the food and wine talk in the books also. It gives the reader a great experience with how it is to eat in Italy if you do things the way Italians do when visiting Italy. I look forward to the next book in this series!