The first in the Sicily-set Inspector Montalbano series, The Shape of Water establishes the good inspector in a jaded community on the southern coast of the Italian island. Always struggling against the scofflaw traditions of his home, Inspector Montalbano pushes through the local political and ecclesiastical objections to his investigation, but what he finds casts him into the role of maverick as he seeks justice for all involved, regardless of the legal niceties that may be involved.
The case revolves around the death—by natural causes—of the town's charismatic lead politician and civic booster. He is found in suspicious circumstances, at a place he had no apparent reason to be. The dogged detective must juggle two beautiful young women—neither of whom is the Inspector's Milan-based fiancĂ©e—a medical examiner who never met a secret he couldn't blab, and a police force more concerned with thwarting the investigation than pursuing it properly.
The book has twists and turns, a highly sympathetic lead detective, colorful local types, and politics and hostility in high places. Well put-together, entertaining, unorthodox. It might be possible that a different, more nuanced translation would serve it better.
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