VOICES IN THE WIND

A wealthy Sicilian businessman with shady connections handles threats and opportunities in this novel.

Life is good for 55-year-old Dr. Pasquale Nebrodi, a respected and affluent mover and shaker in Taormina. With his beautiful wife, Donna Rosa, he lives in a palatial villa lavishly supplied with contemporary art. Inspired by such favorite books as Machiavelli’s The Prince and Donald Trump and Tony Schwartz’s The Art of the Deal, Don Pasquale has a hugely ambitious project in view: a bridge across the Strait of Messina, something that’s been dreamed of since Roman times. The killing of Mafia boss Nunzio Rizzo removes one obstacle to the project, and Don Pasquale anticipates smooth sailing in the form of 650 million euros of funding from the European Investment Bank. When the bank declines to back the businessman, worried about Mafia entanglement, he has some maneuvering to do, flying to England to rally financial support from his London club, whose members include the unscrupulous wealthy. It’s a complicated deal with rich potential for several income streams, but Don Pasquale’s chances suddenly improve when convulsive Italian politics put him on the short list to head a technical government. Meanwhile, the case of a wandering man with amnesia whose notebook includes the name Don Pasquale is looked into by Inspector Filippo Bellini, a childhood friend of the entrepreneur’s. The amnesiac is Anthony Caruso of Toronto, as the petty thieves who assaulted him, Pippo Greco and Luca Mosca, learn from his stolen passport. With Pippo’s Canadian cousin, they try to extort half a million dollars from Caruso’s distraught wife, supposedly as ransom. Then Donna Rosa, convinced that her husband is cheating on her in England, jealously begins a dangerous affair with Don Pasquale’s PR man; Bellini investigates the deadly consequences. Just as Don Pasquale’s fortunes are rising to the greatest heights, downfall looms.

Manera, author of several novels as well as nonfiction books and a memoir, writes a fast-paced story that wastes no time in building to its climax. He shows a keen understanding of Italian and specifically Sicilian politics, business practices, and culture; matters such as the complicated Italian Parliamentary system are explained clearly, sometimes in helpful footnotes. He also makes good use of Mount Etna as a metaphor for Don Pasquale’s rise and possible fall, as Bellini suggests to him in a nice bit of foreshadowing: “Isn’t it amazing how peaceful Etna is most of the time? Yet, even when a mantle of snow covers its peak, there could be a devastating eruption. Sometimes, there are warning signs.” The ending provides satisfaction, with all the loose ends tied up. But the characterization doesn’t go very deep, consisting mainly of tagging each player with a few interests: Don Pasquale admires callous narcissists; Bellini is proud of his vineyard; Donna Rosa works to protect the environment on Mount Etna; and so on. Exposition can also be clumsy, as when Bellini explains to a Northern Italian that Milan is “Italy’s financial hub, as you must know,” together with tiresomely repetitive questions in the dialogue.

An efficient and intriguing, if sometimes bumpy, crime tale.