Review: Captivating....
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 30, 2013
My 66-year-old father, David, and I read this at the same time and have combined our reviews.David and I found the book captivating. Serafina is a good character and well written. Though Death In Bagheria (A Serafina Florio Mystery) is the third novel in the series, the story easily held up as an introduction to the character and the world in which she lives. Serafina is clearly a character the authors knows well and is able to write without the awkwardness that can often accompany a first novel as an author develops the character. David was inspired to read the rest of the series so stay tuned with his thoughts as to if the character grew or was strong from the start.Some of the characters seemed to rely on rote but most were seemingly very well thought out and developed. Serafina has a complex relationship with many of the characters and yet there wasn't a feeling of repetition between them. They were all very uniquely strained and delicately balanced in a way that made all simply more interesting to read.Death In Bagheria (A Serafina Florio Mystery) has a very specific feel of place and time. Often with historical fiction you can take the story out of it's setting and just change the date and the feel of the story hasn't changed. Not so with this novel. I don't know if Russo has deeply researched the time period in Sicily as I'm not familiar with that era of history in the era but there's a true feel to the way she's written the location as a second main character. Like the great Canadian detective show, "Murdoch Mysteries" (set at the turn of the 20th century), the feel of the novel is very period piece in a way that I loved but David found as a spice to the real prize - the mystery.The mystery was complex and the writing style intense. Anderson pulls few punches. Serafina is not a perfect person and not a perfect detective but she's in there tenaciously working hard.  She is mother to seven children and in no way a perfect parent. She's widowed and still young and looking for romance and finds it with an old flame. David found the romance aspect of the novel needless but truly enjoyed the mystery. I found that the romance added flair to the mystery, as did the very real nature of Serafina and her time in her longing for companionship.This is a great read for mystery fans. David was inspired to read the series from the start and is currently reading the first Serafina Florio mystery. I don't know when I'll have time but would also love to read them straight through and experience a little vacation in Sicily.