Sorry, cousin

I have a cousin who lives mainly in Rome although he spends at least a part of the year in London. He is currently in England and came down to Brighton the week before last. I did mention this in passing but what I failed to say was that he brought me a copy of his latest book. Into the Heart of the Mafia has received some good reviews, notably from the Sunday Telegraph and the Sunday Times.

It so happened that I finished my previous book the day David was with us so I immediately started on his. A week later I had reached page 70. You will gather that I was not finding this a quick read. Being unfamiliar with Italian names, I was bewildered by the multitude of them and uncertain at times if the person mentioned had appeared earlier - or even if this was a person and not a town or region. The Sunday Times reviewer summed up my feelings accurately when he described the book as:

structurally, strange and, as victims and murderers and prosecutors and place names are piled high, more than a bit confusing.

I gave up at that point and picked up a Michael Connolly - much more my cup of tea. Sorry, David.