Daughter of Ashes by Ilaria Tuti

 

First Line: She wasn't much older than thirty and she felt like she had turned to dust.

 

Superintendent Teresa Battaglia is a trail-blazing criminal detective on the Italian police force. Currently, she's on sick leave to recuperate from her brush with death in pursuit of a killer, but what no one else knows is that her Alzheimer's is getting worse, and Teresa believes she may never return to work.

 

However, her retirement plans are shelved when serial killer Giacomo Mainardi insists on speaking with her. Twenty-seven years ago, Teresa's work put Mainardi behind bars in a maximum security prison. Now the convicted killer tells her that someone is after him, and only Teresa holds the key to keeping everyone safe.

 

To solve this case, Teresa must resurrect a past that she thought she'd buried for good. A past when Mainardi first began to kill, and Teresa-- newly pregnant and married to an abusive man-- did everything in her power to catch him.

 

~

 

Daughter of Ashes is the amazing conclusion to Ilaria Tuti's trilogy that began with Flowers Over the Inferno and The Sleeping Nymph. In it, readers are finally allowed to see Teresa Battaglia's entire history: her genius for crime solving, the misogyny she's had to endure throughout her career, and-- most telling and important of all-- her personal life away from the job. Her personal history is a factor in the relationship between Battaglia and the top-notch team she's trained. They are her children, "her boys", and there's nothing that they wouldn't do for each other. 

 

If Inspector Massimo Marini and the rest of the team had their way, they would never be without her, but Daughter of Ashes is a bittersweet tale indeed. Teresa Battaglia's dementia is worsening. "This illness was toying with her life like a breeze with a dry leaf," and she knows she must retire before she becomes a liability. But she can't quit just yet because, once and for all, she must deal with serial killer, Giacomo Mainardi. One of the best things about this book is its humanity, and that compassion and empathy extend to Mainardi. Readers can-- and will be-- appalled at what Mainardi does, but once his own personal history is revealed, he becomes a truly sympathetic character. 

Yes, the mystery is intriguing, but the characters remain first and foremost in my mind, the lead in particular. Teresa Battaglia's life is a triumph of will and endurance that is ultimately betrayed by her mind. Ilaria Tuti's portrayal of her is so vivid that I feel as though I know her.

Daughter of Ashes by Ilaria Tuti

eISBN: 9781641294188

Soho Press © 2023

eBook, 432 pages

 

Police Procedural, #3 Teresa Battaglia mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley

The Sleeping Nymph by Ilaria Tuti

 

First Line: Teresa often thinks of death.

Superintendent Teresa Battaglia is pleased when a cold case lands on her desk because it means that there is no killer on the loose who must be tracked down as quickly as possible before more people die. She's not so pleased when her boss is temporarily replaced by a man from her past, a man who's determined to bring about her ruin.

As Battaglia and her team begin working the case, they find themselves in the Resia Valley, one of Italy's most isolated, untouched regions, and a place where the stories of the partisans who fought the Nazis during World War II have never gone out of fashion. When someone is brutally murdered, Battaglia finds herself not only battling a ruthless killer, but her own deteriorating physical and mental health. It's this crippling stress that could prove her downfall, but if anyone can emerge triumphant, it's Teresa Battaglia.

I was very impressed by the first book in this series, Flowers Over the Inferno, and I couldn't wait to see what sort of investigation Teresa Battaglia found herself dealing with next. Battaglia probably has the worst health of any main character I'm currently reading about-- she's in her mid-sixties, has diabetes and the first signs of Alzheimer's-- but she also has the greatest determination to survive and to succeed. Can you imagine trying to keep on top of a rapidly moving investigation while trying to remember whether or not you've given yourself your insulin... and while hoping against hope that your mind doesn't suddenly decide to go walkabout? The woman is so worried that she doesn't drive anywhere after dark, and she wears a bracelet that is inscribed with "My name is Teresa Battaglia." This woman has a will of iron, and maternal instincts any mother would envy. Battaglia feels that it is one of her most important duties to "shield the people who relied on her," and there's nothing her team wouldn't do for her as a result. Speaking of her team, I hope they figure more prominently in future books. I need to know more about them and why Battaglia feels that they need so much protection.

On the whole, I found the book to be bloated. There was too much going on: Teresa's health, the complicated personal life of her second-in-command Massimo Marini, her new supervisor who wants to destroy her, and learning all about the Resia Valley, an isolated region populated by people with a unique language, history, and customs. The mystery kept taking a backseat to everything else that was going on which became so frustrating that I began to wonder if characters like Albert Lona (the Teresa hater) were really necessary. At least my two favorite new characters, the blind Blanca Zago and her HRD (Human Remains Detection) dog, a scruffy mongrel named Smoky, played an important role in the mystery. I hope Blanca and Smoky appear in future books, especially since they are based on a real woman and dog.

The Sleeping Nymph suffered from what some have called "too much middle," but the mystery is absorbing, and it introduces two fascinating characters. With Teresa Battaglia's health conditions, this should be a short-lived series, and I don't intend to miss a single one of her investigations. You see, I have discovered that I'm just as loyal to her as the members of her team.

The Sleeping Nymph by Ilaria Tuti

Translated from the Italian by Ekin Oklap

eISBN: 9781641291224

Soho Press © 2020

eBook, 456 pages

 

Police Procedural, #2 Teresa Battaglia mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

Flowers Over the Inferno by Ilaria Tuti

First Line: There was a legend that haunted that place, the kind that clings like a persistent odor.

In a small village in the Italian Alps, the first victim in a gruesome string of murders is found. Superintendent Teresa Battaglia has a background in criminal profiling and is called to head the investigation. Massimo Marini, a city detective, is added to her highly trained and competent team.

It is a difficult investigation. Going without proper food or sleep, Battaglia tries to unravel a historical angle that threatens to endanger a group of eight-year-old children towards whom the killer is gravitating.

With the insular village fighting them every step of the way, sixtysomething Battaglia is battling exhaustion, illness, and the knowledge that her mind and body may fail her before the investigation is over.

The first third of Flowers Over the Inferno made me despair. The opening is a bit clunky and as the author set her stage, I found it difficult to become engaged with the story. But I kept at it-- mainly because her descriptions of the landscape create an atmosphere that's at once magical and foreboding. In fact, the landscape becomes a major character in the book. More than anything else, I think it was the transitions between the main narrative and the intermittent chapters taking place in a creepy old building in Austria that caused this reader's troubles-- even though those chapters made the hair stand on the back of my neck along with their mantra of "Observe, record, forget."

Then there are the children: Mathias, Diego, Lucia, and Oliver. The more you learn about them, the more you will admire their resilience, intelligence, and bravery. And when the story finally settles down to the investigation, fasten your seatbelts: Teresa Battaglia is one of the best characters I've come across in a long, long time. In her mid-sixties, Teresa is single, alone (and not enjoying it), overweight, diabetic, and has a razor-sharp intelligence. She does not suffer fools gladly, but you will seldom ever find a character who has more empathy and compassion. As tiny pieces of her backstory are told, your admiration of the woman grows. Her mere presence makes those who stand by her feel stronger; her team is utterly devoted to her. When you add to that mix a city detective who needs more than a bit of training, sparks can fly. But as he learns, Massimo Marini's opinion of Teresa Battaglia changes. In the beginning, each time he underestimates her, she steamrolls right over him, so it's fun to watch their relationship develop.

If not for that clunky beginning, Flowers Over the Inferno would be on my Best Reads of 2019 list, but it comes very, very close. There are supposed to be two more books featuring Teresa Battaglia, and I can't wait to get my hands on them. She is a fantastic character! (Think Vera Stanhope and Ruth Galloway, you fans out there.)

Flowers Over the Inferno by Ilaria Tuti

Translated from the Italian by Ekin Oklap.

eISBN:  9781641290692

Soho Crime © 2019

eBook, 361 pages

Police Procedural, #1 Teresa Battaglia

Rating: A

Source: NetGalley