The Inspector Montalbano of August Heat displays a far more ponderous, sombre and perhaps even melancholy character than he has in the previous nine novels in Andrea Camilleri’s wonderfully atmospheric Sicilian detective series. The reasons for Montalbano’s change in attitude seem threefold: first, he has become increasingly fixated on his own aging and fears greatly that his powers of deduction are failing him; secondly, he has never had to remain in Vigata throughout the whole summer and so is unaccustomed to the unrelenting, searing heat that make even getting into the car an endurance test; and thirdly, the events of August Heat are certainly far darker than the government corruption, family feuds and mafia double-dealings that account for most of the local crimes that Montalbano has always been quick to solve.

When Montalbano’s friend and colleague Mimi Augello has to delay his return from holiday, Montalbano and his long-suffering girlfriend Livia have to reconcile themselves to spending their own summer break in Vigata. Worried that this development may cause even more conflict in their already volatile relationship, Montalbano tries to reassure Livia, pointing out that it is August and “with this kind of heat, even the killers down here wait until autumn.” Livia remains far from convinced that Montalbano will be able to drag himself away from work since they are going to be remaining in town and so asks him to rent a villa by the sea so that her best friend Laura and her family can come stay and guarantee her the chance of company. Eager to appease Livia, Montalbano thinks he has found the perfect villa at Marina di Montereale. He should really have known better.

Although Laura, her husband Guido and their three-year-old son Bruno initially settle into the villa quite happily, all too soon they become convinced that the place is cursed. One morning they awake to find that a plague of cockroaches has descended on the villa, the next morning it’s mice and the next, spiders. Finally, young Bruno goes missing.

Montalbano is pleased to quickly be able to find Bruno but he ends up finding far more than he bargained on. In an old trunk stashed away in a secret apartment in the villa, Montalbano uncovers the body of a young girl. Once they are aware of his grisly find, Laura and her family, as well as Livia, quickly pack up and head back to Italy, leaving Montalbano to endure the heat wave and solve the six-year-old murder while still making time to dodge his superiors, eat delicious meals and go for long swims in the increasingly polluted sea. There is no shortage of suspects and intrigue in August Heat as more and more crimes and misdeeds are brought to Montalbano’s attention as, ably assisted by his squad of police officers and fortified by the food at Enzo’s, he struggles to wade through the various layers of vice that lie between himself and the murderer.

You can practically feel the blazing temperature coming off the pages of August Heat and, in keeping with the oppressive atmosphere of Montalbano’s Sicily, the action surges forward in fits and starts between long periods of regular police activity and contemplation from Montalbano. Although the crime committed is horrific and the overall tone of the book is dark, August Heat still features some of the warmth and humour that have become trademarks of Andrea Camilleri’s engrossing mystery series. As ever, Catarella can be particularly counted upon to lighten the mood. Montalbano’s personal flaws may be more emphasised during his latest investigation but he is still, ultimately, the same complex yet moral man and it is clear that the results of his own actions as well as the powerfully emotional climax of August Heat will trouble him greatly in the future.

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