Review: Murder on the Italian Riviera

Murder on the Italian Riviera by T.A. Williams
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Finally I've got around to reading the seventh book in this series (I've read all eleven other books published to date or almost published in the case of book 12).

Dan (a former Scotland Yard Detective Chief Inspector, now turned Private Investigator in Italy) is contacted by a woman who he helped to put in prison. Her father is Italian and runs an upmarket holiday camp. A guest was found floating in the communal swimming pool, the local police are convinced that he had too much to drink and fell, hitting his head and falling into the pool where he drowned, just a tragic accident, but she and her father believe he was murdered.

Dan agrees to travel to the camp on the French border and spend a couple of days investigating with his trusty black Labrador Oscar, only to discover that the camp is actually a naturist resort! Nevertheless, Dan braves his fears and starts interviewing the other guests and there seem to be several suspects. The pool widens when Dan's call to a former colleague reveals that the victim was an MI6 operative. Was the motive love/jealousy (apparently he was a ladies man), or was it connected to his job? Dan also discovers that the victim was born in the former Eastern Germany and his parents were killed by the Stasi - deaths he had vowed to avenge - could that play into his murder?

This was an enjoyable mystery, typical of the series, full of luscious descriptions of food and wine - definitely going to try a Nebbiolo next time I'm in a restaurant.

Read on my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

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