Treasure Hunt Inspector Montalbano

The sixteenth Sicilian mystery in the irresistible New York Times–bestselling Inspector Montalbano series.

In Treasure Hunt, Montalbano is hailed as a hero after news cameras film him scaling a building — gun in hand — to capture a pair of unlikely snipers. Shortly after, the inspector begins to receive cryptic messages in verse from someone challenging him to go on a “treasure hunt.” Intrigued, he accepts, treating the messages as amusing riddles — until they take a dangerous turn.

Camilleri is as crafty and charming a writer as his protagonist is an investigator. (The Washington Post)

Montalbano is a delightful creation. (USA Today)

Praise for Andrea Camilleri and the Inspector Montalbano Series:    “Camilleris Inspector Montalbano mysteries might sell like hotcakes in Europe, but these world-weary crime stories were unknown here until the oversight was corrected (in Stephen Sartarellis salty translation) by the welcome publication of The Shape of Water…This savagely funny police procedural…prove[s] that sardonic laughter is a sound that translates ever so smoothly into English.”—The New York Times Book Review

     “Hailing from the land of Umberto Eco and La Casa Nostra, Montalbano can discuss a pointy-headed book like Western Attitudes Toward Death as unflinchingly as he can pore over crime-scene snuff photos. He throws together an extemporaneous lunch of shrimp with lemon wedges and oil as gracefully as he dodges advances from attractive women.”—Los Angeles Times

    “[Camilleris mysteries] offer quirky characters, crisp dialogue, bright storytelling—and Salvo Montalbano, one of the most engaging protagonists in detective fiction…Montalbano is a delightful creation, an honest man on Sicilys mean streets.”—USA Today

    “Camilleri is as crafty and charming a writer as his protagonist is an investigator.”—The Washington Post Book World

    “Like Mike Hammer or Sam Spade, Montalbano is the kind of guy who cant stay out of trouble…Still, deftly and lovingly translated by Stephen Sartarelli, Camilleri makes it abundantly clear that under the gruff, sardonic exterior our inspector has a heart of gold, and that any outburst, fumbles, or threats are made only in the name of pursuing truth.”—The Nation

    “Camilleri can do a characters whole backstory in half a paragraph.”—The New Yorker

The sixteenth Sicilian mystery in the irresistible New York Timesbestselling Inspector Montalbano series
A hail of bullets interrupts a period of dead calm. An elderly brother and sister open fire on the plaza below their apartment, punishing the people ofVigata for their sins. News cameras capture Montalbano gun in hand as he scales the building to capture the ancient snipers. Inside he finds a nightmarish world of religious objects and a well-worn inflatable sex doll that will come back to haunt him. The Inspector is hailed as a hero after the televised adventure and calm returns. But Montalbano begins to receive cryptic messages in verse, challenging him to go on a "treasure hunt." Intrigued, he accepts, treating the messages as amusing riddles until they take a dangerous turn."

"You either love Andrea Camilleri or you haven't read him yet. Each novel in this wholly addictive, entirely magical series, set in Sicily and starring a detective unlike any other in crime fiction, blasts the brain like a shot of pure oxygen. Aglow with local color, packed with flint-dry wit, as fresh and clean as Mediterranean seafood -- altogether transporting. Long live Camilleri, and long live Montalbano." A.J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

A hail of bullets interrupts a period of dead calm. An elderly brother and sister open fire on the plaza below their apartment, punishing the people of Vigata for their sins. News cameras capture Montalbano--gun in hand--as he scales the building to capture the ancient snipers. Inside he finds a nightmarish world of religious objects and a well-worn inflatable sex doll that will come back to haunt him. The Inspector is hailed as a hero after the televised adventure and calm returns. But Montalbano begins to receive cryptic messages in verse, challenging him to go on a "treasure hunt." Intrigued, he accepts, treating the messages as amusing riddles--until they take a dangerous turn.

Andrea Camilleri is the internationally bestselling author of the popular Inspector Montalbano series, as well as historical novels set in nineteenth-century Sicily. He lives in Italy.

Stephen Sartarelli is an award-winning translator and poet. He lives in France.