THE PAST IS A FOREIGN COUNTRY by GIANRICO CAROFIGLIO
(Old Street Publishing hardback, 288pp, £12.99)

Giorgio is a young man with a promising future, but then he falls under the spell of the charismatic Francesco, who lures him into a life of debauchery. Francesco teaches him how to cheat at cards, and at first they only swindle those who deserve or can afford to be gulled, but then as easy marks become hard to find anyone is a target. In other areas of his life Giorgio is persuaded to compromise on his own standards, abandoning his studies to be a lawyer and cheating on his girlfriend, getting drawn ever deeper into a life of crime and lulled by the ease with which everything falls into his lap. Concurrent with this is another plot strand in which a lieutenant of caribinieri is investigating a series of attacks on women, with the violence mounting each time. As the two strands near each other, Giorgio faces hard choices about his future and must question where his own boundaries lie. (more…)

Tags: Black Static • Book Reviews • Crime fiction • Gianrico Carofiglio • Italy • Peter Tennant • The Past is a Foreign Country