Part of Gideon Oliver, book 17
First published 2012
Forensics professor Gideon Oliver arrives in Tuscany to visit friends at Villa Antica winery. The Cubbiddu family still reels from tragedy. Months earlier, patriarch Pietro Cubbiddu and his wife Nola disappeared during his annual mountain retreat. A hiker discovered their skeletal remains in the Apennines. Italian police concluded Pietro shot Nola after learning of her affair, then killed himself. The Cubbiddu sons ask Oliver to examine the bones. His analysis reveals the investigators got nearly everything wrong. This was no murder-suicide. Oliver plunges into a web of family hatred and secrets that spans generations. The local carabinieri resent his interference. Then another family member dies under suspicious circumstances. Oliver realizes the killer remains active and dangerous, still targeting the Cubbiddu clan.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, family-drama
Setting: Tuscany, Villa Antica, Apennines
Period: Months Earlier
294 pages · Hardcover · Berkley Prime Crime
Content warnings: death, murder