Customer Reviews

Betrayal in Naples

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Betrayal in Naples delivers -- suspense, sexuality, danger and all of the dark shadows and emotional thrills of life in Italy's most intriguing city. The story is about a burnt-out English tourist whose three-day holiday in Naples turns into a month's sustained encounter with love, crime, dysfunction and death. Like Naples itself, the novel gets under your skin. It's a wonderful read.

Jim Wolf was a thirty five year old psychologist by profession he was about to start a new job in the following week. Still feeling a little strung out from his previous job he decided what he needed was a holiday but lacking in time it would have to be a long weekend break instead, maybe just enough time to clear his head. This sounded like a great idea and the only question left was where? Jim was use to planning his holiday's aboard in advance but this was different something done on a whim he would grab a cheap flight off the internet from the UK to Naples Italy, why Naples? why not? a little adventure just turn up and take off.

Arriving in the City alone at first he was feeling ill but after a day he runs into an ex-lover Louisa who his never quite forgotten unfortunately for Jim she was now married to a very charismatic Neapolitan judge, Alessandro. Louisa introduces them and the three become very close friends. As turn of events move quickly Jim decides to stay on in Naples longer than expected, Louisa and her husband are only to happy to make sure that he enjoys himself while there. Jim is offered a chance to watch Alessandro work in court it was a high profile case, very public full of intrigue. It's not long before Jim becomes seduced by the beauty and danger of this unpredictable city, where betrayal - of a lover, of a friend, of oneself, a single gesture, an unspoken code could also condemn you.

This book was suggested to me and I was not disappointed, I love a mystery thriller that involves psychology and this is a prime example of paranoia and irrational ideas on many levels. It shows the adrenaline rush of the city of Naples and also the threatening side. A lot in the book is based on consequence and turn of events, but it did reflect a different city and it's complexes of culture.

The only draw back for me was one of three main characters Jim Wolf himself, at first he was fine but about half way through I'd already written him off he was just to annoying for words, for a psychologist and his age, why and how could he be so naïve.

The author Neil Griffiths did a fantastic Job everywhere else; especially with certain mannerism and gestures, my favourite character in this novel was the Judge (Alessandro) in my eyes an Interesting, charming, complex character. The court case was well set and well researched you can clearly see Griffiths had help on this front from the right people in the city, it all seemed very authentic and for me fascinating. Naples itself has been vividly described, tourists who have already been will remember certain places and know directly what Griffiths has relayed to us, tourists who are about to go will find this all quite helpful. The writing itself of the whole book was wonderful and lead me to read on, I loved the way this book weaves together, very seductive.

I already have in my possession Neil Griffins second novel - Saving Caravaggio, once again set in Italy, If this last novel is anything to go by I've left myself wide open for an intriguing seduction in words.

A.Bowhill