The Dante Game: A Homer Kelly Mystery (Mass Market Paperback)

by Jane Langton (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In another of her civilized, literary mysteries, Langton ( Emily Dickinson Is Dead ) sends professor Homer Kelly, previously at work in New England academic and historical settings, to teach at an American school in a crumbling villa in Florence, Italy. With characteristic wit (and pen-and-ink illustrations), Langton creates a love song to the architectural and cultural richness of Florence as she centers her plot around the pope's visit to a Florentine cathedral. When the villa's adulterous chambermaid and gardener are killed and a ravishingly beautiful student goes missing, Kelly is drawn into a case with ramifications reaching far beyond the concerns of the school's students and staff. One of the latter, a professor of Dante who has a criminal record in Massachusetts, finds that the literary scavenger hunt--"the Dante game"--he has devised for his class is being used to implicate the Americans in crimes occurring all over the city. The game elegantly ties together a mystery that transports readers to a passionate, sun-drenched world where classical statues turn a blind eye on murders perpetrated at their feet. (Mar.)note pub date change
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
The latest Homer Kelly mystery unfolds in Italy, where he joins the faculty of the newly formed American School of Florentine Studies. As students and professors read their way through Dante's Divine Comedy , they and the author draw parallels to modern-day Florence, where a bank official (and secret heroin smuggler) plots to assassinate the anti-drug-crusading Pope, using a Beatrice-like student as hostage. After three murders at the school, Homer and a friend investigate. The novel's strolling pace accelerates only near the very end, but there is adequate amusement for Langton or Dante fans, or both.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (June 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140138870
• ISBN-13: 978-0140138870
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #995,556 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This is item 8 in The Homer Kelly Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a fun read, November 9, 2000

By A Customer

I had just returned from Florence when I started _The Dante Game_ and it proved extremely helpful in easing the pangs of withdrawal. All the place descriptions and the drawings were exactly as I'd just experienced. The front flyleaf had an illustration of the street scene that was the exact view from my pensione window. And the story itself was fun and fast-paced. I do wish the characters had more depth, however. A lot was said about their looks (but no pictures, which I thought odd considering there were illustrations of all the sights they visited, so why not include sketches of the people, when their descriptions were just as prominent in the book) and a lot was expected to be gleaned from these descriptions, especially the near saintliness of the stunning woman at the center of it all and the unlikability of the oafish fat boy, which was just a tad too convenient, I thought, and not especially fair. But this makes it sound as if I didn't like the story, which I did. Also, I can't say enough about the beautiful illustrations of Florence's views. I sighed at the sight of each one.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well-plotted, great setting, October 19, 1999

By	PamR "readyreading" (Oak Park, IL USA) - See all my reviews

I haven't read the rest of the series, but enjoyed this one. Very well-plotted. If you're lucky enough to be in Florence when you read it, you'll enjoy all the references to locations. It works well, and whetted my appetite for more by this author.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Mystery, but something missing, June 10, 2002

By	Rebecca M (Somerville, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This is the second Jane Langton mystery I have read and I enjoyed it more than "Dead as a Dodo." Langton's scenic descriptions of Florence are tempting to those who have never been there. However, as with the aforementioned novel, she comes up short with the character development. You are indeed kept guessing until the end, but when you finally get there it is hard to feel empathy, disgust or anything at all. The characters seem complex, but we never get to see those complexities revealed, and when they are, it is in a hurried fashion to tie up loose ends.

The book will appeal to anyone involved with university academia, anyone who has been to Florence, or anyone interested in the socio-political climate surrounding the Vatican. The writing is versatile and the cast of characters is amusing. I am not sure "A Homer Kelly Mystery" is an apt description because he is not featured in any special way in the novel and is one of the least interesting characters.

Overall, a good airplane read.