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Conor Fitzgerald

The Fatal Touch: A Commissario Alec Blume Novel (The Alec Blume Novels) Paperback – June 12, 2012

by Conor Fitzgerald (Author)

4.0 237 ratings

Book 2 of 5: Commissario Alec Blume

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Alec Blume returns to action in this intricate and heart-pounding new novel. With the help of his associate Caterina, Blume is called to the scene of a death connected to a spate of muggings. Though the Carabinieri-military police-are trying to control the investigation, Blume, never one to bow to authority, pursues it his own way. I mmersed in an old-world setting and written with satisfying detail about the tools of art forgery, this is a riveting novel, with rich characters and a spectacular conclusion.

Book 2 of 5

Commissario Alec Blume
Print length

384 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Bloomsbury USA
Publication date

June 12, 2012
Dimensions

5.93 x 1.03 x 8.3 inches
ISBN-10

1608198499
ISBN-13

978-1608198498
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About the Author

Conor Fitzgerald is the author of The Dogs of Rome and The Namesake, also featuring Commissario Alec Blume. He has lived in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Italy. He has worked as an arts editor, produced a current affairs journal for foreign embassies based in Rome, and founded a successful translation company. He is married with two children and lives in Rome.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloomsbury USA; Reprint edition (June 12, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1608198499
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1608198498
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.93 x 1.03 x 8.3 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,182,340 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #13,474 in International Mystery & Crime (Books)
- #30,561 in Murder Thrillers
- #93,233 in Suspense Thrillers

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4.0 237 ratings

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4 out of 5

237 global ratings

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Blue in Washington (Barry Ballow)

Old Masters, Old Swindlers and the American Commissario in Roma

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 27, 2011

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"The Fatal Touch" is Conor Fitzgerald's second book in the Commissioner Alec Blume series, and a rather good mystery it is, with an intriguing focus on the world of fine art--production, reproduction and sales.

Blume is an unlikely Commissario of the Rome (as in Italy) Police, making him the fictional southern confrere of the equally fictional Guido Brunetti. His presence and position in Rome are explained in some detail by the author as the story unfolds. Overall though, his character gets somewhat shorter shrift than was the case in his debut in "Dogs of Rome", and there are other players in this story that come across as more interesting, real, scary, etc.

And the story in this case has an intriguing plot that opens with the death of an art forger who specialized in producing Renaissance and Baroque master drawings for sale to gullible, and usually greedy, collectors. As Commissario Blume delves into the forger's death, he quickly finds that it leads into a messy mix of artistic misdeed, betrayal, broken relationships and connections with some of the most unsavory government officials in the country.

One such unpleasant character is the off-the-charts unscrupulous Colonel Farinelli of the Art Theft Division of the Carabinieri, who it will turn out, had been a partner in crime with the deceased forger. Author Fitzgerald invests a great deal of time and detail to bring this character into focus, and succeeds in presenting the reader with a menacing vision of the older Orson Wells in "Touch of Evil" (my impression at least).

Another character in this story who is rather skillfully developed is Inspector Caterina Matteolii, who seems destined to become Commissario Blume's better professional half. Caterini is a solid and credible character who brings real interest to the book.

"The Fatal Touch" has an engrossing plot, a fair amount of action and a really terrific villain, who is as smart as he is ruthless. Good read for any mystery lover, but if you are also interested in Italy and fine art, you will get a great kick from this work. Recommended.

14 people found this helpful

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Patto

A multi-layered mystery

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 2, 2011

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The second Commissario Blume novel takes shape rather like a painting, with layer upon layer of illusion and lots of chiaroscuro. Since the book focuses on art forgery, the structure is apt.

There are several crimes vying for the attention of Blume and the reader: a rash of muggings directed at foreign tourists, a brutal hit-and-run killing - and the suspicious death of an old Irish drunk, a dubious artist specializing in forgeries of Old Masters.

The case that obsesses Blume is naturally the one he's been ordered to drop: the death of the drunken art forger Henry Treacy.

The manuscript Treacy left behind, recounting his life and revealing his forgery techniques, is a fascinating story within the story - and my favorite part of the book. This manuscript is also a political hot potato.

All these mysteries and embarrassments will of course be solved, but not without bloodshed and drama all around.

Blume's parents were art historians, so he knows a lot about art for a cop. It's fun to watch him interact with lovers and fencers of art. Besides Blume, there are a number of standout characters. A woman inspector, new to murder investigation, is learning to deal with the Neanderthal-like cops who are her new subordinates. Then there's Colonel Farinelli of the Carabinieri. Beautifully dressed, enormously fat and ominously friendly, the corrupt Colonel is an entertaining villain.

I love the Old Masters and particularly enjoyed the art talk in this novel. But I found the first book of the series, The Dogs of Rome, more satisfying overall. Blume was simply more comprehensible and likeable in that book - an intriguing composite of American and Italian. His back-story is well told in The Dogs of Rome. I'd suggest reading these books in order. Commissario Blume is worth following.

2 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Don't judge a book by it's cover

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 26, 2011

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I enjoyed the first Alec Blume book very much and when I saw that the author had written another one,I could'nt wait to read it.As it turn's out,this book is really a stand alone novel,more so than a continuation of one detective's adventure.I thought this book,like the James Hall or John D. McDonald book's,would just be another adventure for the same character.Wrong.While the protaganist share's the same name in both book's,the Alec Blume in the 2nd book is a totally different character.
The time span between the 2 book's ,is roughly 18 month's and it's almost as if the author did'nt like the protaganist,he created in book 1,so he decided to create a whole new personality for Alec,in book 2.Don't get me wrong,the 2nd is just as good as the 1st but be ready to accept a totally redone detective.
It's worth reading,so I hope you enjoy.Have to give this one a 4 star for predictability and lack of continuity from book 1

12 people found this helpful

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Kathleen WH

Excellent sequel

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 3, 2011

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A superb sequel to the first Alec Blume mystery.

That book, The Dogs of Rome, introduced us to Commissioner Alec Blume, a American who was orphaned in Rome following the brutal murder of his parents. Having no other family, Alec stays in Rome and eventually becomes a mid level police investigator on Rome's Flying Squad..

In Fatal Touch, author Connor Fitzgerald inserts Blume into a complicated web of deception that may (or may not) involve the "ghosts" of the assignation of Italian Prime Minister Aldo Muro in 1978, the forgeries of pintings of Italian Great Masters, love triangles, international intrigue, or perhaps none of the above.

This is a tightly written, witty, intellectual mystery and a worthy sequel to The Dogs of Rome.

One reviewer feels that the author abandoned the Alec Blume of "Dogs" and created a different one here, but the variation is more in Fitzgerald's maturation as an author and less about a change in Blume.

If Fitzgerald continues this series with equal skill, Alec Blume could easily become a worthily contender for the mantle of humanity (and angst) that has recently slipped from the shoulders of Harry Bosch.

22 people found this helpful

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Isobel Rufus-Henry

Alec Blume's second adventure does not disappoint

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 26, 2011

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This is the second outing for Commissare Alec Blume. Once again Conor Fitzgerald has managed to create a perfectly credible picture of the Roman crime scene and police showing the rivalry between the ordinary civilian cop and the military Carabiniere. I have no idea whether it is realistic or not, but that doesn't matter. It feels real and Alec Blume feels real and one cares what happens to him and in this story quite a lot of things do happen to him, few pleasant and some with long lasting consequences.

For those of you who have not read The Dogs of Rome (you should), Commissare Alec Blume is somewhat of an outsider, not because he is a maverick cop (etc. etc.), but because he is an American who was orphaned in Italy as a teenager, so his slight detachment from his peers has a solid and believable reason. After his last adventures, his conduct is being observed, not very subtly, by the powers that be.

There is a spate of muggings targeting foreign visitors that needs sorting and a potentially more interesting suspicious death of a tramp. The tramp turns out to be an alcoholic Irish restorer/forger and suddenly the Carabiniere are interested. Officially Blume is removed as leading investigator of the case, although side issues allow him still to be involved. It soon becomes obvious that senior authorities are thwarting his attempts to be part of the investigation. Why??!!

We meet familiar characters from the previous book and several intriguing new characters. Blume is a dogged and determined investigator who can be lured into bloody-mindedness which can have disastrous consequences for himself and other major characters. No one is safe and this uncertainty and sense of danger keeps the reader on their toes.

I really enjoyed this book. It works as a stand-alone novel, but, if you haven't already, read the Dogs of Rome as well. I eagerly await the next book, due out next spring, I believe.

6 people found this helpful

Elaine Tomasso

An Improvement

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 29, 2013

Verified Purchase

I read the first book in this series a few years ago and wasn't that impressed as I found it long and quite boring. I thought I would give the series another go when The Fatal Touch was on the daily deal. I didn't find this book boring but rather interesting in it's portrayal of modern day Roman policing. The plot seemed a bit fantastical to me - a corrupt carabinieri doing exactly as he pleased with no one able to stop him and art forgery (I don't want to say any more) - but it may be truer to life than I can imagine. It is a plot driven novel because there is very little by way of characterisation, mostly just stereotypes like the working mum, the lazy cop etc but then it's a thriller so you don't notice it so much. This book will not be in my re-read pile but it kept me turning the pages till the end.

graphicdavinci

OK yarn but could have been set anywhere..

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 29, 2013

Verified Purchase

Unlike the other Italian crime series I've read in the past, Andrea Camilleri' Montalbano, Donna Leon and her Commissario Brunetti, Conor Fitzgerald's Blume, although set in Rome could be the outsider/off beat cop in any country or city. The sense of place brought so vividly to the reader by the others is just missing. This leaves you with the stories and characters dependent almost entirely on the writing alone to carry the plot along. Commissario Alec Blume is basically not a very likeable character but in his odd ball way the stories progress through interaction with some not very believable twists and turns to a reasonable conclusion. The other supporting characters sometimes seem to fall into Italian and American stereotypes. Still an ok read in this style of novel.

Mr. David J. Gould

As Good as it Gets

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

As my introduction to the irascible Commissario Bume and his long suffering side kick this was a great novel to get into. The action was paced nicely and the revelations came in easy to follow gobbets. Fitzgerald fits a great deal of Art History into this novel although I would not recommend some of his aging technique at home if planning on setting up a forging business. The main character that we learn a great deal about endears himself upon one in spite of being very dead from the first moment we encounter him. A lovable rogue who means no harm but with hidden depths. A good read...so good I am reading the third in the series now...I might get round to number one as it is on the Kindle already and waiting.

Kindle Customer

Italy as we would like it.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 10, 2013

Verified Purchase

A likeable hero,laid back and playing the system against itself, particularly the different police forces,Carabinieri and Municipale (No Stradiale?) Not to mention the magistrates portrayed as inefficient or corrupt or both. Well, it is fiction
but the Italian justice system as reported in the media lends itself to that.

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