Never has Inspector Montalbanos character a unique blend of humor, cynicism, compassion, earthiness, and love of good food been more compelling than in The Snack Thief. When an elderly man is stabbed to death in an elevator and a crewman on an Italian fishing trawler is machine-gunned by a Tunisian patrol boat off Sicilys coast, only Inspector Montalbano suspects a link between the two incidents. His investigation leads to the beautiful Karima, an impoverished house cleaner and sometime prostitute, whose young son steals other school childrens mid-morning snacks. But Karima disappears, and the young snack thiefs life as well as Montalbanos is endangered when the inspector exposes a vipers nest of government corruption and international intrigue. |