Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial

Hardcover
$6.33

Paperback
$14.95

Buy used:

$6.33

FREE delivery May 20 - 21. Details

Or fastest delivery May 14 - 16. Details

Select delivery location

Used: Like New | Details

Sold by ThriftBooks-Seattle

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (36) from $6.33 & FREE Shipping

Follow the author

Michael Dibdin

+ Follow

More books from this author

Cosi Fan Tutti: An Aurelio Zen Mystery Hardcover – April 29, 1997

by Michael Dibdin (Author)

3.9 622 ratings

Book 5 of 11: Aurelio Zen Mysteries

See all formats and editions

Aurelio Zen's newest adventure is a delirious combination of the deadly serious and the seriously comic. Here is Mozart's opera turned on its head to test the faithfulness of men and the stamina of Michael Dibdin's unusually serious-minded police officer, as he becomes the unwitting stage manager for this masterful interpretation of murder, mayhem, and the mysteries of love.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The career of Italian policeman Auerlio Zen has certainly had its operatic ups and downs: as a nasty colleague points out, "In Milan, you wrongfully arrest a man for the Tondelli murder, and 20 years later he tries to kill you after his release from prison. In Rome, you single-handedly 'solve' the Moro kidnapping, unfortunately too late to save the victim." So it's fitting that Michael Dibdin has used a real comic opera by Mozart and Lorenzo Daponte as the frame for his latest Zen outing. A Northern fish in Naples's polluted waters, Venetian-born Zen seems to have found the perfect job to make himself invisible, as head of the harbor police. But several tangled plots--including one that deftly turns the Daponte stew of unsuitable suitors and fake Albanians on its head--conspire to bring Auerlio into the spotlight one more time. Two of Dibdin's best Zen encounters, Ratking and Dead Lagoon, are available in paperback.

From Library Journal

Assigned to Naples, policeman Aurelio Zen takes time to assist a local wealthy widow: he refuses to let her daughters marry their supposedly Mafia-connected fiances. Soon involved in a case of murder and mistaken for Mafia himself, Zen plays out Dibdin's (Dark Spector, LJ 12/95) version of a darkly comic opera.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Aurelio Zen (Dead Lagoon, 1995, etc.) has bailed out of the Rome Questura one jump ahead of a hardship posting, preempting his inevitable exile by requesting assignment to the port detachment at Naples, which seems like a sleepy enough place for him to bide his time till his fortunes improve. In order to do a favor for a new acquaintance, the widow Valeria Squillace, and to enliven his new posting, he arranges for her marriageable daughters, Orestina and Filomena, to be whisked off to London while he dangles a pair of eager prostitutes under the noses of their highly unsuitable suitors, Gesualdo Troise and Sabatino Capuozzo (whence the Mozartean title). Little does Zen realize how deeply implicated Gesualdo and Sabatino are in a rash of assassinations engineered by the Strade Pulite (Clean Streets), an enterprising group of terrorists disguised as garbage men. For that matter, he has no idea that the American ensign his men are holding in jail for assault--a man who's neither American nor an ensign--has uncomfortably close ties to the Strade Pulite as well. The background is sinister, and there's a substantial body count, but the tone is brightly farcical, even before Zen's stolen police identification becomes a deliciously absurd red herring. As in the best farces, practically everybody, including Zen, turns out to be in disguise--though the outrageous variety of masquerades ranges far beyond anything Mozart ever thought of. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review

Naples--ptui! Upheavals in Rome have sent Aurelio Zen scurrying south, in Cosi Fan Tutti to save his political neck. The crafty investigator in Michael Dibdin's ever-unpredictable police procedurals is not pleased with his lowly posting to a city that his Venetian mother considers "a bottomless pit of vice and degradation." But after reaching a détente with his fellow officers over the after-hours brothel they are operating in the station house, Zen warms to the anarchic charms of the city... Like the city that inspired it, this droll crime novel takes its frivolity very seriously. -- The New York Times Book Review, Marilyn Stasio

From the Inside Flap

s newest adventure is a delirious combination of the deadly serious and the seriously comic. Here is Mozart's opera turned on its head to test the faithfulness of men and the stamina of Michael Dibdin's unusually serious-minded police officer, as he becomes the unwitting stage manager for this masterful interpretation of murder, mayhem, and the mysteries of love.

About the Author

Michael Dibdin was born in England and raised in Northern Ireland. He attended Sussex University and the University of Alberta in Canada. He spent five years in Perugia, Italy, where he taught English at the local university. He went on to live in Oxford, England and Seattle, Washington. He was the author of eighteen novels, eleven of them in the popular Aurelio Zen series, including Ratking, which won the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger, and Cabal, which was awarded the French Grand Prix du Roman Policier. His work has been translated into eighteen languages. He died in 2007.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pantheon (April 29, 1997)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 247 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0679442723
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0679442721
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.02 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1 x 9.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,259,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #158,007 in Mysteries (Books)

Customer Reviews:
3.9 622 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Michael Dibdin

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5

622 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Will

The Mozart/Da Ponte connection makes this the best in a very good series

Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2016

Verified Purchase

I never thought I would read a mystery with the same plot, or sub-plot, as a Mozart opera, but here it is. The main plot involves graft and corruption in Naples. The sub-plot, which follows the opera Cosi Fan Tutti, is complete with a pair of lovers, a matchmaker, or mismatch maker, and inevitably, the two Albanians. It's a very good mystery, as good as any in this great series, but the added dash of Mozart/Da Ponte, makes it, tomy mind, the best book in the entire series.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

J.D. Holiday

I admit I had expectations about Michael Dibdin's books with Aurelio Zen as the main character.

Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2011

Verified Purchase

I had been introduced to Aurelio Zen in the PBS Masterpiece Mystery series and loved all the characters which led me to buy other books in the series. In Cosi Fan Tutti, I was disappointed.

In general this story was a good one. Zen is a police inspector who tries to enforce the law in Naples, Italy where crime is part of every level of the police department.

I love the Aurelio Zen character who basically solves crime by stumbling into its resolution.

In this story I feel there was too much use of `tell' not' show.' Much of what the reader learns is from a narrative by the author in many areas where a scene would have been so much more enjoyable.

Though Zen's double identity comes off well, many other characters also have dual identities that are unknown to the reader and fall short of what the reader already believes about them.

I found, on the other hand, the end was somewhat disjointed and ran on longer than it should have.

This all said, I do enjoy Dibdin's wit and style of writing. Readers can feel the atmosphere and want to keep turning the pages. I will surely read other books in the Aurelio Zen series.

~
Author J.D. Holiday

Helpful

Coffee House

Inspired by the opera

Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2022

This is not an ordinary straight forward mystery. Keep in mind that Mozart’s opera was first performed in 1790 and charmed audiences of that era. The novel uses constant mistaken identity; had I known, I would have kept notes about the characters. Some of the motivations are a bit weak. Read the novel for fun and don’t seek much substance.

Helpful

propertius

Tutti - Tutte, It Does Make a Difference Look It Up

Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2014

Verified Purchase

Michael Dibdin has managed to alter the plot of Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte to suit his rather eclectic interests and humor. This arresting piece of fluff is certainly a departure from the darker worlds that his hero Zen has inhabited in the past. Perhaps sunny Napoli had gotten to him or perhaps the muse has decided that it was time for a little levity and complexity.

Actually there are three plots here, concerning the murder of a an American sailor, Italian business men, and the fate of two sisters who are enamored of two brothers of dubious character. Zen comes to the recue and in a magnificent tour de force solves everyone's problems and makes an astounding discovery which saves him from a fate worse than he has experienced in the
past and no I won't spoil the fun for you.

If there are budding crime writers out there, or indeed any comic writers, they would do well to study this book. It is said that good writers borrow from other writers and great writers steal from other writers. Well Dibdin has chosen wisely. The reader may find it a bit onerous at times, but if he preservers and get to the last few chapters, he would be well rewarded. Truly a unique gem by this lapidary.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

fryjord

Like the series, did not like the book

Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2014

Verified Purchase

I first got into Aurelio Zen through the short-lived BBC miniseries. I decided to go back and read the books, and I loved Dead Lagoon and Cabal. They were both excellent mysteries, and Zen is a super great character.

I expected to enjoy Cosi Fan Tutti, but I thought the plot was a mess. There was too much going on, and a lot of it didn't go anywhere. I thought the subplot with the girls was a bit ridiculous (not an opera fan, so I guess I missed that), and the plot relied entirely too much on coincidences. I like books where multiple plot lines converge, but here it seemed way too forced. I seriously almost gave up on the book, which is something I almost never do.

There were a couple things I liked. Namely, I thought the book did work as an interesting perspective on 1990's Naples culture. But that wasn't enough to redeem the book for me. I will read another Aurelio Zen book, but if it's like this one, it'll be the last one I read.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Dom Miliano

An Italian Sit-com, complete with murder but no laugh track

Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2001

Verified Purchase

Dibdin takes a holiday of sorts and writes a comic opera set in Naples (today we could call this a sit-com). You have to really pay attention with Dibdin, but never more so than with this installment in the A. Zen sagas. We find our hero indolent in this southern port town stalked by love, murder, video games and incest. Dibdin takes us on a merry chase and somehow manages to bring it all together in the final (long) chapter. New comers to the Zen mysteries should not start with this book (try the Dead Lagoon) but long time fans will be caught up by the third page. You should read the chapter title translations to get the jokes as they are played out. All in all, a real hoot that captures the atmosphere of Naples today.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Mark

Found a new detective to follow!

Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2023

Verified Purchase

Really enjoyed Cosi Fan Tutti! Born & raised in an Italian town in NY State, I love everything Italian. This story takes place in Naples and where I am from they mainly haled from Sicily. No matter. Their all Italian! Looking forward to reading the rest of the Aurelio Zen Series. Mark N

Helpful

Live Oak

If you like opera . . .

Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2013

Verified Purchase

Michael Dibdin is a supremely accomplished writer: his descriptions of the settings made me FEEL as if I were watching an opera. The background atmosphere really was the opera Cosi Fan Tutti as he developed the characters, their motivations, actions and story line. Everything was crafted with a mastery of the English language. I've now collected the Zen entire series and will eventually reread them because they give me reading pleasure.

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Mary Josefina Cade

A school for lovers, but what do they learn?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 23, 2015

Verified Purchase

'Cosi Fan Tutti' is a wild fantasia of a book, an unexpected direction after the dark shivering mood of 'Dead Lagoon'. Michael Dibdin used his imagination to the full in this complicated story, introducing some fascinating characters, including a fortune teller and two of my favourite ever taxi drivers.

In search of a quiet life, Aurelio Zen has volunteered tor a posting away from Rome. Unfortunately he hasn't made the best choice of location. Strange events are taking place in Naples. The book opens with an unusual murder, involving refuse collectors. This signals upcoming trouble for anyone involved in law enforcement. Zen remains unaware of this, focusing his attention on a romantic conspiracy that mirrors events in the Mozart opera, 'Cosi Fan Tutti', but with intriguing twists.

So much happens! And it all ends in.... well, you'll need to read it, but there are a lot of surprises. Including the final paragraph, which is a prose poem, beautiful and philosophical. At times 'Cosi Fan Tutti' reminded me of a pantomime, full of jokes and mayhem, as if Michael Dibden, like his character Zen, was taking a break from the sharp reality of the previous books. All fascinating and I'm going straight on to reading 'A Long Finish.' the next in the series.

2 people found this helpful

Barbara Leigh Goldstein

Hysterical, loved this tale

Reviewed in Australia on October 12, 2015

Verified Purchase

Having seen the opera the story unfolded like the farce the opera is. The characters and events and the finale. Most enjoyable book

John Baldwin

A Good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 2, 2020

Verified Purchase

A good book as are all of his books and he knows how to write which m,akes a change from the normal dross

Jl Adcock

Zen 5: an odd entertainment set in Naples

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 22, 2023

Verified Purchase

The fifth book in the wonderful Zen series finds the disgraced policeman languishing in the heat and corruption of Naples. Happy to doss about and find other distractions, the peace doesn't last for long as Zen gets pulled into a stabbing, disappearance and kidnapping activities all linked to local political and organised criminal activities. Weaving in opera links from Cosi Fan Tutti may have seemed a good idea at the time, but it leads ultimately to a bit of a confused tale and a frankly bizarre, farce-like ending where Dibdin grapples with multiple plot strands involving characters who are not who they first appear to be. It's diverting and entertaining enough - and beautifully written, with occasional laugh aloud moments, but overall it feels like a bit of a misfit in the series, as if Dibdin wasn't sure to go down the comedy or serious route with this one. The books are far too subtle and detailed for the BBC to have done them credit with the few adaptations it tried. Such plots and character complexities can't be shoved into a one hour shows, which is presumably why Zen on TV didn't last very long.

Margaret

Not typical Zen mystery

Reviewed in Canada on September 8, 2013

Verified Purchase

I was really disappointed in this one, totally different from the ones based in Rome. It was trying very hard to be funny but it just didn't work well.

See more reviews

Follow the author

Image Unavailable

Cosi Fan Tutti: An Aurelio Zen Mystery Hardcover – April 29, 1997

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

From Library Journal

From Kirkus Reviews

Review

From the Inside Flap

About the Author

Product details

Videos

About the author

Michael Dibdin

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries