The Wings of the Sphinx
OCLC 427757200 | | |
| Preceded by | August Heat | |
|---|---|---|
| Followed by | The Track of Sand | |
The Wings of the Sphinx (orig. Italian Le ali della sfinge) is a 2006 novel by Andrea Camilleri, translated into English in 2009 by Stephen Sartarelli. It is the eleventh novel in the internationally popular Inspector Montalbano series.
Summary
Whatever happened to those early mornings when, upon awakening, for no reason, he would feel a sort of current of pure happiness running through him?
— Andrea Camilleri, op. cit., p. 1
It's a dark period that Montalbano is going through, especially for his stormy relationship with partner Livia, whom he has recently betrayed with another woman (in the previous episode). Moreover, his police work adds to the personal problems, with administrative frustrations (the precinct is running out of gasoline for their police cars, and there are no new supplies) and operational hindrances from his superiors.
So the usual phone call from Catarella is more than welcome, even though it inevitably comes when the inspector is in the shower. A girl's body has been found in a dump (on a beach in the TV episode), left there as waste to get rid of. Only one distinguishing sign: a sphinx butterfly tattooed on the shoulder. Coroner Pasquano is convinced the actual murder has taken place elsewhere, the day before.
Montalbano discovers that the girl, who emigrated to