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Originally published in Italy in 2017, and translated by Will Schutt, this new installment of the “Alligator” series begins when ex-con and private eye Marco Buratti, aka “the Alligator,” falls into a trap laid by his nemesis. He and his partners, Max the Memory and Beniamino...

— Crime Reads, Feb 17 2020

“The complexity of the plot recalls Chandler, and the tough-guy intelligence of Marco, the narrator, has the hard-boiled think-on-your-feet smarts of the best pulp fiction… Exhilarating.”

— The Times Crime Club, Feb 17 2020

“The real problem is, in the age of globalisation, prostitution is an unstoppable phenomenon: human beings worth something on the sex market, especially women and children, are transformed into goods for sale or rent. Exploited until they die…” This is a crime novel...

— NB Magazine, Feb 14 2020

Marco Buratti, known as the Alligator, and his partners are blackmailed by a high government official and framed in the latest of the Alligator series.

— The New York Times, Jan 8 2020

“Northeast Italy is a complicated territory, split between mountains and plains. And swamps that aren’t marked on the maps. Swamps everywhere. Full of dangerous, lethal snakes. Places where an alligator could wallow, rake the muck, and make some trouble.” –Commentary...

— SEEING THE WORLD THROUGH BOOKS, Aug 28 2016

For All the Gold in the World begins, more or less, with some professional thieves approaching Marco 'the Alligator' Buratti, who dabbles -- unlicensed -- in criminal investigation: "I specialize in somewhat unusual investigations", as he explains. A confederate of theirs, Gastone...

— Complete Review, Jul 7 2016

A robbery gone wrong ends in murder in northwest Italy. A police investigation turns up nothing, and two years later Marco Buratti, "The Alligator," is asked to look into the robbery by a twelve-year-old boy whose father was a victim of the crime. Crime novelist Massimo Carlotto...

— i-Italy, May 31 2016

“I think the devil doesn't exist, but man has created him, he has created him in his own image and likeness.” - Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov Massimo Carlotto is a master of the Italian Noir, and his characters occupy a special place in the pantheon...

— Echoes of an Empty Mind, Jan 11 2016

AT THE END OF A DULL DAY by Massimo Carlotto is the kind of tough, take-no-prisoners crime novel that had me falling in love with the genre back when I was a kid reading Spillane, Cain, and Hammett. The anti-hero of this novel, Giorgio Pellegrini, is not a nice man, to put it...

— Ed Gorman's Blog, Nov 30 2015

In Gang of Lovers Massimo Carlotto brings 'the Alligator', Marco Buratti, most recently seen in Bandit Love, out of retirement (as an unlicensed private investigator) -- and pits him against the nasty piece of work that is Giorgio Pellegrini, whose story is familiar from The...

— The Complete Review, Aug 6 2015

Marco “The Alligator” Buratti, Italian private eye and the beloved creation of Italian author Massimo Carlotto, has quite a bit in common with Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the stoic lead special agent on CBS’ hit TV show NCIS: both men are fiercely loyal, they strictly adhere to...

— The Cedar Rapids Gazette, Aug 1 2015

The Colombian Mule, by Massimo Carlotto (Europa Editions) The plot: Arias Cuevas is caught by the police trying to carry a shipment of cocaine into Italy. Meanwhile, Cuevas' Colombian employer, la Tía, is facing blowback from the Alligator, an ex-con turned investigator...

— Esquire, Jul 14 2015

A Maxim Jakubowski selected title. Carlotto is one of Italian crime fiction's best exponent of noir and the dark heart of things. No surprise as he once spent time in jail as a result of a false conviction after a lengthy period on the run. In his new novel, he unites in...

— Lovereading.co.uk, Jul 1 2015

Padua, Italy. An unremarkable man disappears without a trace. One woman knows there is more to his disappearance than another bored suburban husband running out on his family, but fears that coming forward will compromise her position. Stricken by guilt, she finally confides...

— Jun 29 2015

April was a quiet reading month but May promises to be much busier with Crimefest taking place in two weeks time. It’s always a great opportunity to catch up with writers, reviewers, bloggers and readers and there will be plenty of updates on this blog. My book of the...

— May 4 2014

Massimo Carlotto – At the End of a Dull Day April 15, 2014 This is the second book in a month that I’ve read where the violence has made me wince. But, like in Pierre LeMaitre’s Irene, the level of violence in At the End of a Dull Day...

— Apr 15 2014

Unlicensed private eye Marco Buratti, the Alligator (Bandit Love, 2010, etc.), tracks a missing wife down a rabbit hole even darker and dirtier than his usual haunts. It’s hardly a surprise that Varese sales representative Mariano Giraldi’s wife has vanished. Ever since...

— Jan 21 2014

Giorgio Pellegrini has left his life of terrorism and crime behind. Or as far behind as is possible in thoroughly corrupt, amoral modern day Venice. For eleven years, Giorgio has been the owner of the restaurant La Nena, the trendy place for politicians and businessmen to meet...

— Dec 31 2013

Giorgio Pellegrino (the protagonist of The Goodbye Kiss) is an honest man now—or at least as honest as someone with his background can be. For 11 years, he has turned his back on his old career as a terrorist and criminal, but now his “honest” life unravels. Giorgio isn’t...

— Nov 4 2013