The Deliverance of Evil Hardcover - 2014

Excerpt

On the referee’s final whistle, tens of thousands were already in the streets. In a few minutes the traffic was jammed solid, people sitting on car roofs shouting with joy, waving flags, sounding air horns, and beating drums. Columns of red, white, and green smoke were everywhere; the night was painted with the national colors.

Amid this deafening racket, the telephone rang. While Angelo went to answer it, I had an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach. Alberto looked at me.

“If she hasn’t showed up, you’d better get over there right away.”

His tone was calm, but forceful, leaving no room for argument. It was the same tone my father used when I was little. You must learn to be more responsible, Michele.

“The cardinal says we have to get back there with the office keys.”

Angelo was less drunk now, and more worried.

It was no longer possible to go in the car with the uproar unleashed on the streets, but the complex was fairly close by, so we walked through the celebrating crowds, pushed and shoved by everyone and pushing and shoving everyone back in turn. It was a ridiculous situation: in the middle of the most unbridled joy, there we were like two drunken branches battered left and right in the wind.

It took us twenty minutes. I was in a state of near delirium about the glorious victory and the probable hook-up with Cristiana. The thought of Elisa only crept in every once in a while.
Cardinal Alessandrini and Elisa’s mother were waiting for us. She looked hopeful. We went straight to Building B. Elisa’s window was closed, though the flower still sat on the windowsill. Alessandrini was very tense; Angelo was white as a sheet. The office door was double-locked, as it was supposed to be. Angelo’s hand trembled from tension and alcohol as he opened it. I told everyone to stay out, but the cardinal objected.

Media reviews

“Rich with fascinating political history, filled with brilliant psychological insight, and a nonstop thriller . . . Bravo!” — Jeffery Deaver, The October List

“Utterly compelling” — Peter May, author of The Blackhouse

“Completely riveting . . . This is a take-no-prisoners view of a corrupt society and a guide on what it takes to survive and prosper. The detail of the police procedural is brilliantly managed and, as we get closer to the end, the thriller wattage increases with increasingly desperate police officers chasing their tails as bullets fly and a key person is kidnapped.” —David Marshall, San Francisco Book Review

“[Constantini] delivers compelling drama . . . the gripping strength of the novel lies in its passionate portrayal of a corrupt and criminal Italy, from seedy traffickers to the Vatican.” — Marcel Berlins, The Times

“Crime stories offer a fine vehicle for state-of-the-nation investigations. Italy is more of a challenge than well-ordered Scandinavia, but Roberto Costantini rises to it with ease . . . sprawling, violent and beset by a tortured morality, this is a compelling vision of modern Italy.” — Mail on Sunday

“Readers can immerse themselves in la dolce vita as Costantini's charismatic detective, Commissario Michele Balistreri, solves a complex mystery centered on the nature of evil. . . . Costantini tells an engrossing story of corruption and revenge, until near the end, when he kills off all the suspects, leaving little doubt as to the identity of the murderer.” — Anna Creer, The Sidney Morning Herald

“[A] tale of personal and political corruption, expediency and revenge engages . . . Costantini has created a fascinating protagonist, first seen as a thirtysomething womaniser with fascist sympathies, and then as an older, sadder and wiser man, bent on making amends for past mistakes.” — Laura Wilson, The Guardian

"[A] commanding debut thriller. . . . Costantini spins a politically charged, Machiavellian tale of fiendish complexity." —Publishers Weekly

“A promising debut . . . [a] complex crime novel that moves from savage murder to the political and social realities of contemporary Italy.” —Kirkus Reviews

“In his debut Costantini has proven himself an absolute master.” — Antonio D'Orrico, Corriere della Sera

“The Deliverance of Evil is one of the most unusual (and successful) recent thrillers.” — Antonio Gnoli, La Repubblica

“An intricate and ambitious thriller that tells of our country and our times, of the tensions, madness, and its heartfelt humanity.” — Elle (Italy)

“The Deliverance of Evil is a remarkably dark thriller which starts against the backdrop of Italy winning the World Cup in 1982 and concludes in 2006 just as they are about to be victorious again.  A vicious murderer who first struck twenty-four years earlier is waiting to kill again.  The author combines the plotting and pace of international crime with the poise and prowess of literary fiction, striating the narrative with topical political insight”—Ali Karim, Shotsmag

"Completely riveting . . . This is a take-no-prisoners view of a corrupt society and a guide on what it takes to survive and prosper. The detail of the police procedural is brilliantly managed and, as we get closer to the end, the thriller wattage increases with increasingly desperate police officers chasing their tails as bullets fly and a key person is kidnapped."—San Francisco Book Review

"The engaging Italian police procedural provides the audience with a fascinating psychological look at how ugly nuturing turns a human into an amoral evil."—Harriet Klausner, Midwest Book Review