Superintendent Teresa Battaglia, a criminal detective on the Italian police force, is nearing retirement primarily due to a progressive form of Alzheimer’s. But she never uses her health as an excuse not to do her job.

In this third installment of Ilaria Tuti’s series, masterfully translated by Ekin Oklap, Teresa is called upon to make contact with an infamous serial killer she put away decades ago. She has paid regular visits to Giacomo Mainardi throughout his imprisonment, which she has never disclosed to her teammates. She has developed a tenuous relationship with Mainardi as he may have some information that the police need to act upon.

"The case grows more and more intense, and the revelations as the team digs deeper...vault DAUGHTER OF ASHES well above your typical crime/mystery novel. The result is a first-rate suspenseful read that never disappoints."

DAUGHTER OF ASHES jumps between the present day and 27 years earlier when Teresa first apprehended Mainardi. Even back then, we see that Teresa had issues with chronic pain and treated it with acupuncture, among other remedies. She also had an abusive spouse, which did not do much for her mental well-being either.

Now, Teresa and her much younger colleague, Massimo Marini, are going to the maximum security prison in which Mainardi is housed. Mainardi will only speak with Teresa, and he claims that an individual inside the prison --- possibly on the orders of someone from the outside --- is trying to kill him. Further discussion reveals another, much bigger issue involving the discovery of the bones of one of his many victims. They were found at an ancient Christian church ground and turned into pieces of a mosaic. Subsequent chapters are quite reminiscent of Dan Brown’s writing, showing the history of this location and some of the tragedies that occurred there.

Tuti is great at continuing to throw in additional plot elements to fill the action and keep readers on guard. One of these involves a colleague of Teresa’s who may not be what she claims to be. The creep factor hits especially hard when the mosaic contains not only bones but also one of Teresa’s teeth.

The case grows more and more intense, and the revelations as the team digs deeper --- in addition to readers witnessing Teresa’s further deterioration --- vault DAUGHTER OF ASHES well above your typical crime/mystery novel. The result is a first-rate suspenseful read that never disappoints.