The Dogs of Rome (Commissario Alec Blue Series #1)

( 22 )
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up in Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Paperback
$15.46
BN.com price
$16.00 List Price (Save 3%)
Marketplace (New and Used)
from
$1.02
$16.00 List Price (Save 94%)
Usually ships in 1-2 business days
All (25)  
Used (5)  
New (20)  
Close
Sort by
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 25 (3 pages)
$1.02
(Save 94%)
GICW Books
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(724)

Condition:

New — never opened or used in original packaging.

Like New — packaging may have been opened. A "Like New" item is suitable to give as a gift.

Very Good — may have minor signs of wear on packaging but item works perfectly and has no damage.

Good — item is in good condition but packaging may have signs of shelf wear/aging or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Acceptable — item is in working order but may show signs of wear such as scratches or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Used — An item that has been opened and may show signs of wear. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Refurbished — A used item that has been renewed or updated and verified to be in proper working condition. Not necessarily completed by the original manufacturer.

Good
Sound copy, mild reading wear. May have scuffs . May have some notes, highlighting or underlining. Purchasing this item helps us provide vocational opportunities to people with ... barriers to employment. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Hillsboro, OR

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$2.43
(Save 85%)
OwlsBooks-TRM
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(22569)

Condition: Good
Giving great service since 2004: Buy from the Best! 4,000,000 items shipped to delighted customers. We have 1,000,000 unique items ready to ship! Find your Great Buy today!

Ships from: Lakewood, WA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$4.46
(Save 72%)
Extremely_Reliable
Seller since 2007

Feedback rating:

(3234)

Condition: Good
Buy with confidence. Excellent Customer Service & Return policy.

Ships from: Richmond, TX

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$7.98
(Save 50%)
Mary Phipps FL
Seller since 2007

Feedback rating:

(754)

Condition: New
2011-04-26 Paperback New NEW-IT IS BRAND NEW-and it is without a remainder mark.

Ships from: Rockford, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$7.99
(Save 50%)
Brooks4Books
Seller since 2010

Feedback rating:

(120)

Condition: New
2011 Paperback New We pack all of our items with a special protective bubble mailer. Your item deserves better than just a cheap plastic bag! YOU WILL GET YOUR ITEM FAST! ! ! ! ... WE SHIP FIRST CLASS! ! ! ! Read more Show Less

Ships from: Cocoa, FL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$8.00
(Save 50%)
Strand Bookstore
Seller since 2006

Feedback rating:

(4782)

Condition: Very Good

Ships from: New York, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$8.63
(Save 46%)
INTERNATIONAL BOOK SOURCE NC
Seller since 2007

Feedback rating:

(458)

Condition: New
2011-04-26 Paperback New Paperback. You are buying a Book in NEW condition with very light shelf wear.

Ships from: Wilmington, NC

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$8.63
(Save 46%)
Great Book Deals
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(12294)

Condition: New
Absolutely Brand New & In Stock. 100% 30-Day Money Back. Direct from our warehouse. Over 5+ Million Customers served. In business since 1997. Happy Customers is Our #1 Goal. ... Customer Service toll free Support Monday-Friday EST Hrs. 4 to 14 business day Delivery Time by US Post Office. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Oldsmar, FL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$8.94
(Save 44%)
QualityBooks4U
Seller since 2011

Feedback rating:

(21)

Condition: New
Immediate processing and shipping with delivery confirmation 6 days weekly. New item.

Ships from: West Palm Beach, FL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$9.16
(Save 43%)
PaperbackshopUS
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(4803)

Condition: New
Shipped from US in 4 to 14 business days. Established seller since 2000

Ships from: Aurora, IL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 25 (3 pages)
Close
Sort by
NOOK Book (eBook)
$7.64
BN.com price
$8.99 List Price (Save 15%)

Available on NOOK devices and apps

  • Nook Devices
  • NOOK
  • NOOK Color
  • NOOK Tablet
  • Tablet/Phone
  • NOOK for iPad
  • NOOK for iPhone
  • NOOK for Android
  • NOOK for Android (Tablet)
  • NOOK Kids for iPad
  • PC/Mac
  • NOOK Study
  • NOOK for PC
  • NOOK for Mac

Want a NOOK? Explore Now

More About This Book

Overview

In this accomplished and riveting thriller, police inspector Alec Blume battles organized crime, political pressure, and his own demons as he investigates the death of Arturo Clemente. Blume, a clever American expatriate with a disposition against authority, soon realizes that he is being watched from on high. Forced to negotiate with powerful, suspicious people on all sides of the law, Blume must rely on instinct, drive, and luck to find the killer.

The Dogs of Rome is both a thrilling detective story and a vision of underground Rome. Blume is a perfect hero for this story: intelligent but flawed, cynical but unafraid. He is a trustworthy and compelling protagonist for this first installment in a gritty and promising series.

Conor Fitzgerald is the author of the forthcoming The Fatal Touch , also featuring Commissario Blume. He has lived in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Italy. He has produced a current affairs journal for foreign embassies based in Rome, and founded a successful translation company.

He is married with two children and lives in Rome.

Praise for The Dogs of Rome :

"Commissario Blume is the most appealing detective to come along in years. His genius is that he isn't a hero or an antihero, but the kind of living, breathing human being that you only find in the very best novels, detective or otherwise. The Dogs of Rome is an irresistible and wholly original piece of crime fiction."Joseph Weisberg, author of An Ordinary Spy and 10th Grade

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly
Fitzgerald’s impressively plotted debut, the first in a projected contemporary crime series, introduces police chief commissioner Alec Blume, an American expatriate who’s been living in Rome for the last 22 years. Since losing both his parents—art historians who were shot and killed during a bank robbery on Via Cristoforo Colombo—as a teenager, Blume has been a loner of sorts, the proverbial outsider. When someone brutally murders Arturo Clemente, a prominent politician’s husband and an animal rights activist who recently exposed a dog-fighting ring, in Clemente’s apartment, the flawed but endearing Blume uses his unique perspective to negotiate his way through a labyrinthine minefield that includes crooked cops, unscrupulous politicians, and an ancient city whose very history is steeped in the corruption associated with organized crime. Those who like gritty crime thrillers with a European flair will be well rewarded. (Mar.)
Kirkus Reviews
Expat detective tracks a murderer through the fetid streets of Rome. Fitzgerald's debut brings little new to its lackluster portrayal of an incongruous lawman. The book opens with the graphic murder of Arturo Clemente, an animal-rights activist who is killed in his apartment just after the departure of his lover, the daughter of a local crime boss. To further complicate matters, Arturo's widow is a member of parliament related to several other powerful politicians. It's a potboiling stew for the investigating detective, whose credibility as a character is attenuated by his byzantine back story. Chief Commissioner Alec Blume is from Seattle, which would be unusual for any Italian police officer, let along one of his rank. Flashbacks reveal that Blume moved to Rome with his parents at 15; they were shot during a bank robbery when he was 17, prompting the unexpected fall through the bureaucratic cracks that allowed him to become a cop. Although the short-tempered detective has spent more of his life in Italy than America, he never fits into the vibe of Rome: "His accent, acquired in the schoolyard, was perfect Roman, but a hint of something else lay behind it, a watchfulness, a lack of spontaneity or a slight reticence in his movements. Whatever it was, he put people on their guard." All the ingredients are there, but the story plods along through an investigation tedious enough to try the patience of even the most earnest procedural enthusiasts. The few high points include some tense encounters with the local crime ring and a burgeoning romance with a prototypically sexy FBI liaison to the American embassy. But if this continues as a series, Blume will need more than his unlikely vocationand his grim disposition to win readers' affections. A dour procedural that squanders its fertile setting.

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781608190546
  • Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
  • Publication date: 4/26/2011
  • Pages: 400
  • Sales rank: 265,188
  • Product dimensions: 5.38 (w) x 8.34 (h) x 1.10 (d)

Meet the Author

Conor Fitzgerald has lived in Ireland, the UK, the United States and Italy. He has worked as an arts editor, produced a current affairs journal for foreign embassies based in Rome, and founded a successful translation company. He is married with two children and still lives in Rome.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 3.5
( 22 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(10)

4 Star

(3)

3 Star

(5)

2 Star

(1)

1 Star

(3)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identiy on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

We're sorry, but penname is already taken.

Please select one of the following:
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

penname is available!

By visiting the BN.com website or marking a purchase on BN.com, a User is deemed to have accepted the Terms of Use.

Continue Anonymously

Welcome, penname

You have successfully created your Pen Name. Start enjoying the benefits of the BN.com Community today.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 23 Customer Reviews

  • Posted June 1, 2011

    more from this reviewer

    Compelling international detective series #1.

    And to think I almost didn't download this excellent detective series debut. As a B&N free download with no fanfare, I assumed it would probably be a dud. Wrong.

    In the heart of Rome, Commissario Alec Blume investigates the murder of a vegetarian animal crusader in the midst of traditional and taken for granted political and police corruption. The dead man's wife appears to show more concern for her career as a highly placed politician than for the apprehension of the culprit or culprits. His mistress, however, whose father wields unparalleled power among the criminal elements of the city, wants the perpetrators punished as quickly and painfully as possible, and what she wants her father wills while he most cleverly maneuvers to avoid implicating his daughter, himself, or anyone else he has cause to protect.

    The story moves quickly yet it takes the time needed for character and locale development. The author paints an unexpectedly gritty picture of the Eternal City, bringing it down to earth for those who have not traveled there.

    There are two mysteries here: 1) that related in the book; 2) why the publisher allowed it to be given away. Thank you, publisher Bloomsbury USA, and thank you, B&N.

    Having read The Dogs of Rome, go to author Conor Fitzgerald to buy Book #2. You won't regret it. Alec Blume, in spite of himself, grows on you, and so does this darker Rome.

    For the record, neither Bloomsbury nor B&N solicited this review in any way. I'm just a NOOK owner who happened upon a treasure and wants to to share it.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted May 8, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    Meet Commissario Alec Blume - a great start to a new detective series set in present day Rome!

    I am partial to detective mysteries and especially enjoy those set in exotic locations or historic periods. So, I jumped at the chance to review the first novel in Colin Fitzgerald's Commissario Alec Blume series, The Dogs of War.Set in present day Rome, The Dogs of Rome combines a familiarity with Rome, Roman culture, and Italian politics with a strong and complex detective mystery. Alec Blume is a flawed but engaging character - and a fine detective. When faced with an unusual murder scene, he systematically searches for the truth - wading through corrupted evidence, ignoring pointed directives from his superiors and pressure from both the political elite and powerful players in the criminal world.Alec Blume isn't just driven by a desire to learn the truth - he is sufficiently worldly and the reader realizes that there is more to him than that. But for his cynicism, Blume has a strong appreciation of the innocent and the good, and an appeal to his better self leads him to promise to find the truth no matter where it leads. It leads the reader to on a fascinating chase with unexpected twists and a satisfying conclusion. I thoroughly enjoyed The Dogs of Rome by Conor Fitzgerald and am looking forward to reading more adventures of Commissario Alec Blume.

    ISBN-10: 1608190153 - Hardcover
    Publisher: Bloomsbury USA; First Edition edition (March 2, 2010), 400 pages.
    Review copy provided by the publisher and through LibraryThing Early Reviewer program.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted October 26, 2011

    Too long, too many characters, good insight into Italian bureaucracy

    This book is twice as long as it should be. The plot meanders and meanders and introduces umpteen different characters. The protagonist knows he is surrounded by incompetents but he doesn't do much about it. It does provide good insight into Italian bureaucracy. Maybe I have been spoiled by reading everything Donna Leon ever wrote.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 23, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 5, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 17, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 24, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 15, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 15, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted September 11, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 31, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 5, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 17, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 10, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 3, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 18, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 20, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 2, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 27, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 23 Customer Reviews
If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
Why is this product inappropriate?
Comments (optional)
500 character limit