“The accident” by Maria Cristina Buoso
Review
by Maria Teresa De Donato
After having entertained
us with Murder at the Magnolia Condominium and, above all, with Vernissage,
the latter set in the fascinating world of Art, and precisely of Painting, with
this new thriller entitled The accident Maria Cristina Buoso catapults
us – using once again one of her key characters, the Chief Inspector Ginevra
Lorenzi, now become Inspector Superior – in the intriguing world of the
Paranormal, that is, of everything that “goes beyond logic” (Buoso, 2022,
p. 167)
A car accident of which
he is the victim leads Alberto, one of the protagonists of this thriller, to
live a near-death experience and become an eyewitness to a crime. Near-death,
out-of-body experiences, contacts with the afterlife, and astral travel are,
therefore, the fundamental and equally intriguing aspects of this publication,
as is the analysis of the “worm that previously gnawed at his thoughts ...
[that] ... one was made even more insistent ... [and it had] triggered
a chain mechanism ...” (Buoso, 2022, pp. 149, 157)
Also, the focal point of
this thriller is not the identification of the culprit, an aspect that emerges
very soon, but rather the reconstruction of the facts and the consequent
collection of evidence by the investigators to be able to nail him and thus do
justice to his victims.
Although the American
colleagues, when the case requires it, use mediums and psychics in their
investigations, the Italian investigators have great difficulty believing that
the spiritual world is as accurate and valid as the material/physical one. Not
only that, but what is even more problematic, is the awareness on their part
that however tangible and irrefutable the evidence they receive may be, this
methodology used can never be mentioned, much less officially presented to the
authorities in charge.
The language, direct and
immediate, leads to a quick reading and, together with the regular alternation
of scenes and settings, creates suspense, thrilling the reader and forcing them
to get to the end of the story without interruption.
A fascinating and
enjoyable thriller to be read in one breath and which, for its language and
content, I recommend to an adult audience.
