May 19, 2005

Alibi
Joseph Kanon
Harry Holt & Co., 2005

Adam Miller joins his mother in Venice instead of returning to the United States when World War II has ended and he is discharged from the Army. His mother is an ex-pat living and loving the most beautiful city in the world. Venice was occupied by the Nazi's during the war but she escaped the fateful bombing that so many cities in Europe experienced. In fact, in some ways Venice seems to have avoided the war, or at least remained on the sidelines. Of course food and fuel was scarce but the "upper class" in the city continued to party. Adam's father had died and his mother was left a fairly wealthy widow, able to join the elite in Venice and imitate their expensive "villa" lifestyle. It was a nice change for Adam from his dismal war duties.

Adam came to Europe at the end of the fighting and had the unpleasant duty of investigating the Germans after the war to determine which ones were hiding from their crimes and should be prosecuted. He investigated a lot of the atrocities committed by the Nazis and came to believe that the guilty richly deserved harsh punishment. I don't think he really enjoyed his job in the Army but he certainly possessed the righteous feelings of a good man bringing justice to humanity. He will soon have to call his righteousness into question.

He is only in Venice with his mother a short time when he meets Claudia, a young, beautiful jewish lady. He is very attracted to her and she is attracted to him. A steamy romance soon takes place between the two. Before long Adam learns all about Claudia's shocking war experiences. Her father was given over to the Nazis by a long-time Doctor friend of his, Gianni Maglione, while he was helpless in a hospital. Claudia would not leave her father and almost joined him on the train to his extermination but caught the eye of a Nazi officer. The Nazi took possession of Claudia and forced her to become his sexual partner. At the end of the war her Nazi officer was stabbed to death while in bed and Claudia was accused of murdering him. But, she had a lot of sympathy for her situation and no one blamed her so she was not prosecuted.

Adam and Claudia meet up with Dr. Maglione at a society affair of one of Adam's mother's friends. Claudia recognizes him and throws a fit of anger scratching and kicking him and naming him an vile murderer. It's a great scene. Claudia has related things that Dr. Maglione is supposed to have done while collaborating with the Germans, but none of it has been proven. The only positive proof is Claudia's eye-witness of his giving up her father. It is strongly suspected that Dr. Maglione informed on a group of partisan fighters letting the Nazis know of a boy who delivered messages for them. Dr. Maglione gave the boy some medicine to take to the partisan house for a former patient of his. The Nazis followed the boy and surrounded the house with machine guns, then set fire to the house giving the residents the option of staying inside and burning to death or running out and being cut down by machine gun fire. All but one person were killed.

Rosa was the one person of the partisan group who had only been wounded and survived. She was badly shot up and left in the street for dead. Rosa was working in Adam's old Army unit helping to track down war criminals. Adam could not stand that Dr. Maglione was getting away with his crimes and not being investigated. So he asks one of his old Army buddies and also talks to Rosa. He also meets with Dr. Maglione socially and even goes to visit him at his hospital where he is given the royal tour.

Dr. Maglione and Adam's mother have become romantically involved and announce their intention to be married. Adam is determined not to let his mother marry such a despicable murderer so Eventually he confronts Dr. Maglione with his crimes claiming he has all the proof he needs to convict him or at least ruin him. A vicious fight ensues and Adam is losing, being strangled to the point of almost losing consciousness. Claudia can't stand to see her lover killed so she picks up a paving stone and clobbers the doctor over the head. She and Adam are shocked and initially think they have killed him but he begins to wake up. Adam holds his head underwater and really does kill him. Adam and Claudia wrap the body in a tarp and take it out into the bay where they dump it.

Even though the doctor was an evil horrible man they feel really guilty at having murdered him. Four or five days later the body floats up to the surface and is recovered by some commercial fisherman. Now the Venice Police are involved in a murder investigation. It so happens that the chief inspector is also a good friend of Adam's mother and many of her associates so there is a social interplay that enhances the guilt on the part of Adam and Claudia. The inspector catches a young man who had a good motive, being the son of one of the partisans who were killed by the Nazis as a result of Dr. Maglione's collaboration. But of course Adam knows that he is innocent so he begins to work with the inspector to lead him to look for someone else. Claudia doesn't like this because it may lead the inspector back to Adam and herself. And that would not be a good thing.

"Alibi" revolves around the horns of this moral dilemma. Whether to stay quiet and let an innocent man be convicted of a crime or to speak up and be convicted yourself. In the last few chapters Rosa is attempting to forcibly rescue the young man, as her duty to help a fellow partisan from the war. She uses her partisan friends and works out a good plan but it goes all wrong and Rosa and the young man end up at Adam's house where he and Claudia were just returning from attending an opera. The young man is wounded and the police are getting close so they must get away. To help or not to help? Another moral dilemma. Adam and Claudia struggle with their inner demons but finally decide to help Rosa and the young partisan escape. They end up in a boat chase running from the police but are finally caught.

I won't tell you how it all comes out. This is one that gets you rooting for Adam even though you know he was wrong and ought to be caught for his crime. I think you should get this one just to be able to read the ending. It is really good! I give "Alibi" a 7 of 10 on the Weaver meter.

Enjoy, Sid