Bellini and the Sphinx

«Originally published in Portuguese in 1995, Bellotto's series opener introduces Remo Bellini, a private eye in the tradition of Spade and Marlowe but distinctively Brazilian…Bellotto's detective, less ironic and more earnest in his angst than his American counterparts, proves a compelling guide to the passionate world of São Paulo.»
--Kirkus Reviews
«Previously published in Brazilian rock musician Bellotto's native country, the São Paolo–set noir follows private detective Remo Bellini, who is investigating the disappearance of several women connected to the underworld and the related murder of a famed surgeon. Bellotto says he modeled his PI on Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe, and that the plot, which involves prostitutes and live-sex performers, evokes two classically intertwined themes: sex and death.»
--Publishers Weekly
«Private detective Remo Bellini plunges into the underworld of São Paulo in search of [a] missing dancer at the behest of her married lover, a renowned surgeon, who soon turns up dead.»
--Publishers Weekly, Included in Spring 2019 Announcements / Mysteries & Thrillers
«Tony Bellotto has written his novel in the best noir tradition. The book, in the style of Edgar Allan Poe, grips the reader from beginning to surprising end. Bellini and the Sphinx is a landmark in Western crime fiction.»
--Paulo Lins, author of City of God
«Bellotto is one hell of a writer. With an elegant and quick narrative voice, he reaches a pinnacle of excellence and originality that’s hard to find around here.»
--Reinaldo Moraes, author of Pornopopéia
«If Marlowe and Harry Bosch are Los Angeles, Matt Scudder is New York and Maigret, Paris, the detective Remo Bellini is São Paulo's most complete translation.»
--O Globo
Who is the missing dancer Ana Cíntia Lopes? Why did her coworkers, Camila and Dinéia, disappear? What does the voluptuous prostitute Fatima want? Who killed renowned surgeon Dr. Samuel Rafidjian? And what is the role of the hulking live-sex performer known as the Indian?
To confront the puzzle of several sphinxes, most of them female, private detective Remo Bellini plunges into the underworld of São Paulo. Little by little, the mysteries unravel in a surprising fashion, until the solving of the final enigma leaves Bellini perplexed, with a bitter taste in his mouth.
Translated from Brazilian Portuguese into English by Clifford E. Landers.