THE NAMESAKE, by Conor Fitzgerald

3/series with Commissario Alec Blume.American-born Italian murder squad cop Blume is not your average cop, he's unruly, untidy, single-minded, with incredibly poor people skills and an almost fatal (for Italy) sense of honesty. This time, however, Blume may have gone too far. His friendship with court magistrate Matteo Arconti leads him into a Ndraghetta-spawned plot with more layers than an Italian sfogliatelle  (pictured at right for your edification). In the toe of Italy's boot, this secretive mafia/camorra-type criminal organization is intimately involved with nearly every aspect of life, and has spread its tentacles north of the Alps as well. Click below for more..

The struggle for power within the organization has lef to a murder that is dumped at the magistrate's door, literally, and sends Blume - intent on revenge for the needless murder of an innocent - straight into a fray he has no understanding of. Unfortunately, the author has given us reams of information on the inner working of the Ndraghetta, so if you desire to know everything about this gang, you'll be reading the right book. The climax is, as always, excellent. Unlike Blume, it's subtle. The themes have overtones of Donna Leon's books but the style and "hero" are unique. It's a 4 and I look forward to being able to love this series enough for a 5. Blume, complicated and irascible, is one of my favorite new characters.
As of posting, can't find a web site for the author.
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