The bastards of Pizzofalcone

*Starred Review* Taciturn Sicilian police detective Giuseppe Lojacono (The Crocodile, 2013) isn't yet comfortable in Naples, but he's no longer miserable. He has reestablished his relationship with his formerly estranged teenage daughter, Marinella. He also has a new assignment, courtesy of detectives in Pizzofalcone precinct who only told superiors about half of the drugs they intercepted. The rest they began to sell. Historic Pizzofalcone is the wealthiest area in Naples, and police brass decided to re-staff rather than shutter the precinct and commisarios in other precincts were only too happy to offload their deadwood, or, in Lojacono's case, a detective who makes his superior uncomfortable. Pizzofalcone's new commisario is Gigi Palma, a rising police star, and he assumes the calculated risk of melding the misfits into an effective team. Soon enough, Lojacono and his partner, Aragona, who appears to have carefully studied the mannerisms of American film and TV cops, are investigating the brutal murder of a woman from a fabulously wealthy Naples family who is famous for her vast collection of snow globes. As in The Crocodile, de Giovanni again offers a cast of engaging and complex human beings, and his digressions from crime into their minds and hearts make this one utterly compelling.--Gaughan, Thomas Copyright 2016 Booklist

In de Giovanni's engrossing sequel to 2013's The Crocodile, a band of miscreant detectives with blemishes on their records are transferred from various Naples precincts to the city's Pizzofalcone region, to replace four corrupt cops. Lt. Giuseppe Lojacono-one of the "Bastards of Pizzofalcone," as the locals come to call the newcomers-was falsely accused of passing information to the Mafia because colleagues were jealous of the notoriety he achieved for solving the murder of four children in The Crocodile. When Cecilia De Santis, a philanthropist and a nursery school volunteer, is found bludgeoned to death in her apartment with a snow globe from her collection, the rogue detectives led by Lojacono have a chance to redeem the reputation of themselves and the precinct. Despite the lack of clues at the crime scene, Lojacono develops a number of possible suspects. Colorful, fully drawn characters and several intriguing subplots help propel the plot to a satisfying resolution. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.