Category: Novels

A Commissario Beppe Stancato novel (7)

Commissario Beppe Stancato’s first task, after his appointment as Questore in the town of Terramonti, is to come to terms with the fact that he is no longer officially a policeman, but a civil servant – albeit a high-ranking one. He rejects this concept from the outset – earning himself the nickname of Commissario Number Two. His first act as a Questore had been to dismiss a couple of corrupt cops – thereby gaining the unreserved respect of his new team.

The stealing of a priceless statue from the town’s Cathedral throws Beppe into the unchartered waters of Art Theft. His first shock, as he and a team of police officers enter the cathedral to investigate the crime, is the discovery of one of the officers whom he had suspended from duty lying seriously wounded on the altar steps.

This discovery is only the beginning of a complex international investigation, in which Beppe is obliged to adopt a radically new approach to his notion of leadership. A hard lesson to learn – but one which ultimately saves the life of his wife and children.

An intriguing new case for our now promoted ‘Commissario’ during which Beppe, his team of devoted police officers and his family rub shoulders with a host of fascinating new characters – both good and evil, comical and menacing. A gripping and entertaining story from beginning to end. It’s the humour in this author’s novels which make them so readable.

Riccardo Quarto – March 2026

A Commissario Beppe Stancato novel (6)

Commissario Beppe Stancato is in line for promotion to the senior post of Questore in the town of Terramonti. The position would triple his salary, but Beppe sets out to sabotage his own interview, considering the new post to be a mere desk job.
On his return to Pescara, he becomes involved in the investigation of a gruesome murder linked to a mafia boss in Calabria. His principal witness is a blind woman who becomes a target of the mafia herself.
Beppe’s investigation as to which mafia clan is behind the killing leads him into a trap when he finds himself held prisoner in a remote Calabrian farmhouse. When all hope seems to have faded, help comes from an unexpected person – who has an unusual favour to ask. Should he comply with the request, which runs the risk of altering the course of his life for ever?

A Commissario Beppe Stancato novel (5)

The discovery of a man’s body hanging from an ancient olive tree outside the little town of Picciano, in Abruzzo, is dismissed by the local police as a simple case of suicide, not worth investigating. An anonymous caller from Picciano to the Questura in Pescara hints at a far more sinister explanation. Beppe and two of his colleagues take one look at this solitary olive tree outside the town and come to the conclusion that a murder has been committed. A post-mortem confirms a mafia-style killing.
It does not take long for the reticence of the town-dwellers to crack – revealing an illegal take-over by the Calabrian mafia – controlling the production and bottling of the town’s precious olive oil.
Beppe and his team are up against ‘The Smiling Man’ – a ruthless member of a clan which hails from Beppe’s home town in Calabria. His own parents and his sister’s family living in Catanzaro are at risk of reprisals from the mob. A host of diverse characters become involved in the investigation. But the final breakthrough comes from an unexpected and very disturbing source.

A Commissario Beppe Stancato novel (4)

A brother and his little sister are transferred from a mountain hospital one night to the main hospital in Pescara. They are suffering from exposure to dumped toxic waste. The devoted medical staff are unable to save Ginevra’s life.
Beppe Stancato becomes involved in the events surrounding the tragic death of the seven-year-old girl. He has two very diverse challenges to face – identifying and bringing to justice the mafia clan responsible for illegally dumping toxic waste in the Abruzzo countryside and the arrival of a new Chief of Police in Pescara. The new Questore turns out to be a young and forceful woman.
The paths which Beppe has to tread will challenge not only his renowned investigative skills but also his ability to adjust to a new style of leadership. Both Beppe and the new Questore share one overriding desire – to avenge the heart-breaking loss of an innocent young life, whatever unusual steps need to be taken. Help comes via a very unexpected source, which neither Beppe nor his new boss could ever have foreseen.

Luca Fontana is an investigative journalist from Milan. He has written a series of books exploring the intrusion of the Calabrian Mafia into every walk of public life throughout the Italian peninsula. Fearing for his personal safety – and that of his wife and two young children – he decides instead to write a report on the town of Collemaga – a small town set high up in the mountains of Abruzzo, which enjoys the dubious reputation of being “the most cursed town” in Italy. He encounters a variety of characters who appear reluctant to let him into the secrets of this township – most notably the mayor himself. He quickly has to invent a pretext to cover the real reason for his presence in this town. He is pursued wherever he goes by a sleazy individual called Luigi Bonifaccio who, Luca learns, is supposedly the son of the powerful fattucchiera – the sorceress – of the town.A foolhardy act of charity involving a young Moroccan women. trapped in the town by Luigi Bonifaccio, triggers events which have immediate consequences for Luca’s own safety. He rapidly comes to terms with the fact that his “harmless” investigation into this mountain community poses a far greater threat to his life than any of his previous exploits.

In the town of L’Aquila, an anxious wife reports that her husband, Professor Donato Pisano, has vanished without a trace. No commonplace event – since he happens to be the chief scientist at the Montenero physics laboratory high up in the Gran Sasso mountain range.Neutrinos which can travel faster than the speed of light? Impossible! But could this revolutionary claim by the Professor be the key to his inexplicable disappearance? Beppe Stancato is called upon to investigate. He encounters a web of deceit and half-truths – from the very people who should be anxious to help him in his inquiry. Who are the two shadowy visitors from America whose appearance on the scene coincides with the professor’s disappearance? What role does the elusive Giada Costa play in the mystery surrounding the missing physicist? Only Beppe’s dogged determination to get to the truth keeps him on track. The breakthrough comes from an unexpected source – in the form of a smell. From that moment on, the pace quickens as time runs out before Professor Donato Pisano’s fate is sealed.

A second case for Commissario Stancato.Salvatore Carlettino is doomed to suffer a painful death from the moment he sets foot inside Damiano’s house. He is seeking expert advice as to the edibility of rare mushrooms he has picked in the forest. Little does Salvatore suspect that Damiano has a sinister motive for exacting revenge on his unsuspecting visitor.A seemingly simple case of death by mushroom poisoning turns into a puzzling murder investigation. Beppe finds himself involved in a series of events which leave him convinced that he must delve into Salvatore’s family history if he is ever to discover the truth. His overwhelming desire to solve the mystery of Salvatore’s death leads him unwittingly into peril when he goes to interrogate his chief suspect.Set around the medieval hilltop towns of Abruzzo, the novel explores the invisible and often inexplicable forces of good and evil which govern our mortal lives.

Inspector Beppe Stancato, driven from his native Calabria by threats from his local mafia, finds himself appointed commissario in the town of Pescara, in Abruzzo, just prior to the earthquake which struck the mountain capital city of L’Aquila in 2009. The unexpected discovery of a twenty-two year old girl, lying drugged and unconscious, sparks off a complex investigation involving a seismologist accused of manslaughter and a fugitive mafia boss suspected of involvement in illegal building contracts. The girl is soon nicknamed ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ by the investigating team – after the Gran Sasso mountain range, uncannily reminiscent of the prone figure of a sleeping woman. Beppe is faced with the task of saving the girl whilst outwitting the crooked seismologist and the wily Mafioso. His own personal life is anything but straightforward. Will he be able to live up to the expectations of his new team of police officers whilst dealing with the shadows of his own past life? The intriguing plot has many twists and turns leading to a tense climax. The story is laced with humour and exalts the spectacular scenery and cuisine of this central region of Italy.

A tale of intrigue and treachery in the secretive world of scientific research. Leonardo Molinari is professor of the Nanotechnology department at the University of Legano in the deep south of Italy. He and his close knit research team are routinely involved in creating nano-sized structures which can be magically transformed into any form they wish. To Leonardo, the nature of their research is the work of angels. But to his deep concern, he discovers that their tiny creations are being systematically spirited away by a mole in their midst. Which of his trusted team members could the Judas possibly be? He covertly employs Elena Camisso, a highly intelligent private investigator, to discover who the traitor is within the group. Elena finds herself in a world which she can barely comprehend. But, beneath the surface, she soon unearths the old demons of greed, sex and corruption surreptitiously at work.

A STORY OF MYSTERY, SUSPENSE AND RECONCILIATION AS ONE MAN IS FORCED TO FACE UP TO THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS PAST ACTIONS.After a distinguished career as a high court judge in the beautiful, baroque city of Lecce, in southern Italy, Amadeo Grassi is coming to terms with his retirement. Out of the blue, his life is overturned in an instant by the simple act of opening the local newspaper. An unknown person sets about destroying the routine tranquillity of his life. The judge’s mounting paranoia leads him to suspect even those closest to him. He is assailed by disturbing, anonymous e-mails and text messages. Convinced that he will not solve the mystery on his own, Judge Grassi employs a private investigator who, aided by his beautiful and intelligent female assistant, delves deep into the judge’s not so innocent past life. Whilst they are still investigating, events take an alarming turn.