Aurelio Zen—cynical and tough, yet worn down from years of law enforcement—has just been given the worst assignment he could imagine. He has been sent to the heart of hostile territory: Sicily, the ancient, beautiful island where blood has been known to flow like wine, and the distinction between the police and the criminals is a fine one. Even worse, he has been sent to spy on the elite anti-Mafia squad.The only thing that makes the job...

Italian police commissioner Aurelio Zen is dispatched to investigate the kidnapping of a powerful industialist but finds that neither the local police nor the victim's family want the victim freed

Aurelio Zen is a formidable detective, but he's always put honesty before advancement. The arrival of clever and ambitious Tania to the team sees Zen's vigor reawakened. Driven by romance, re-energized, and armed with a new confidence, Zen's investigations take him from crowded Rome to the spectacular Italian countryside as he negotiates a complex string of murder cases.