I received a kindle copy of The Wolf: A Novel by Lorenzo Carcaterra from NetGalley for fair review. I gave it an almost five star.

It is a very fast read. It is also brutal. It is crime fiction at its best. The family is a veritable United Nations of Crime.

It's about Vincent Marelli, though most people called him The Wolf. He was a cautious man & protective of his family. He was also a proud man & pleased with the crime empire he had created.


"So, going against my nature & judgment I agreed to allow some air into my hermetically sealed world. For my kids & for Lisa."

Going against his nature was a mistake, for his wife & girls were killed. His son Jack had stayed behind to fly with him. Terrorists took over the flight & sixteen people were killed, including the terrorists. A Silicon Valley executive & his son were seated where Vincent & Jack would have been & they were killed. His wife's throat was slashed & she bled out. His oldest daughter was shot & his youngest daughter had her head smashed by a fire extinguisher wielded by a teenage terroriest with six young sisters of his own.

Anthony Zambelli had earned two dollars for every five dollars spent on luxury cruise ships. He expanded the restaurant holdings & "turned the enforced sale of twigs of parsley into a fifteen million dollar a year operation."

The brilliant Meyer Lansky was the first gangster labled as a certified genius. A Mexican gangster, Santos was at "his happiest when he was sowing seeds of torment."

One terrorist expressed that if the bombs didn't go off on a timely basis, "Otherwise, we all get to meet the virgins this morning."

'I hope not, Bruno said, 'I haven't had my coffee yet.'"

Angela, the Strega (the witch) was designated to help Vincent gain his revenge for his family. The Strega was a talented assassin..."she struck quickly & harshly....She operated under the centuries honored code of the Camorra--kill all in your path & leave behind nothing but blood & ruin." She was the most ruthless mob boss in Europe.

Vincent was glad she was on his side.

This page turning book had grief & blood on each page. There are no happy endings for gangsters.


To purchase link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345...