The Palmari Vendetta, written by Louis Birner, is a mystery that you won't be able to pull away from until you finish the last page.

What do you do if you are a private detective and desperate for money because your bills are late? You would take about any job, as long as it is legal, that comes your way. Then you are approached by a very dangerous man, a man who it really is not a good idea to be acquainted with. Someone is trying to kill him. Would the world be a better place without this guy in it? Sure it would be. The world isn't gonna pay you $75,000 to let someone kill him and his family. But this guy will pay you $75,000 to find whoever is trying to kill him.

John Dunne is the detective. The man who approaches him is Corona, a good businessman and a very smart crook who has connections with the Italian mafia. Dunne needs the money, so he takes the job. Danger comes along with the job. The detective's life is threatened by those who want this guy dead.

In Little Italy, a Signora Palmari runs into the street and screams curses at Corona and his family. She yells that he is going to die by the force of vendetta. An old-style, Italian vendetta is not a good thing. A vendetta is declared when a family feels obliged to right a wrong that was done to another member of the family. The payment is always made in blood. Signora Palmari says a ghost is coming back with the power of the dead. She dies in a hit and run only days later.

Things become very twisted after Signora Palmari is killed. Did someone order her killed? And if someone did order her death, what did she know that caused someone to kill her? Was what she knew a danger for someone? John Dunne finds that he has taken on a bit more than he may be able to handle when he agreed to work for Frank Corona.

The story takes so many twists and turns that you are kept wondering what is going to happen. The characters are well-developed in this detective story, and some interesting history is given throughout the course of the novel.

Along with the action and danger, there is also some romance. Altogether, this was a good, satisfying read. My only complaint about the book is that it needs to be edited just a bit better. There were several obvious editing mistakes, but not enough to detract from the pleasure of reading.

I was sent a PDF copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. If you would like a copy of The Palmari Vendetta for yourself, I have provided an Amazon link below.