Set in Florence in the 1960s, this is the third in the Inspector Bordelli series of atmospheric Italian crime.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL DAGGER 2013.

Florence, 1965. A man is found murdered, a pair of scissors stuck through his throat. Only one thing is known about him - he was a loan shark, who ruined and blackmailed the vulnerable men and women who would come to him for help.

Inspector Bordelli prepares to launch a murder investigation. But the case will be a tough one for him, arousing mixed emotions: the desire for justice conflicting with a deep hostility for the victim. And he is missing his young police sidekick, Piras, who is convalescing at his parents' home in Sardinia.

But Piras hasn't been recuperating for long before he too has a mysterious death to deal with . . .

'Vichi's stellar first in a new mystery series introduces endearingly melancholic Inspector Bordelli . . . [and] delivers a plausible solution worthy of a golden age crime novel. Readers will look forward to seeing more of this flawed hero.'