Children of the Savage City — Elizabeth Heider

Criminal networks rule Naples, but detective Nikki Serafino is doing everything she can to set things right. But can her work ever exstinguish the long shadow of her family's past?

Nikki Serafino leads a disciplined life: She works as a liaison between Italian police and the U.S. military, she takes care of her aging family, and she runs a women's self-defense clinic. The moments when Nikki has allowed her life to deviate from this structure -- usually for love -- have always led to chaos. So she's determined to keep her head in the game. But when she is thrust into the investigation of a murdered au pair, her family's ties to organized crime in Naples threaten to upend the high ground Nikki has clawed her way to. Along with her partner Valerio, Nikki sets out to solve the case. But can she and Valerio stay clean in a world the seems to always leave soot on your hands?