River of Shadows

Amongst the atmospheric setting of a small, misty town on the banks of the River Po, Commissario Soneri investigates a double murder which points back to Italy's troubled past.

When Soneri is called to a hospital to investigate the death of an elderly loner who has fallen from a window, he quickly guesses that this was no suicide. His instinct is confirmed when the man's brother, a taciturn bargeman who has always kept himself to himself, is also found dead amongst dramatic flooding on the River Po.

As he investigates this mystery, Soneri learns that the brothers fought on the side of the fascists over 50 years ago, taking part in brutal clashes with the communists who lived along the river banks. Although so many years have passed, feelings still run high. Soneri begins his search for a killer who has never been able to forget the horrors of those times.

This tense, intriguing crime novel draws the reader into the mystery of a small town with a dark, secret at its heart. Varesi eases the tension with the occasional appearances of Varesi's smart, sexy and demanding girlfriend, Angela, and Soneri's encounters with opera-loving foodies who frequent the bars of this riverside Italian town.