Cry Wolf

Sebastiano is thrilled. He has the job he’s always dreamed of, he’s a park ranger in beautiful, rugged Umbria. But a body found in the back country changes everything. It’s obvious this is a case of mob violence, but Sebastiano is determined that the mafia will not ruin this pristine wilderness, no matter what he has to do and who he pisses off, even if it gets him killed

Wild Wolves kill to eat – Human ‘Wolves’ just kill

Everyone knows, or thinks they know about the Mafia; Sicilian gangsters responsible for organised crime, drug-running, executions and any number of atrocities.  But the ‘Ndrangheta?  They were new to me; they are the most powerful branch in the Mafia, hailing from Calabria, in the ‘toe’ of Italy.
When disaster strikes and a swarm of earthquakes destroys much of Umbria, the ‘Ndrangheta move in to take advantage of the situation.
Sebastian Cangio, is relaxing on a beach at Soverato, when he witnesses an execution.  Everyone else looks the other way, but Sebastian has seen a tattoo which could identify the killer. His mother fears for his safety and despite having to give up his precious PhD paper on the habitats of wolves, he flees, first to London and then returning to take a post as a Park Ranger in Umbria.
After that I am afraid I became a little confused by the unfamiliar names and found it difficult to entirely follow the action. A kindle doesn’t help as it is difficult to flip back to the cast list at the front of the book.
Suffice it to say that unwittingly Sebastian becomes embroiled in the war between the ‘Ndrangheta and the Police Special Ops Commander, General Corsini, a.k.a. the Legend.
This is a well-written intelligent story with plenty of action, violence and bloodshed, and I really enjoyed it.  It is very readable and a chilling reminder of the depths of depravity to which humans can descend.   4 stars!

When Sebastiano Cangio accepts the position of Park Ranger after years of studying wolves in their natural habitat, he is soon enchanted by the rural and idyllically beautiful Sybilline Mountains in central Italy. He makes friends and attends to his duties conscientiously. He actually can’t believe his luck to be settling in to his new peaceful life in Umbria where the Mafia are not endemic in society. He observes the wolves and feels as though he is the luckiest man alive to have this unique opportunity to further his observations and build up his knowledge bank while earning a living for himself.

However, his peaceful existence is soon turned up side down when an earthquake rocks the area, attracting new business opportunities for businessmen both fair and unscrupulous. Money soon floods into the area in the form of grants and everyone wants a slice of the cake. New deals are struck, new alliances are made and new masters are setting themselves up ready to take over from the ‘old guard’. Sebastiano has witnessed a Mafia extermination once before and begins to understand that perhaps he is the only person in the area with experience of what this greed and corruption can lead to. He may have to act alone in order to ensure he can restore the area to order and maintain his position in a role he has come to love.

This is the first in a new series of crime novels featuring Sebastiano Cangio. There were many characters to become familiar with and the action was sometimes very graphic and violent. I would like to thank Netgalley and Severn House Publishers for my copy in return for an honest review.