Set in the beautiful Tuscan hill town of Montepulciano
Many of you know that I am a novelist as well as a food blogger. I’m excited to announce the release of my third novel, Death in Abundance, in my series, The Antonio Cortese Mysteries.
Antonio is a former detective turned Italian pizzeria owner. All three titles are set primarily in Tuscany, where his mother was raised and where he spent several weeks every summer while growing up, learning Italian cooking from his Nonna, mother, and aunts.
The books are rich in Italian cooking scenes, and provide a lavish portrait of the people, culture, and place of Italy, all interlaced with riveting mysteries which need to be solved.
In Death in Abundance, Antonio is about to board a plane home to Seattle when he receives a call from his fiancée, Gabriella, a colonel in the Italian Carabinieri. She found out that an accident which took the life of her brother—an investigator with the Italian Wine Commission, and his wife—was no accident at all. The case belongs to the Polizia di Stato, but when Covid-19 hinders them, Gabriella goes rogue with the investigation. Antonio refuses to let her go it alone and becomes embroiled in danger alongside her. As more suspicious deaths pile up, and the pandemic threatens to shut down Italy, every moment is critical.
All titles are available as hardcovers, paperbacks, and eBooks. Autographed copies are available on my website at www.frankcurtiss.com (click button below).
All books are also available on Amazon.com. eBooks are available at no charge to Kindle Unlimited members.
In the first novel, Deception in Siena, Antonio returns to Tuscany for the first time in five years after a tragic event sent his life into a tailspin. He returns looking for healing among the people and place he loves. There he is drawn into a treacherous web of intrigue when he and his young cousin, Giulia, are run off the road while cycling, putting Giulia in a coma fighting for her life.
In the second novel Antonio is dealing with PTSD and still trying to get his feet under him when his world seems to crumble once again.
Gabriella, the beautiful Carabinieri detective from Tuscany, has breathed new life into him. When a suspicious accident takes the life of her brother and his wife. Antonio wants to be with her. As he makes plans to do so, he gets a desperate call from his Uncle Nicolo, lead detective in Siena. Antonio’s cousin, Raphael, a policeman in Firenze, has disappeared.
When Antonio returns to Tuscany, the search for Raphael embroils he and Nicolo in a dangerous web of child prostitution, human trafficking, and the Nigerian mob—all as the Covid19 epidemic begins its deadly spread throughout Italy and Antonio’s home state of Washington. The clock is ticking and there is far more at stake than meets the eye.
If you’re a mystery fan and yet to read any of the books in this series, I invite you to order a set of all three books, available in hardcover or paperback. Available only on my website at www.frankcurtiss.com
Ciao e grazie mille! Enjoy your adventures in Tuscany!
Frankie at Home in the Kitchen 