Author: admin

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I will be glad when this election is over!

I have never seen the nation so divided, or so polarized, as it is now, and I’m afraid that these divisions will continue no matter who ends up winning. It’s a crying shame that it takes a national tragedy like 9/11, or a world war, to bring the nation together.

Just sayin’.

Today we remember all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, by giving their very lives in defense of the freedoms the rest of us continue to enjoy.

Starting with the War for Independence, and right up to the actions in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, American servicemen have willingly put themselves in harm’s way, putting their lives on the line, sacrificing for American ideals. Along with the rest of a grateful nation, those of us who have served, and were not called to pay that ultimate price, today salute all those who did.

In particular, I ask you to remember the 375 officers, and the 3,131 enlisted men, who gave up their lives in submarines in World War II. In that action, 52 US submarines were lost.. The US Navy Submarine Service had the highest casualty percentage of any American forces in the War: about 20%. We must never forget their sacrifice.

It’s been said so often it has become trite: “Freedom is not free.” Trite perhaps, but true nonetheless.

Image by Brett Sayles

A Collection of Thirteen Short Stories Hits the Press!

Written over the past several years, I have assembled thirteen of what I believe is some of my best writing. Anyone interested in an eclectic blend of themes and genres might just find this particular blend to their liking. Two of the stories are about submarines (what else?) but there is also some with social commentary, some that are borderline science fiction, there’s even a war story or two.

For a while at least, the book will only be available on Amazon, as I toy with a few marketing ploys. It is available here as both an ebook and in paperback, with the ebook on sale for just $0.99, again, for a while at least.

Now four books, The Rich Vitalli Mystery Series narrates the exploits of Detective Lieutenant Richard Vitelli of the Metro Police Department. Rich is the Missing Persons Department’s Ace: their man who solves their most difficult cases.

We first meet Vitelli in The Dry Cleaner. In this novel, Vitelli crosses swords with The Dry Cleaner, a mysterious adversary who make bodies disappear: clean off the face of the earth – without a trace. And, for a little extra, The Dry Cleaner will also provide full service: a clean hit and no body left behind.

Then Vitelli comes up against an adversary that will dog him for days (and books) to come: Anubis Cline. It is Cline who advises billionaire Sheldon Hertz in the organization and setup of Hertz’s perfect society in True Believers, the second book in the series. And it’s Cline who avoids exposure by arranging Hertz’s “accidental” death, and eventually gets away with it.

In the third Vitelli mystery, Bobby Doyle is Missing, the Marauders professional football team’s star quarterback, Bobby Doyle, is abducted. Anubis Cline plays off his financial interest in the team, seeing to it that the Russian mob finds Doyle before Vitelli does. What happens next spells the end of the Russian mob, but ends up putting money in Cline’s pocket.

The latest book in the series is Vitelli in Venice. Who else but Anubis Cline is behind a major art theft scheme in Venice? And, of course, he unknowingly times the heist just when Vitelli and his new bride are honeymooning in the ancient city. This time out Cline almost gets Vitelli murdered; but he gets foiled in the end when the heist doesn’t quite work out as planned.

All four books are available as ebooks, or in paperback, online from Amazon and other outlets.

A dream ten-day honeymoon in Venice! What could possibly go wrong? Well, for Metro Detective Rich Vitelli and his new wife, Pam, just about everything!

First the wife of Pam’s friend, Calvin Iams, is abducted from their Venetian hotel. Then Iams gets word that unless he cooperates in the theft of millions of dollars’ worth of contemporary art, that his wife will be killed. And so, a grand plan begins to play out: a plan masterminded by Vitelli’s old nemesis, Anubis Cline. And it’s Cline’s local minions, operating according to plan, that almost get Vitelli killed!

The action takes place in La Serenissima, Venice, one of the world’s most beautiful cities, one prone to flooding from time to time. When the elements combine just so, they produce Agua Alta, or high water: an event that only complicates Vitelli’s efforts to thwart what might well be the art theft of the century!

You can order your ebook or paperback copy of Vitelli in Venice here.

Vitelli in Venice is the fourth book in the Rich Vitelli Mystery series, after The Dry Cleaner, True Believers, and Bobby Doyle is Missing.

Vitelli in Venice, the fourth book in the Rich Vitelli Mystery Series, is now at Escarpment Press for final edits, cover design, and formatting.

Took a bit of fortitude to get this one out! Ruth had some serious health problems over the past few months, and, at times, required some pretty intensive caregiving. Obviously, that took precedence over banging out a novel. She is, thankfully, very much on the mend now.

Not sure what to say about this one. I’ve visited Venice several times, and it’s a city easy to fall in love with. So, where else would Rich Vitelli go on his honeymoon? (Yeah, he gets married sometime between Bobby Doyle is Missing and the beginning of this one!) Of course, it wouldn’t be a Vitelli mystery if someone doesn’t get kidnapped while the Vitellis are in Venice, and our detective friend doesn’t get involved. Still, I also attempted in this novel, to give the reader a taste of La Serenissima, some Venetian history, and a ride in a gondola. So, with Vitelli in Venice, the reader not only gets a detective novel, but a history lesson and a tour guide as well!

Look to see Vitelli in Venice to be released sometime next month.

I was interviewed by the West Coast portal CanvasRebel. Here is a link to the interview.

With the addition of Bobby Doyle is Missing last Fall, the Rich Vitelli Mystery Series now numbers three volumes. A fourth is underway, and will hopefully make it to press this Summer.

Writing mysteries is a new gig for me, and I must admit I’m enjoying it. Detective Lieutenant Rich Vitelli is assigned to the missing persons division of the Metro Police Department, and when a person or persons come up missing, Vitelli must seek them out. In this sense, Vitelli always gets his man (or woman), even when they turn up dead! And always, when they do finally turn up, their story makes for an interesting read!

I had the opportunity to appear with Frank Murphy on his Frank and Friends Show. It was really a lot of fun. Frank’s an interesting guy, and I learned that his family lived down the street from my paternal Grandfather’s home in the Bronx. Who Knew?

Third book in the Rich Vitalli Mystery Series, after The Dry Cleaner and True Believers.

Now available for preorder from Amazon and other outlets (for October 15 delivery).

When Marauders’ star quarterback Bobby Doyle goes missing, it starts a chain reaction that pairs Metro Police Detective Rich Vitelli with his old FBI buddy Eric Maddox in a desperate search for the missing athlete. As their search begins, Vitelli is astonished to discover that there is another, parallel, effort to find Bobby Doyle, and whoever is behind it will happily resort to murder to find him. The circumstances surrounding the football player’s disappearance are convoluted to say the least, and end up involving not only the Russian mob, but Vitelli’s old nemesis, Anubis Cline.

You can preorder your copy here.