Paperback: Crimini, Ed. Giancarlo de Cataldo, trans. Andrew Brown

Bitter Lemon £8.99

Given our fascination with the mafia and Neapolitan crime it's surprising that this collection of Italian crime short stories is the first to be published in English. Contributors include familiar names like Niccolo Ammaniti and Andrea Camilleri (best known for his Inspector Montalbano books) and up-and-coming writers such as Rome-based Antonio Manzini. While both cops and capos are portrayed as modern, global operators, the female leads are drawn from a more retro school of noir. Lara D'Angelo, the heroine of Carlo Lucarelli's story "The Third Shot", seems as fixated by own breasts as do her fellow-police officers.