Crossing Roman

Roman Caponelli is trying to move his mob family into more legitimate business ventures.  Some of his motivation is his feelings for a certain beautiful young woman named Madison Miller. Madison is reluctant to even acknowledge her feelings for Roman as long as he is involved in the mob culture.  She knows that she can’t avoid her feelings for Roman forever, but when fate intervenes and her life is in danger; she can deny herself no longer.

“Crossing Roman” peeks behind the curtain of mystery into the lives and emotions of organized crime families.  Ms. Ring’s polished prose keeps the reader on edge as the story unfolds.  The author could have explored the theme of the conflict arising from duty and the character’s feelings in more depth.  This fascinating aspect of the two main characters is too easily resolved in the plot in order to move the story along.  This means a lost chance to add more depth and complexity to the characters, and makes the story predictable.  Much of the story relies on the previous installment in the series “Madison’s Mobster” to explain character motivation and this detracts from “Crossing Roman”.  The novel’s strengths lie in the quality of Ms. Ring’s writing and her ability to add rich detail to the world of her imagining.  “Crossing Roman” is a light, fun book to read.

Gwenellen Tarbet