Leonardo Gori, born in Florence, has created one of the most intriguing characters to have appeared in Italian crime fiction in recent years: Captain (now Colonel) Bruno Arcieri. The most recent title in the series, L'angelo del fango (Rizzoli, 2005), Gori's sixth novel, was awarded the 2005 Premio Scerbanenco for detective fiction. Other works include Nero di maggio, Il passaggio, La finale and Lo specchio nero (with Franco Cardini). Gori, who consistently displays a consummate ability to fuse historical fact with original narrative, is also the author of a successful historical novel, I delitti del mondo nuovo.