Bleeding Heart

by John Avanzato

A turf war erupts between rival mobster gangs in lower Manhattan over control of gentlemen’s club on Second Avenue. Dr. John Cesari gets dragged into the thick of things as his lifelong friend, Vito Gianelli, the legendary capo of Mulberry Street, fights off encroachment of his territory by Romanian mafiosi from the east side. The action spills over into St. Matt’s where Cesari is employed when a new and dirty CEO is commissioned to revitalize the hospital’s economic fortunes. In bed with the bad guys, the new CEO makes life a living hell for the employees of St. Matt’s but especially for Cesari. The puppet master behind it all is a dangerous, enigmatic character from eastern Europe by the name of Shlomo. At first glance, he seems a kindly, grandfatherly figure with cherubic features and twinkling eyes that belie his black, soulless heart.

444 pages, Paperback

Published October 7, 2020

About the author

Fordham University '77-81
SUNY Buffalo School of Medicine '81-85
Internal Medicine/Gastroenterology '85-91 Bronx, New York
Private practice Geneva, NY '91-present.

Reviews

[Arthur Levin]

Once again the author has managed to create a book that captured my attention. Page by page I wondered what was going to happen next.
Over the years when I find a writer like this I look for their next work.
I have now read all of John Avanzato's books to date and only hope he has another in the works.

If one hasn't read one of his books to date they're missing out on captivating stories that usually have a surprise built in.

[Juanita Horne]

Love this series

Love the Cesari, Vito and Detective Tierney. Hope the detective sticks around. Each book is easy to read and full of action and humor. Hard to put down and I didn’t want it to end. Can’t wait to read the next one.

[Joe Becker]

Avanzato does it again

If you are like me, never read many books. The Cesari saga will change all of it.
Make sure to read in order the series, you won’t be disappointed.

We all have Cesari in us. Daytime jobs but heroic aspirations protecting the innocent and good.

[Laurie]

Not one of my favorite stories of Avanzato

This book was a little heavy on the side of blood and guts local mess ups for Cesari. It was missing a lot of the usual character interactions and medical mystery of other works. Hope to get back to some of that as I go on.