Mario Mozzillo

South Florida resident Mario Mozzillo spent several years as a successful attorney before turning his attention to writing novels. Educated at Boston College and Yale Law School, Mario Mozzillo practiced criminal and real estate law prior to producing his first book, Respect the Dead.

Set in the 1950s, Mario Mozzillo’s murder mystery novel, Respect the Dead, follows the exploits of Nick Ranieri, nicknamed, “the Wreck,” a tough guy with a history of barroom fighting and a penchant for classic literary works. Mozzillo takes readers inside the world of Ranieri as he pursues justice in the strange disappearance of Martha Doyle, a woman who police believe skipped town to elope with her partner. In Respect the Dead, Mozzillo delves deep into city cover-ups and crooked municipal figures as Ranieri seeks answers from an eccentric collection of friends and lowlifes that include retired attorney Izzy Gitlitz; ex-boxer and former deputy sheriff Pat Ginetti; Flyn, a gigolo; imprisoned murderer Donny Red, and a slew of other characters, each uniquely fitting into the mystery of Doyle’s murder.

To create Respect the Dead, Mario Mozzillo drew from many of his personal experiences over the course of his lifetime; he set the book in his home state of Connecticut and included a focus on the judicial system. With Respect the Dead, Mario Mozzillo effectively weaves humor into the seriousness of the murder mystery genre, a style that earned him a BookWise national author’s contest award for his murder/suspense novel. Mario Mozzillo plans to focus the sequel to Respect the Dead, called Do No Harm, around “Wreck” Ranieri and his escapades in solving a new murder. Read more about Mario Mozzillo and Respect the Dead online at www.mariolmozzillo.com.