Several years ago Maurizio De Giovanni wrote a giallo featuring a motley collection of police officers based in a Neapolitan questura – the fictional Pizzofalcone.  Thus, a series was born.  The cases that are dealt with often reflect real events or societal issues but the best part is following the lives of the principal characters.  The protagonist is Ispettore Giuseppe Lojacono, a divorced father of a somewhat rebellious teen-ager.  His love interest is Laura Piras, the magistrate often assigned to the cases.  The other members of the group are the gun-loving Alessandra Di Nardo, a closeted lesbian with a domineering father; Francesco Romano, buff and with serious anger issues; the older Giorgio Pisanelli who is fixated on a series of suicides that he believes are really victims of a serial killer; Ottavia Calabrese the computer whisperer, mother of a disabled child and trapped in an unhappy marriage; and the boorish Marco Aragona who is brash, tacky and ignorant but a surprisingly effective investigator.  Then there is the commissario, Gigi Palma, the calm at the center of the storm, who is trying to keep it all together and who has a soft spot for Ottavia.  All these characters’ lives, issues and thoughts are explored and it’s interesting and entertaining to follow along as we get to know them better.  Earlier this year RAI aired a six-episode series based on the books and a second season is in the works.  The TV series is a lot more superficial than the books but the scenes of Naples are great, the casting is mostly good (serious exception, the Laura Piras character) and, all in all, it’s fun to watch.