A Member of the Family

A New York PI and onetime D.C. undercover cop, first-novelist Vasile knows all the nasty spots on the sordid underbelly of the northeast corridor, and he has exploited his savvy in a fast-paced and intricate page-turner. Angered by the seemingly unimpeded South American drug presence in Washington, mob don Vincent Benedetti visits the Justice Department to remind them of a 1961 deal he made with J. Edgar Hoover, in which the mafia agreed to keep out of drugs and the FBI would allow their ``business to grow in other ways.'' Little does Vincent know that Genaro Orsini, Vincent's brother Santo's son-in-law, is really working with the Feds. When a sting traps Vincent and Orsini vanishes, Santo asks former protege-turned-PI Paul Dante to find his daughter's husband. Paul delves into Orsini's past and discovers that he is a really nasty piece of work, but Orsini soon resurfaces, basking once again in good Mafia graces. Vasile's writing is serviceable and his characters are solid--if not very appealing (Dante is the only sympathetic figure--mob, fed, or other). The pacing, however, is terrific. Plot, counterplot and subplot swirl cinematically right up to the ironic ending. With its coolly unsentimental look at a particularly unpleasant dramatis personae , this novel is a natural for Hollywood. (Aug.)