"Fausti (The Fist) Dellacava runs the mob from his clubhouse in Greenwich Village. The Fist's needs are simple - he wants everything. And for a while, he succeeds; even his bookmaker, growing gaunt from the strain of it, makes sure that The Fist never loses a bet, even if the team he's wagered on doesn't win the game. His young nephew and namesake has a far more modest agenda - he wants to marry his longtime girlfriend, Concetta, and get a "real" job unconnected to the mob.

Unlike his uncle, however, young Fausti finds the going tough from the beginning - he can't seem to escape the family name and its connections." "Despite their differences, on one point uncle and nephew are in total agreement: "I don't want to go to jail!" When it appears that the law is rapidly closing in on The Fist, he undertakes a bizarre scheme to avoid that fate."--BOOK JACKET.