An Exclusive First Look at Frank Abroad

One of my favorite parts of releasing a new book is sharing a glimpse of the story before readers turn that first page. Frank Abroad begins not with Frank, but with a mystery—one that will pull him across the ocean and into the most dangerous case of his life.

The novel opens with a moment that sets the stakes immediately. It’s a scene of fear, resilience, and a fragile hope that refuses to be extinguished.

Here is a brief excerpt from the opening of Frank Abroad:

Excerpt from Frank Abroad

By Don Massenzio

The two girls sat huddled on the cracked concrete floor, knees pinched to their chins, listening to the world shrink itself down to the slow blink of an overhead bulb. A yellowed corona of light reached the edges of the little cell but failed to burn through the farthest corners, where ancient water stains spidered up the brick and oil slicks mapped continents onto the concrete. There were no windows, just a rusted metal door and darkness that seemed always on the verge of swallowing them whole.

The air clung to their faces, thick with the aftertaste of diesel and mildew. Every breath carried the sour tang of damp wood and old machinery. Somewhere beyond the walls, something heavy moved—metal against metal, a distant shudder that echoed like a warning.

The older of the two girls kept her eyes fixed on the door, fists curled tight in the fabric of her skirt. She had cried until there were no tears left, and now her face was set in a line of quiet defiance. The younger girl traced patterns in the dust at their feet, spirals and lines that never crossed—something to control in a place where nothing else could be.

They didn’t speak. Words felt dangerous.

Instead, they communicated in small, careful gestures—a brush of a hand, a shared glance, the press of a shoulder against another. On the second night, when the sounds beyond the door grew louder and the footsteps came too close, the older girl leaned forward and pressed her forehead to the younger’s. Whatever happened, they would face it together.

Then, as if the world itself had made a mistake, a sliver of moonlight slipped through a crack in the boards above them.

The younger girl reached out, palm open, as though she might catch the light. She waited until the older girl met her eyes, then nodded—slow, deliberate. A signal. A promise.

They held onto that moment. That thread of hope.

Until the footsteps came again.

This is where Frank Rozzani’s journey begins—far from home, far from safety, and with everything on the line.

In Frank Abroad, Frank travels from New York to Italy—through Rome, Assisi, Florence, Padua, and Venice—chasing answers, confronting danger, and trying to bring a missing girl home before time runs out.

I hope you enjoyed this brief look inside the story. If you did, I invite you to join Frank on his most personal and perilous case yet.

👉 Frank Abroad is available now.

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