Paterlinis, the novel, tells the story of a Chicago crime family requested by the New York mafia to run the Israeli crime cartel out of New York where they have started operations to raise funds to finance their war against the Palestinians. After succeeding in New York the Paterlinis expand their narcotics empire in California by acquiring a cartel that had been shut down by the FBI. In doing so they deal with the CIA, Mexican drug lords, an Italian narcotics broker, and Los Angeles gangs.