Mario Pieri

Mario Pieri (akaTommaso Picasso) was born in Florence in 1962 where he graduated in electronic engineering. He lives in Rome with his wife Silvia and son Marcello.

Since he was a boy he has been interested in military history. In the 1980s he began his first collaborations with specialized magazines in the sector. After a long break due to his profession as an engineer, he resumed his research activity full time. He has published, as author and co-author, articles on military history and technique in Italian, English and Spanish, which have appeared in Italian and foreign magazines. Alone, or in collaboration with other authors, he has written historical books on military vehicles, weapons and technologies.

In 2020, under the stage name of Tommaso Picasso, he published his first mystery novel, Un Natale sbagliato (A Wrong Christmas) (Youcanprint, ISBN 9791220303217). The Genoese journalist Giovan Battista Picasso and the Roman commissioner Antonio Valeri made their appearance in it. The second title of the series, Omnia Romae cum pretio - A Roma tutto ha un prezzo (In Rome everything has a price) (Damster, ISBN 9788868105150) ranked third among the novels in the Giallofestival 2021/2022 competition (first in the "best plot" category).

With its true name, Mario Pieri received a mention in the Historical/Mystery section in the literary competition C'era e c'č ... una regina rosa (There was and there is... a pink Queen) in 2022; the related story Il trionfo del gusto (The triumph of taste) was published as an ebook in the anthology C'era e c'č ... una regina rosa 2022 (Edizioni del Loggione).

In 2023 the story Il coltello d'oro (The Golden Knife) was included in the anthology Racconti a tavola 2023 - Vol. 3 (ISBN 9788833374574); the one entitled Trent'anni dopo (Thirty years later) in the anthology Racconti Storici 2023 - Vol. 2 (ISBN 9788833374628); finally, Hotel de Inmigrantes in Storei Libere 2023 - Vol. 3 (ISBN 9788833375113). The three titles were published by Historica Edizioni.

The story Agguato a Testaccio (Ambush in Testaccio) was one of the winners of the AG NOIR 2023 Literary Competition and, consequently, published in the anthology Onda Noir – Segreto (Edizioni Insedicesimo, ISBN 9788899866747).

The story CAPTCHA was selected for publication in the Offline magazine n.21 “Umanitą” dated 9/27/2023.

In November 2023, the anthology of detective stories Veleno (ISBN 9798866936786) was published by Atlas Books Italy, containing the story Supereroi di provincia (Country-dweller Superheroes).

== Awards and recognitions ==

* In 2022, under the pseudonym '''Tommaso Picasso''', he placed third (as best novel) and first (as best plot) in the '''Giallofestival 2022''' competition

* In 2022 he received the mention in the Historical/Mystery section in the literary competition '''C'era e c'č ... una regina rosa''

* In 2023 the story "'Agguato a Testaccio'" was one of the winners of the AG NOIR 2023 Literary Competition.

== Works ==

=== Picasso & Valeri: the crimes of the Roaring Twenties (as Tommaso Picasso) ===

# ''Un Natale sbagliato'' (Set in Christmas 1929 and based on a true story) (Youcanprint, 2020)

# ''Omnia Romae cum pretio (In Rome everything has a price)'' (Damster, 2022)

# ''L'Occhio del Duce" (The eye of the Duce) (Youcanprint, 2023)

=== More crime novels ===

* "Assassinio al comitato rionale" ('Murder at the local committee) (forthcoming)

=== Published stories ===

* ''Il trionfo del gusto" (The triumph of taste) (2002)

* "Il coltello d'oro" (The Golden Knife) (2023)

* Trent'anni dopo" (Thirty Years Later) (2023)

* "Agguato a Testaccio" (Ambush in Testaccio) (2023)

* "Hotel de Inmigrantes" (2023)

* "CAPTCHA" (2023)

=== Military history and technique books ===

* ''Panzer DNA. German Military Vehicles of WWII. Camouflage, Marking, Organization '' (AMMO by Mig Jimenez, 2018) - In English or Spanish (written with Daniele Guglielmi)

* ''Tracked armored vehicles - Technical guide - Part 1'' STORIA Militare Dossier n.34 (Edizioni STORIA Militare , 2017) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''Tracked armored vehicles - Technical guide - Part 2'' STORIA Militare Dossier n.35 (EdizioniSTORIA Militare , 2018) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''The German 88 mm guns'' STORIA Militare Briefing n.13 (Edizioni STORIA Militare , 2019) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''Italienfeldzug Vol 1: German Tanks and Vehicles 1943-1945 '' (AMMO by Mig Jimenez, 2019) - In English or Spanish (written with Daniele Guglielmi)

* ''Italienfeldzug Vol 2: German Tanks and Vehicles 1943-1945 '' (AMMO by Mig Jimenez, 2020) - In English or Spanish (written with Daniele Guglielmi)

* ''The M4 Sherman tank'' STORIA Militare Briefing n.19 (Edizioni STORIA Militare, 2020) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''The German armored half-tracks Sd.Kfz. 250 and 251'' STORIA Militare Briefing n.22 (Ed. STORIA Militare Editions, 2020) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* "Dizionario Enciclopedico dei mezzi militari" (Encyclopedic dictionary of military vehicles) (Youcanprint, 2021) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''The T-34 tank'' STORIA Militare Briefing n.25 (Ed. STORIA Militare , 2021) - written with Daniele Guglielmi and Vincenzo Valentini

* ''Italienfeldzug Vol 3: German Tanks and Vehicles 1943-1945 '' (AMMO by Mig Jimenez, 2022) - In English or Spanish (written with Daniele Guglielmi)

* ''Half-Track'' STORIA Militare Briefing n.31 (Ed. STORIA Militare , 2022) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* ''The British tanks of the Second World War'' STORIA Militare Dossier n.64 (Edizioni STORIA Militare , 2022) - written with Daniele Guglielmi

* "Veicoli militari italiani della seconda guerra mondiale" (Published by Gruppo Modellistico Trentino) - written with D. Guglielmi and R. Riccio

* "Italian Soft-Skinned Vehicles of the Second World War: Motorcycles, Cars, Trucks, Artillery Tractors 1935-1945" (Vol. 1 and 2) - Helion 2023 - written with D. Guglielmi and R. Riccio