Professor Caruso, a full professor at the Faculty of Law at La Sapienza University, lies dead on the floor of his office. A letter opener is lodged in his chest. And only Andrea Barbarisi, his jealous colleague and romantic rival, believes he's still alive.

He rushes at him and pulls out the blade, thus covering the crime scene with fingerprints. It's difficult to justify his position, thinks Efisio Serrenti, who until recently was part of that world tainted by often unfair competition. Now he's put a safe distance: he's a lawyer and observes from the outside the intrigues of those who boast of a hypocritical and opportunistic friendship. He agrees to defend Barbarisi and, while evaluating his defense strategy, he recounts the behind-the-scenes story of a context that turns out to be narrow-minded and petty. Luciano Marrocu, who taught Contemporary History at the University of Rome, as he did at the University of Cagliari, returns to bookstores with "Assassinio a La Sapienza," published by (159 pp., 12 euros).

And it paints a story that mixes tragedy and comedy in yellow, leaving a bitter aftertaste of uncomfortable truth.

The novel's subtitle reads "Adventures and troubles of professors adrift," and adrift indeed are these poor human beings who think they are powerful but are instead pawns on a chessboard that constantly changes players.

The victim and the accused are held hostage, first and foremost, by their own ambitions: prestigious positions, literary ambitions, dreams of glory. Around them are equally questionable characters: Ennio Ruozzi, for example, is one of those lawyers who, "with their billowing black robes, descend upon prosecution witnesses, defending notorious bankrupts, brutal rapists, or, more frequently, gentleman thieves and corrupt politicians." He nurtures a gossipy interest in academic life and satisfies it by following the waltz of competitive exams, announced by the "gang," which decides from time to time which positions are favored and to whom they are awarded. And then there's Beatrice, the secretary of Caruso's department, who arrived in Rome after a series of romantic relationships that have made her an expert on the dynamics of academic life across Italy. Through confessions and alleged truths, Efisio paints a professional portrait that largely mirrors his personal life. He knows what it means to delude yourself into thinking you're in a job you'll never get, and he also knows that, to save yourself, you have to distance yourself from a world so dangerous it is so fascinating.