The story, a suspense novel chronicling a pair of thrill killers, earned him a two-book deal from Michael Korda at Simon & Schuster.
The stories, which "possess a psychological depth all too rare in such fiction" (Publishers Weekly), also include other recurring characters, most notably Detective Joshua Bontrager, who was, at one time, a member of the Amish church.
This series is published in France by Le Cherche Midi, in Italy by Editrice Nord, in Germany by Verlagsgruppe Lübbe, and in Denmark by People's Press.
As a journalist Montanari has written essays, profiles, articles, and both film and literary criticism in more than 200 publications, including The Chicago Tribune, Detroit Free Press, The Seattle Times, The Plain Dealer, and many others.
According to a 1997 interview published in Volume XI, Issue 4 of Ohio Writer, Montanari's first screenplay "The Skin Gods" made it as far as the 1996 quarter-finals of the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting Awards.