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Donna Leon

    September 28, 1942

    This author is celebrated for her crime novels set in the atmospheric labyrinth of Venice. Through the investigations of her recurring protagonist, she delves into the complexities of human nature and explores the moral ambiguities often found within society. Her distinctive prose captures the unique spirit of Venice while posing thought-provoking questions about justice and integrity.

    Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery: Earthly Remains
    A noble radiance
    Acqua Alta
    Excursion to Tindari
    The waters of eternal youth
    Backstage
    • Commissario Brunetti - 33: Feuerprobe

      Commissario Brunettis dreiunddreißigster Fall

      • 336 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Scherben auf der Piazza San Marco. Zwei Kinderbanden sind aneinandergeraten, mitten in der Nacht. Während Commissario Griffoni mit weiblichem Gespür herauszubekommen versucht, wie ein Teenager in den Sog eines Flashmobs geraten konnte, nutzt Brunetti seine eigenen Connections. Ja sogar Vice-Questore Patta ist zu allem bereit, um sich und seine Leute vor Vorkommnissen zu schützen, die zumal in einer Touristenstadt wie Venedig nicht willkommen sind.

      Commissario Brunetti - 33: Feuerprobe2025
    • Backstage

      Stories of a Writing Life

      • 224 pages
      • 8 hours of reading

      This engaging collection of stories and essays by the celebrated author of the internationally bestselling Guido Brunetti series showcases her delightful humor and irony. In her memoir, she previously offered a colorful tour of her life, from childhood in New Jersey to adventures in China and Iran, and her love of Venice and opera, but did not delve into her writing life. In this work, she reveals her admiration for great crime novelists like Ruth Rendell and Ross Macdonald, examining their storytelling techniques while dissecting her favorite books. She expresses her love for Dickens' *Great Expectations* and appreciates Sir Walter Scott's generosity of spirit. The author chronicles her extensive research efforts to authentically portray places and characters through Guido Brunetti and his colleagues, including interviewing a diamond dealer in Venice about blood diamonds and connecting with a courageous sex worker to accurately depict women's trafficking in Italy. Venice remains central in her memories, from the irritation of a noisy neighbor to the origins of Carnevale. Her teaching career yields memorable tales, such as helping a young Black boy in Newark and instructing Iranian pilots just before the 1979 Revolution. Throughout, she proves to be as compelling a storyteller about her own life as she is in chronicling Brunetti's adventures. Readers will find themselves captivated by her world.

      Backstage2025
      3.0
    • A Refiner's Fire

      • 288 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      When two teenage gangs are arrested after clashing violently in one of Venice's campi, the son of a local hero is implicated. But when Commissario Guido Brunetti is asked by a wealthy foreigner to vet this man, Monforte, for a job, he discovers that Monforte might not be such a hero after all. This seeming contradiction, and a brutal attack on one of Brunetti's colleagues by a possible gang member, concentrate Brunetti's attentions. Soon, he discovers the sordid hypocrisy surrounding Monforte's past, culminating in a fiery meeting of two gangs and a final opportunity for redemption. A Refiner's Fireis Donna Leon at her very best- an elegant, sophisticated storyteller whose indelible characters become richer with each book, and who constantly interrogates the ambiguity between moral and legal justice.

      A Refiner's Fire2024
      3.8
    • In the thirty-second installment of Donna Leon’s bestselling series, a connection to Guido Brunetti’s own youthful past helps solve a mysterious murder On a cold November evening, Guido Brunetti and Paola are up late when a call from his colleague Ispettore Vianello arrives, alerting the Commissario that a hand has been seen in one of Venice’s canals. The body is soon found, and Brunetti is assigned to investigate the murder of an undocumented Sri Lankan immigrant. Because no official record of the man’s presence in Venice exists, Brunetti is forced to use the city’s far richer sources of information: gossip and the memories of people who knew the victim. Curiously, he had been living in a small house on the grounds of a  palazzo  owned by a university professor, in which Brunetti discovers books revealing the victim’s interest in Buddhism, the revolutionary Tamil Tigers, and the last crop of Italian political terrorists, active in the 1980s.As the investigation expands, Brunetti, Vianello, Commissario Griffoni, and Signora Elettra each assemble pieces of a puzzle—random information about real estate and land use, books, university friendships—that appear to have little in common, until Brunetti stumbles over something that transports him back to his own student days, causing him to reflect on lost ideals and the errors of youth, on Italian politics and history, and on the accidents that sometimes lead to revelation.

      So Shall You Reap2023
      3.8
    • Nichts gegen Netflix unter der Kuscheldecke – aber wirklich romantisch wird’s, wenn Verliebte einander im Bett Geschichten vorlesen. In diesem Buch sind Geschichten von zehn Frauen und zehn Männern versammelt. Mal süss und mal heiss, mal traurig oder lustig. Und nicht zu lang und nicht zu kurz. Der oder die Liebste soll ja nicht gleich einschlafen… Dieser bezaubernde Band enthält Klassiker der Weltliteratur von der Bibel über Gustave Flaubert bis zu Kurt Tucholsky, Peter Bichsel, Donna Leon und Doris Lessing, aber auch junge Autorinnen wie Rebekka Salm, Tasha Rumley und Fine Degen. Die Geschichten wurden von Alex Capus und vom Verleger Thomas Knapp gemeinsam ausgewählt. «Gutenachtgeschichten für Verliebte» ist ein wunderbares Geschenkbändchen für viele Gelegenheiten. In Leinen gebunden zudem auch ein haptischer Genuss.

      Gutenachtgeschichten für Verliebte2023
    • Wandering Through Life

      • 208 pages
      • 8 hours of reading

      In a series of vignettes full of affection, irony, and good humour, Donna Leon narrates a remarkable life she feels has rather more happened to her than been planned.

      Wandering Through Life2022
      3.6
    • A woman's cryptic dying words in a Venetian hospice lead Guido Brunetti to uncover a threat to the entire region in Donna Leon's haunting twenty-ninth Brunetti novel

      Trace Elements: A Comissario Guido Brunetti Mystery2020
      3.7
    • Trace Elements

      • 288 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      A woman's cryptic dying words in a Venetian hospice lead Guido Brunetti to uncover a regional threat in this haunting tale. When Dottoressa Donato informs the Questura about a dying patient wishing to speak to the police, Commissario Brunetti and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, respond promptly. Benedetta Toso gasps about her deceased husband, Vittorio Fadalto, claiming, "They killed him. It was bad money. I told him no." Despite uncertainty about her awareness, Brunetti assures her they will investigate what seems to be a private tragedy. They learn Fadalto collected contamination samples for a company monitoring Venice's water quality and died in a mysterious motorcycle accident. While briefly distracted by Vice Questore Patta's focus on youth crime, Brunetti benefits from the research skills of Patta's secretary, Signora Elettra Zorzi. As he untangles the threads of the case, Brunetti realizes the gravity of the woman's accusation and the broader implications for the region's health. However, justice remains ambiguous, echoing the complexities of guilt and responsibility, themes that resonate throughout the narrative, as Brunetti seeks solace in Aeschylus's The Eumenides.

      Trace Elements2020
      3.6
    • Surprised, if not dismayed, to discover from his superior, Vice-Questore Patta, that leaks are emanating from the Questura , Commissario Guido Brunetti is surprised more consequentially by the appearance of a friend of his wife's, fearful that her son is using drugs and hopeful Brunetti can somehow intervene. When Tullio Gasparini, the woman's husband, is found unconscious and with a serious brain injury at the foot of a Venice bridge at midnight, Brunetti is drawn to pursue a possible connection to the boy's behavior. But the truth, as Brunetti has experienced so often, is rarely straightforward. An examination of Gasparini's home office reveals a number of strange coupons in his elderly aunt's name from a local drugstore, which over time reveal a long-running scam. As the 27th novel unfolds in Donna Leon's exquisite chronicle of Venetian life in all its blissful and sordid aspects, Brunetti is ever more impressed by the intuition of his fellow Commissario Claudia Griffoni, and by the endless resourcefulness and craftiness of Signorina Elettra, Patta's secretary and gate-keeper, and reminded of the ever-lasting virtues of his own family. His intellectual pursuits lead him to read Sophocles' play Antigone , so revealing of the unintended consequences that can erupt from bad decisions--and tempt him to consider at least personal forgiveness for a crime from the heart gone bad.

      Les enquêtes du Commissaire Brunetti - 30: La Tentation du pardon2019
      3.0
    • Unto us a son is given

      • 272 pages
      • 10 hours of reading

      In the 28th novel in Donna Leon's bestselling Commissario Brunetti series, Brunetti's father-in-law, the Count Falier, urges Brunetti to investigate and intervene in the seemingly innocent plan of the Count's best friend, the elderly Gonzalo Rodriguez de Tejeda, to adopt a much younger man as his son. Under Italian inheritance laws this man would become heir to Gonzalo's entire fortune, a prospect Gonzalo's friends find appalling. For his part, Brunetti wonders why the old man can't be allowed his pleasure in peace. Not long after Gonzalo unexpectedly passes away, one of Gonzalo's oldest friends, just arrived in Venice for the memorial service, is strangled in her hotel room. Now with an urgent case to solve, Brunetti is drawn reluctantly into the long-hidden mystery in Gonzalo's life that ultimately led to murder. Once again, Donna Leon brilliantly follows the twists and turns of the human condition, reuniting us with some of crime fiction's most memorable and enduring characters.[Bokinfo]

      Unto us a son is given2019
      3.8
    • The Temptation of Forgiveness

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      A suspicious accident draws Brunetti into Venice's underworld - with unintended, disturbing consequences... A few weeks later, Tullio Gasparini, the woman's husband, is found unconscious with a serious head injury at the foot of a bridge, and Brunetti is drawn to pursue a possible connection to the boy's behaviour.

      The Temptation of Forgiveness2018
      3.8
    • Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery: Earthly Remains

      A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

      • 304 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      Donna Leon bestselling mystery novels have won a multitude of fans for their insider’s portrayal of Venice. From family meals to vaporetti rides, the details and rhythms of everyday life are an integral part of this beloved series. But so are the never-ending influx of tourists and the suffocating corruption. Through it all, Leon’s Commissario Guido Brunetti, a good man who loves his family and his city, has been an enduring figure, but in Earthly Remains , Brunetti’s endurance is tested more than ever before. During an interrogation, Brunetti acts rashly, doing something he quickly comes to regret, and in the fallout, he realizes that he needs a break. Granted leave from the Questura, Brunetti’s wife Paola ships him off to a villa owned by a wealthy relative on Sant’Erasmo, one of the largest islands in the laguna. There he intends to pass his days rowing, and his nights reading Pliny’s Natural History . The recuperative stay goes according to plan until David Casati, the caretaker of the house, goes missing following a sudden storm. Now, Brunetti feels compelled to investigate, to set aside his leave of absence and understand what happened to the man who had become his friend.

      Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery: Earthly Remains2017
      3.9
    • Earthly Remains

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      During the interrogation of an entitled, arrogant man suspected of giving drugs to a young girl who then died, Commissario Guido Brunetti acts rashly, doing something he will quickly come to regret. In the aftermath, he begins to doubt his career choices and realises that he needs a break from the stifling problems of his work. Granted leave from the Questura, Brunetti is shipped off by his wife, Paola, to a villa owned by a wealthy relative on Sant’Erasmo, one of the largest islands in the Venetian laguna. There he intends to pass his days rowing, and his nights reading Pliny’s Natural History. The recuperative stay goes according to plan and Brunetti is finally able to relax, until Davide Casati, the caretaker of the house, goes missing following a sudden storm. Nobody can find him – not his daughter, not his friends, and not the woman he’d been secretly visiting. Now, Brunetti feels compelled to investigate, to set aside his holiday and discover what happened to the man who had recently become his friend. In Earthly Remains, Donna Leon shows Venice through an insider’s eyes. From family meals and vaporetti rides to the never-ending influx of tourists and suffocating political corruption, the details and rhythms of everyday Venetian life are at the core of this thrilling novel, and of the terrible crime at its heart.

      Earthly Remains2017
      3.7
    • Commissario Brunetti - 24: Ik aanbid je

      Literaire thriller / druk 1

      • 304 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      Donna Leon’s Death at La Fenice , the first novel in her beloved Commissario Guido Brunetti series, introduced readers to the glamorous and cutthroat world of opera and one of Italy’s finest living sopranos, Flavia Petrelli—then a suspect in the poisoning of a renowned German conductor. Years after Brunetti cleared her name, Flavia has returned to Venice and La Fenice to sing the lead in Tosca . Brunetti and his wife, Paola, attend an early performance, and Flavia receives a standing ovation. Back in her dressing room, she finds bouquets of yellow roses—too many roses. Every surface of the room is covered with them. An anonymous fan has been showering Flavia with these beautiful gifts in London, St. Petersburg, Amsterdam, and now, Venice, but she no longer feels flattered. A few nights later, invited by Brunetti to dine at his in-laws’ palazzo, Flavia confesses her alarm at these excessive displays of adoration. And when a talented young Venetian singer who has caught Flavia’s attention is savagely attacked, Brunetti begins to think that Flavia’s fears are justified in ways neither of them imagined. He must enter in the psyche of an obsessive fan before Flavia, or anyone else, comes to harm.

      Commissario Brunetti - 24: Ik aanbid je2016
      3.4
    • The waters of eternal youth

      • 294 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      In The Waters of Eternal Youth, the twenty-fifth instalment in the bestselling Brunetti series, our Commissario finds himself drawn into a case that may not be a crime at all. Brunetti is investigating a cold case by request of the grand Contessa Lando-Continui, a friend of Brunetti’s mother-in-law. Fifteen years ago the Contessa’s teenage granddaughter, Manuela, was found drowning in a canal. She was rescued from the canal at the last moment, but in many ways it was too late; she suffered severe brain damage and her life was never the same again. Once a passionate horse rider, Manuela, now aged thirty, cannot remember the accident, or her beloved horse, and lives trapped in an eternal youth. The Contessa, unconvinced that this was an accident, implores Brunetti to find the culprit she believes was responsible for ruining Manuela's life. Out of a mixture of curiosity, pity and a willingness to fulfil the wishes of a loving grandmother, Brunetti reopens the case. But once he starts to investigate, Brunetti finds a murky past and a dark story at its heart. The Waters of Eternal Youth is awash in the rhythms and concerns of contemporary Venetian life, from historical preservation, to housing, to new waves of African migrants, all circling the haunting story of a woman trapped in a perpetual childhood.

      The waters of eternal youth2016
      4.1
    • Give Unto Others

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Once again, Commissario Guido Brunetti is willing to bend police rules for an acquaintance, even though Elisabetta Foscarini, the woman who asks the favour, is not really a friend. But her mother was good to Brunetti's, so he feels he has no choice but to repay the debt and agrees to look into the matter 'privately', rather than as a police official. Her son-in-law has alarmed his wife by telling her they might be in danger because of something he's involved with. Because Enrico Fenzo is an accountant, Brunetti suspects that the likely reason must be the finances of one of his clients. Brunetti takes a look and finds little- one client is an optician, another Fenzo`s father-in-law, whom he helped establish a charity, another the owner of a restaurant. He is about to tell his friend that he can find no reason for preoccupation when her daughter's place of work is vandalised, forcing Brunetti to turn his attention - still 'private' - to Elisabetta's own family. What he discovers shows the Janus-faced nature of yet another Italian institution as well as the wobbly line that attempts to differentiate between the criminal and the non-criminal.

      Give Unto Others2015
      3.6
    • Falling In Love

      • 272 pages
      • 10 hours of reading

      In Death at La Fenice , Donna Leon’s first novel in the beloved Commissario Brunetti series, readers were introduced to the glamorous and cutthroat world of opera and to one of Italy’s finest living sopranos, Flavia Petrelli, who became the prime suspect in the poisoning of a renowned German conductor. Years after Brunetti cleared her name, Flavia has returned to the illustrious La Fenice to sing the lead in Tosca . As an opera superstar, Flavia is well acquainted with attention from adoring fans and aspiring singers. But when one fan inundates her with bouquets of yellow roses – on stage, in her dressing room and even inside her locked apartment – it becomes clear that Flavia has an anonymous stalker on her hands. Distraught and horrified, she turns to an old friend for help. In steps Commissario Brunetti. Familiar with Flavia’s melodramatic temperament, he is at first unperturbed by her story, only realising the situation is more threatening when another young opera singer is attacked. Desperate to keep Flavia out of danger, Brunetti is determined to find the culprit before more harm is done.

      Falling In Love2015
      3.6
    • By Its Cover

      • 304 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      The multiple award-winning Leon has lost none of her talent for weaving intrigue, and the atmosphere of Venice is as beguiling as ever. Living North

      By Its Cover2014
      3.7
    • Erstaunliches und Erhieterndes über das berühmteste Boot der Welt, ergänzt durch die Bilder großer italienischer Meister und mit eienr CD Venezianischer Gondellieder gespielt vom ensemble "Il Pomo d'Oro"

      Gondola, m. Audio-CD2013
    • Celebrated by The Times as one of the 50 Greatest Crime Writers, Donna Leon brings Venice to life in the twenty-second Brunetti novel of this bestselling series, where our detective must uncover the mystery. When making routine enquiries into a possible bribery case that could embarrass the mayor - a humiliation Vice-Questore Patta is very keen to avoid - Commissario Brunetti receives a call from his wife, Paola, who is evidently very upset. The middle-aged deaf mute with the mental age of a child who helped out at the Brunetti's dry cleaners has been found dead - an 'accidental' overdose of his mother's sleeping pills - and Paola is distraught by the news. To the neighbourhood he was just the 'boy' who helped out, but nobody knew much about him - not even his name. That a soul could have lived such a joyless life is too much for Paola to bear, and she asks Guido if he can find out what happened. It is a surprise to Brunetti just how little was known about this man-child - there are no official records to show he even existed. The man's mother is angry and contradictory when questioned about his death, and Brunetti senses that there much more to the story than she is willing to tell. With the help of Inspector Vianello and the ever-resourceful Signorina Elettra, perhaps Brunetti can get to the truth and find some measure of solace.

      Golden Egg2013
      3.7
    • Policier: La petite fille de ses rêves

      Une enquête du commissaire Brunetti - Das Mädchen seiner Träume, französische Ausgabe

      • 325 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Le commissaire Brunetti, après l'enterrement de sa mère, est sollicité par un missionnaire pour enquêter sur une secte à Venise. Son hésitation est interrompue par la découverte du corps d'une fillette dans un canal.

      Policier: La petite fille de ses rêves2012
      3.2
    • The Jewels of Paradise

      • 276 pages
      • 10 hours of reading

      Caterina Pellegrini is a young Venetian musicologist hired by two competing cousins to find the truthful heir to an alleged treasure concealed by a once-famous, but now almost forgotten, baroque composer. Sworn to secrecy, Caterina can solve the mystery only by searching through the papers contained in the composer's two chests that have not been opened for centuries. As she delves into all quarters of his life, from professional to personal, she is drawn into one of the most scandalous affairs of the baroque era. When her research takes her in unexpected directions, she begins to wonder what dark secrets these chests hold and just whom can she trust?

      The Jewels of Paradise2012
      2.6
    • Beastly things

      • 296 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      When a man is found stabbed to death floating in the canal, Commissario Brunetti is convinced he recognises him from somewhere. But with no identification on the body and no reports of people missing from the Venice area, it seems as if he has appeared from nowhere, and the case is at a dead end. It doesn't take long for Brunetti to realise why he remembers the dead man - he saw him at a demonstration a couple of years ago, where farmers were protesting about European milk quotas. But what was his involvement with the protest, and could it have anything to do with his murder? Having nothing to go on but the distinctive shoes the man was wearing, and a disease that had left his body strangely deformed, Brunetti and Inspector Vianello set out to try and discover the man's identity. Their investigation eventually takes them to a slaughterhouse at Preganziol, on the mainland. It is there that Brunetti discovers the dead man's connection with the slaughterhouse, and the world of blackmail and corruption that surrounds it. With a gripping case set before a harrowing exploration of the meat industry, Donna Leon's latest novel is a dark and compelling addition to the Brunetti series.

      Beastly things2012
      3.6
    • Commissario Brunetti: Den sterkestes rett

      En ny sak for Commissario Brunetti

      • 287 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      Etterforskeren Guido Brunetti blir tilkalt når en ung militærkadett blir funnet død ved et antatt selvmord. Han blir møtt med en mur av stillhet, militæret beskytter sine egne og de sivile vil ikke snakke. Donna Leon har hatt stor suksess med bøkene om sympatiske, tørrvittige og vinglade italienske etterforskeren Brunetti. Handlingen i bøkene er lagt til Venezia og området rundt. Kriminalromanen ble utgitt på engelsk i 2003.

      Commissario Brunetti: Den sterkestes rett2011
    • ›Kurioses aus Venedig‹ – das erzählt Donna Leon. Untermalt werden die besonderen Begebenheiten mit Musik auf historischen Instrumenten: Virtuoses von Antonio Vivaldi, extra aufgenommen für dieses Buch von ›Il Complesso Barocco‹.

      Kurioses aus Venedig, m. Audio-CD2011
      4.3
    • Drawing Conclusions

      • 260 pages
      • 10 hours of reading

      When a young woman returns from holiday to find her elderly neighbour dead, she immediately alerts the police. Commissario Brunetti is called to the scene.

      Drawing Conclusions2011
      3.4
    • Sterke meninger

      • 285 pages
      • 10 hours of reading

      Commissario Brunetti er Venezias berømte mordetterforsker med store sanselige gleder. Han er gift med universitetslektoren Paola. Når studenten Claudia blir funnet knivstukket til døde, er hun ikke lenger bare Paolas student, men også Brunettis sak. Donna Leon har stor suksess med sine bøker om den italienske etterforskeren Brunetti.

      Sterke meninger2010
    • As Venice experiences a debilitating heatwave, Commissario Brunetti escapes the city to spend time with his family. For Ispettore Vianello, however, the weather is the last thing on his mind. It appears his aunt has become obsessed with horoscopes and has been withdrawing large amounts of money from the family business. Not knowing what to do, he consults Brunetti and asks permission to trail her. Meanwhile, Brunetti receives a visit from a friend who works at the Commune. It seems that discrepancies have been occurring at the Courthouse involving a judge and an usher with a flawless track record. Intrigued, Brunetti asks Signorina Elettra to find out what she can while he's away. When news reaches Brunetti that the usher from the Courthouse has been viciously murdered, he returns to investigate. But why would someone want a good man dead, and what might his death have to do with the Courthouse discrepancies?

      A Question of Belief2010
      3.9
    • Dood van een maestro. Bedrieglijke zaken

      • 635 pages
      • 23 hours of reading

      In "Dood van een Maestro" wordt tijdens de pauze van de opera La Traviata de beroemde dirigent Helmut Wellauer dood aangetroffen. Hij blijkt te zijn vergiftigd. De eigenzinnige maestro had vele vijanden, maar zou één van hen ook een moord op zijn geweten kunnen hebben? Commissario Guido Brunetti duikt in Wellauers verleden en doet macabere ontdekkingen over zowel het slachtoffer als de dader.Studente Claudia Leonardo benadert commissario Brunetti in "Bedrieglijke zaken" met een bijzondere vraag: ze wil weten of haar grootvader postuum kan worden vijgespriken van een misdaad waarvoor hij in het verleden is veroordeeld. De zaak heeft voor Brunettti geen prioriteit, maar dat verandert onmiddellijk wanneer het meisje dood wordt gevonden.

      Dood van een maestro. Bedrieglijke zaken2009
      3.0
    • Quan el commissario Brunetti coneix durant un sopar Franca Marinello, la dona d'un pròsper empresari venecià, queda completament fascinat per la seva passió per Virgili i Ciceró, i una mica sorprès per la seva aparença: una dona rossa i superficial que vesteix roba cara i exhibeix un vistós lífting facial.Pocs dies després, el responsable local dels carabinieri fa una visita a Brunetti. Vol obtenir informació sobre la mort del propietari d'una companyia de camions que, pel que sembla, pot estar relacionada amb el transport il·legal de residus i amb l'ecomàfia. Les descobertes del commissario demostren que l'enlluernadora Franca Marinello ha mantingut contactes amb el principal sospitós, un home sinistre amb un passat. Però la veritat sempre té un costat obscur.La nova novel·la de Donna Leon és un treball subtil, apassionant i d'una absoluta actualitat. I com sempre, ens transporta als carrers, els sons, les olors d'una Venècia inundada de vida."El commissario Brunetti ha captivat milions de lectors arreu del món". Avui "Brunetti crea addicció". News

      L'altra cara de la veritat2009
      3.4
    • Schöner Schein

      • 344 pages
      • 13 hours of reading

      "In About Face, Guido Brunetti and his wife, Paola, are on their way to a dinner party at Palazzo Falier, home of Paola's parents, the rich and powerful Conte and Contessa Falier, While Paola stops to examine a bookstore window, Brunetti's eye is caught by a couple ahead of them in the nearly deserted streets; a woman in an impossibly expensive fur coat on the arm of a much older man. He is intrigued when they turn out to be fellow dinner guests, and even more so when he sees the woman's face, which has been disfigured by excessive plastic surgery. She is Franca Marinello, La Superliftata, whom he's heard of but never met." "This intelligent, mysterious woman entrances Brunetti. When she visits him later at the Questura and asks a favor, he is troubled. Her request seems to land near his investigation into a suspicious death that looks like murder, and the illegal hauling of garbage. In Italy, the environment has reached a crisis. Incinerators across the south are at full capacity, burning who-knows-what, the polluted waters of Venice's canals sit in the shadow of a major chemical complex, and in Naples, enormous piles of garbage grow in the streets." As Brunetti delves into this shadowy, toxic world, he comes face to face with violence as dangerous as he's ever seen, and corruption that touches on his influential father-in-law, as well as the fascinating Franca Marinello.

      Schöner Schein2009
      3.8
    • The Girl of His Dreams

      • 326 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      One rainy morning Commissario Brunetti and Ispettore Vianello respond to a 911 call reporting a body floating near some steps on the Grand Canal. Reaching down to pull it out, Brunetti's wrist is caught by the silkiness of golden hair, and he sees a small foot - together he and Vianello lift a dead girl from the water. But, inconceivably, no one has reported a missing child, nor the theft of the gold jewellery that she carries. Brunetti is drawn into a search not only for the cause of her death but also for her identity, her family, and for the secrets that people will keep in order to protect their children - be they innocent or guilty. From the canals and palazzos of Venice to a Gypsy encampment on the mainland, Brunetti struggles with institutional prejudice and entrenched criminality to try to unravel the fate of the dead child.

      The Girl of His Dreams2008
      3.8
    • Schon in ihren Brunetti-Romanen interessiert sich Donna Leon nicht nur für kriminelle Mißstände, sondern auch für die Genüsse des Lebens. In den hier versammelten Geschichten läßt uns die Amerikanerin in Venedig teilhaben an ihrem Blick hinter die Kulissen der an Genüssen so reichen Lagunenstadt.

      Mein Venedig2007
      3.5
    • Suffer the Little Children

      • 352 pages
      • 13 hours of reading

      When Commissario Brunetti is summoned to the hospital bedside of a senior paediatrician whose skull has been fractured, he is confronted with more questions than answers. Three men have burst into the doctor's apartment in the middle of the night, attacked him and taken away his 18-month-old son. What can have motivated such an assault?.

      Suffer the Little Children2007
      3.6
    • Excursion to Tindari

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      A young Don Juan is found murdered in front of his apartment - and, at the same time, an elderly couple is reported missing after an excursion to the ancient site of Tindari. But as Inspector Montalbano discovers, these two seemingly unrelated cases lead him down a path more evil and far-reaching than he has been down before.

      Excursion to Tindari2006
      4.1
    • Through a Glass, Darkly

      • 326 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      Commissario Brunetti and his assistant Vianello secure the release of an environmental protester, only to be faced by the fury of the man's father-in-law, a cantankerous glass factory owner, in this fascinating novel that combines politics and culture.

      Through a Glass, Darkly2006
      3.8
    • Schon in ihren Brunetti-Romanen interessiert sich Donna Leon nicht nur fur kriminelle Mifi-stiinde, sondern auch fur die Gemisse des Le-bens. Die hier versammelten Geschichten han-deln nicht nur von guten Speisen, sondern auch von ihrer Leidenschaft fur Bucher und die Oper und von der Erholung in den Bergen. Und als Amerikanerin in Venedig schreibt Donna Leon nicht blofi liber Bella Italia, sondern auch iiber die Mafia und Machos. Von Venedig blickt sie hiniiber nach Amerika, dem Iran oder Saudi-Arabien.In ihrer direkten Art nimmt Donna Leon Un-vermutetes aufs Warum ist es nicht er-strebenswert, aufierordentlicher amerikanischer Konsul zu werden? Und wie findet man fur die beste Freundin in New York einen Mann? Woriiber reden Crime Ladies wie Barbara Vine und Donna Leon, wenn sie gemeinsam dinie-ren? Und warum weint man beim Lesen von Romanen leichter als in der Wirklichkeit? Wie schreibt man einen Kriminalroman? Und was tun Maulwiirfe eigentlich sonntags morgens um halb neun?Vielseitig, wie sie ist, stellt sich Donna Leon unerschrocken manche Frage - und bleibt da-bei sich selber treu. Ihr Blick ist ebenso unbe-stechlich wie anteilnehmend, und eines fehlt der Humor.

      Über Venedig, Musik, Menschen und Bücher2005
      3.9
    • Blood from a stone

      • 355 pages
      • 13 hours of reading

      On a cold Venetian night shortly before Christmas, a man is killed in a scuffle in Campo San Stefano. The closest witnesses to the event are the tourists who had been browsing the man's wares before his death - fake handbags of every designer label - but they have seen nothing that might be of much help to the police. When Commissario Brunetti arrives on the scene, he finds it hard to understand why anyone would murder an illegal immigrant. They have few social connections and little money; in-fighting is the obvious answer. But once Brunetti begins investigating this unfamiliar Venetian underworld, he discovers that matters of great value are at stake in the immigrant community...

      Blood from a stone2005
      3.9
    • Doctored evidence

      • 336 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      When the body of a wealthy elderly woman is found, brutally murdered in her Venetian flat, Commissario Brunetti decides - unofficially - to take the case on himself.

      Doctored evidence2004
      3.8
    • Commissario Brunetti - 12: De stille elite

      Een Venetiaanse misdaadroman

      • 224 pages
      • 8 hours of reading

      Commissaris Brunetti wordt geconfronteerd met de dood van een jongeman die op een particuliere militaire academie zat.

      Commissario Brunetti - 12: De stille elite2003
    • Bedrieglijke zaken

      Een Venetiaanse misdaadroman

      • 256 pages
      • 9 hours of reading

      Commissaris Brunetti krijgt bezoek van een jonge vrouw met een vreemde vraag; kort daarna wordt zij vermoord aangetroffen.

      Bedrieglijke zaken2002
    • Wilful Behaviour

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      From the acclaimed author of The Waters of Eternal Youth, Commissario Guido Brunetti dredges up dark secrets from Italy's anti-Semitic past in his captivating eleventh case. Mystery lovers everywhere are addicted to Donna Leon's ever-honorable Commissario Guido Brunetti and her portrayal of Venice's beautiful but sinister byways and canals. In Willful Behavior, Brunetti is approached for a favor by one of his wife's students. Intelligent and serious , Claudia Leonardo asks for his help in obtaining a pardon for a crime once committed by her now-dead grandfather. Brunetti thinks little of it-until Claudia is found dead. Soon, another corpse and an extraordinary art collection lead Brunetti to long-buried secrets of Nazi collaboration and the exploitation of Italian Jews-secrets few in Italy want revealed.

      Wilful Behaviour2002
      3.9
    • Vriendendienst

      Een Venetiaanse misdaadroman

      • 208 pages
      • 8 hours of reading

      Tijdens het onderzoek naar de dood van een ambtenaar voor bouwzaken komt een politieman uit Venetië in aanraking met corruptie, geldschieters en drugshandelaren.

      Vriendendienst2001
    • Wir befinden uns in der Wohnung von Donna Leon. Nicht nur vom Fenster aus, auch durch die Wände hindurch nimmt sie ihre Nachbarn wahr; meistens jedoch tauscht sie sich direkt mit ihnen aus. Dabei wird sie nicht nur in die Geheimnisse der italienischen Küche und in das Familienleben eingeweiht, sondern sie wird auch Zeugin vieler italienischer Mißstände, gegen die sie ankämpft, als wäre sie Commissario Brunetti in Person.

      Eine Amerikanerin in Venedig2000
      3.6
    • Venetian cop, Commissario Guido Brunetti, wonders whom he knows to bring pressure on a local government department, to investigate the lack of official building approval on his apartment. But when that same official phones him at work, clearly scared by some information he plans to give Brunetti, and is later found dead after a fall from scaffolding, something is clearly wrong, something with far greater implications than the fate of Guido's own apartment. Brunetti's investigations take him into the unfamiliar areas of Venetian life - drug abuse and loan sharking - while the deaths of two young drug addicts, and the arrest and release of a suspected drug dealer, reveal, once again, what a difference it makes in Venice to have 'Friends in High Places'.

      Friends in High Places2000
      3.9
    • Commissario Brunetti runs up against a wall of silence when he sets out to investigate the apparent suicide of a young man, the son of a prominent doctor, found hanged in Venice's elite military academy.

      Uniform Justice2000
      3.9
    • Motive müssen nicht so nobel sein wie das Geblüt, aus dem man stammt, und nicht überall geht es so idyllisch zu wie bei Familie Brunetti: Als auf dem Grundstück eines pensionierten deutschen Arztes am Fuß der Dolomiten die Leiche eines jungen Mannes gefunden wird, führt die Spur zum venezianischen Adelsgeschlecht der Lorenzonis und weiter hinter die Kulissen der Einflußreichen und Mächtigen.

      Nobiltá: Commissario Brunettis siebter Fall1999
      3.7
    • Wie kamen die italienischen Männer zu ihrem Ruf als Latin Lover? Was ist das Sinnliche an der klassischen Musik? Und wie findet man für die beste Freundin in New York einen Mann? In ihren Geschichten über Männer und Frauen geht Donna Leon Vorurteile und Idealbilder an, in der ihr eigenen direkten Art, amüsant, engagiert und ohne die Angst, als politically uncorrect zu gelten.

      Latin lover1999
      3.2
    • Fatal Remedies

      • 320 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      A sudden act of vandalism had just been committed in the chill Venetian dawn. But Commissario Guido Brunetti soon finds out that the perpetrator is no petty criminal. For the culprit waiting to be apprehended at the scene of the crime is none other than Paola Brunetti, his wife.As Paola's actions provoke a crisis in the Brunetti household, Brunetti himself is under increasing pressure at work: a daring robbery with Mafia connections is linked to a suspicious death and his superiors need quick results. As his professional and personal lives clash, Brunetti's own career is under threat - and the conspiracy which Paola had risked everything to expose draws him inexorably to the brink ...

      Fatal Remedies1999
      3.9
    • A noble radiance

      • 289 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      In a small village at the foot of the Italian Dolomites the gardens of a deserted farmhouse have lain untouched for decades. But the new owner, keen for renovations to start, disturbs a macabre grave, and Commissario Brunetti is called in.

      A noble radiance1998
      4.0
    • A Sea of Troubles

      • 336 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      The murder of two clam fishermen off the island of Pellestrina, south of the Lido on the Venetian lagoon, draws Commissario Brunetti into the close-knit community of the island, bound together by a code of loyalty and a suspicion of outsiders worthy of the Mafia. When the boss' secretary Signorina Elettra volunteers to visit the island, where she has relatives, Brunetti finds himself torn between his duty to solve the murders, concerns for Elettra's safety, and his not entirely straightforward feelings for her ...

      A Sea of Troubles1997
      3.9
    • The Venice commissioner, Guido Brunetti, investigates the murder of a museum director who was involved in the traffic of Chinese antiques. Suspicion falls on a wealthy collector.

      Acqua Alta1996
      4.0
    • The Anonymous Venetian

      • 352 pages
      • 13 hours of reading

      Commissario Brunetti's hopes of a refreshing holiday with his family are dashed when a body is found in Marghera so badly beaten that the face is unrecognizable. Brunetti searches in vain for someone who can identify the body. Then he receives a call promising some tantalizing information.

      The Anonymous Venetian1995
      3.9
    • A Venetian Reckoning

      • 326 pages
      • 12 hours of reading

      When a lorry crashes on one of the treacherous hair-pin bends in the Italian Dolomites even Commissario Guido Brunetti of the Venice Questura is appalled when he learns of its terrible cargo. This is Donna Leon's fourth novel to feature Guido Brunetti.

      A Venetian Reckoning1995
      3.9
    • The second novel to feature Guido Brunetti, commissario of the Venice Police. Brunetti confronts the grisly sight of the body of an American soldier in a canal. He becomes suspicious and discovers toxic waste-dumping and a high-level cover-up that extends from the Mafia to the US Army.

      Death in a Strange Country1993
      3.9
    • The twisted maze of Venice's canals has always been shrouded in mystery. Even the celebrated opera house, La Fenice, has seen its share of death ... but none so horrific and violent as that of world-famous conductor, Maestro Helmut Wellauer, who was poisoned during a performance of La Traviata. Even Commissario of Police, Guido Brunetti, used to the labyrinthine corruptions of the city, is shocked at the number of enemies Wellauer has made on his way to the top - but just how many have motive enough for murder? The beauty of Venice is crumbling. But evil is one thing that will never erode with age.

      Death at La Fenice. Venezianisches Finale, englische Ausgabe1993
      3.8
    • Maria Testa, better known to Brunetti as the nun who once cared for his mother, turns up at the Commissario's door. Maria has left her nursing convent after the suspicious deaths of five patients. Is she creating fears to justify abandoning her vocation, or is there a more sinister scenario?

      The Death of Faith1992
      3.9
    • Transient Desires

      • 288 pages
      • 11 hours of reading

      In his many years as a commissario, Guido Brunetti has seen all manner of crime and known intuitively how to navigate the various pathways in his native Venice to discover the person responsible. Now, in the thirtieth novel in Donna Leon's masterful series, he faces a heinous crime committed outside his jurisdiction. He is drawn in innocently enough: two young American women have been badly injured in a boating accident, joy riding in the Laguna with two young Italians. However, Brunetti's curiosity is aroused by the behaviour of the young men, who abandoned the victims after taking them to the hospital. If the injuries were the result of an accident, why did they want to avoid association with it?

      Transient Desires1954
      3.9