Search Results: Donna Leon from I Cannot Live Without Books

About Face (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #18) by Donna Leon
Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti and his wife, Paola, are on their way to a dinner party when Brunetti's eye is caught by a couple ahead of them: 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 meets the woman Franca Marinello, La Superliftata, whom he's heard of but never met, and who entrances Brunetti with her love of Virgil and Cicero. But when she visits him later at the Questura and aska a favor, her request seems to land near his investigation into a suspicious death and the illegal hauling of garbage. In Italy, the environment has reached a crisis and Brunetti delves into a shadowy, toxic world, he comes face to face with violence and corruption more dangerous than anything he's seen before. An exceptional installment in this masterful series, About Face is Donna Leon at her finest.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2009

Acqua Alta (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #5) by Donna Leon
As Venice braces for the onslaught of a winter tempest and acqua alta -- the rising waters from exceptionally high tides -- Commissario Guido Brunetti is pulled from his warm bed to find that an old friend, Dotoressa Brett Lynch, has been savagely beaten in the palazzo home she shares with Flavia Petrelli, the reigning diva of La Scala. Brunetti suspects that this is not a simple crime, and then, as the flood waters rise, a corpse is discovered.
Grove Press, Softcover, 1996

Beastly Things (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #21) by Donna Leon
When the body of a man is found in a canal, damaged by the tides, carrying no wallet, and wearing only one shoe, Commissario Guido Brunetti has little to work with. No local has filed a missing person report, and no hotel guests have disappeared. With Inspector Vianello, Brunetti canvases shoe stores and winds up on the mainland in Mestre, outside his usual sphere, where they learn the man had a kind way with animals. Meanwhile, animal rights and meat consumption are quickly becoming preoccupying issues at the Venice Questura and in Brunetti's home. With the help of Signorina Elettra, Brunetti and Vianello can identify the man and understand why someone wanted him dead. Subtle and engrossing, Beastly Things is vintage Donna Leon.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2012

Blood From a Stone (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #14) by Donna Leon
On a cold night shortly before Christmas, a Senegalese street vendor is killed in Venice's Campo Santo Stefano. The nearest witnesses to the death are the tourists who have been browsing the man's wares -- fake handbags of every designer label --, but they have seen nothing that might be of much help to the police. When Commissario Guido 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, so infighting among them seems the obvious answer. But once Brunetti begins investigating this unfamiliar underworld, he discovers that matters of great value are at stake in this community.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2005

By It's Cover (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #23) by Donna Leon
In the pages of Donna Leon's internationally bestselling Commissario Guido Brunetti mysteries, the conversations of the Brunetti family have often turned to topics of art and literature. Still, books are at the heart of this novel like never before. One afternoon, Brunetti gets a frantic call from the director of a prestigious Venetian library. Someone has stolen pages out of several rare books. The apparent culprit, a visiting American professor, seems to be the man who requested the volumes. But it soon becomes clear that the professor is not who he said he was. As the investigation proceeds, the suspects multiply. And when a seemingly harmless character turns up brutally murdered, Brunetti must question his expectations about what makes a man innocent or guilty.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2014

Death and Judgment (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #4) by Donna Leon
In the fourth book of Leon's internationally bestselling Commissario Guido Brunetti series, a truck crashes and spills its illegal cargo on a treacherous road in the Italian Dolomite Mountains. Meanwhile, a prominent international lawyer is found dead aboard an intercity train bound for Venice. Brunetti suspects a connection between the two tragedies. Digging deep for an answer, he stumbles upon a seedy Venetian bar that holds the key to a crime network that reaches far beyond the laguna. But it will take another violent death in Venice before Brunetti and his colleagues can get to the bottom of the horrific events.
Grove Press, Softcover, 1995

Death at La Fenice (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #1) by Donna Leon
There is little violent crime in Venice, a serenely beautiful floating city of mystery, magic, history, and decay. But the evil that occasionally rears its head is the jurisdiction of Guido Brunetti, the suave, urbane vice-commissario of police and a genius at detection. Now all of his admirable abilities must come into play in the deadly affair of Maestro Helmut Wellauer, a world-renowned conductor who died painfully from cyanide poisoning during an intermission at La Fenice.
But as the investigation unfolds, a chilling picture slowly begins to take shape -- a detailed portrait of revenge painted with vivid strokes of hatred and shocking depravity. The dilemma for Guido Brunetti will not be finding a murder suspect but rather narrowing the choices down to one.
Harper Perennial, Softcover, 1992, 1995

Death in a Strange Country (Commisario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #2) by Donna Leon
Early one morning Commissario Guido Brunetti confronts a grisly sight when the body of a young man is fished out of a fetid canal. All the clues point to a violent mugging, but for Brunetti, the motive of robbery seems altogether too convenient. When something is discovered in the victim's apartment that suggests the existence of a high-level conspiracy, Brunetti becomes convinced that somebody, somewhere, is taking great pains to provide a ready-made solution to the crime.
Grove Press, Softcover, 1993, 2009

Doctored Evidence (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #13) by Donna Leon
When the body of a wealthy older woman is found brutally murdered in her apartment, the authorities suspect her maid, who is on the run with a large sum of money. But when Commissario Guido Brunette decides -- unofficially -- to take on the case himself, he finds no shortage of suspects in the death of the mean-spirited woman. Could it be that the crime was not motivated by greed but by another deadly sin? Wrath, perhaps even lust? Filled with Leon's signature plot twists, Doctored Evidence is a terrific novel of suspense that once more finds Brunetti and his boss's indispensable secretary, Signorina Elettra, navigating the murky waters of Venetian society.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2004

Drawing Conclusions (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #20) by Donna Leon
Late one night, Commissario Guido Brunetti is called away from dinner to investigate the death of a widow in her modest apartment. Though there are some signs of a struggle, the medical examiner ruled that she died of a heart attack. It seems there is nothing for Brunetti to investigate. But he can't shake the feeling that something or someone may have triggered her heart attack, that perhaps the woman was threatened. Conversations with the woman's son, her upstairs neighbor, and the nun in charge of the old-age home where she volunteered do little to satisfy Brunetti's nagging curiosity. With the help of Inspector Vianello and the ever-resourceful Signorina Elettra, perhaps Brunetti can get to the truth and find some justice in this outstanding twentieth installment in Donna Leon's magisterial Brunetti series.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2011

Dressed for Death (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #3) by Donna Leon
Commissario Guido Brunetti's hopes of escaping the sweltering heat of Venice in August for a refreshing family holiday in the mountains are dashed when a gruesome discovery is made in a field in Marghera -- a body so badly beaten the face is completely unrecognizable. Brunetti searches Venice, including the red-light district, for someone who can identify the corpse, but he is met with a wall of silence. Then he receives a phone call promising tantalizing information, provided he meets with the caller under a bridge outside town in the middle of the night. This dangerous rendezvous could help him uncover the truth, but before the night is out, Brunetti is confronting another appalling and apparently senseless death.
Grove Press, Softcover, 1994, 2008

Earthly Remains (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #26) by Donna Leon
At the start of Earthly Remains, Commissario Guido Brunetti, confronted once more by someone of privilege avoiding censure, loses patience at work and, in the aftermath, realizes that he needs a break and is granted leave from the questura. His wife, Paola, urges him to spend time at a villa on Sant'Erasmo, one of the largest islands in the lagoon, owned by a wealthy relative. There he passes his nights reading Pliny's Natural History and his days rowing with the villa's caretaker, Cavide Casati, trying to discover the reason his bee colonies in the laguna are suffering. The recuperative stay goes according to plan until Casati goes missing following a sudden storm. Compelled to investigate, Brunetti sets aside his leave of absence to understand what happened to the man who has become his friend and, in the process, dredges up dark memories of an accident and cover-up years before. Earthly Remains is quintessential Donna Leon,… Read More

Fatal Remedies (Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery, Book #8) by Donna Leon
In the eighth book in Donna Leon's internationally bestselling series, Commissario Guido Brunetti's career comes under threat as his professional and personal lives unexpectedly intersect.
It all begins with an early morning phone call. In the chill of the Venetian dawn, a sudden act of vandalism shatters the city's quiet, and Brunettis is shocked to find that the culprit waiting to be apprehended at the scene is his wife, Paola. She has taken a stand against a travel agency known for a certain kind of shady tourism. Meanwhile, at work, Brunetti is under pressure from his superiors to solve a daring robbery with a link to a suspicious accidental death. Does it all lead back to the Mafia? And how are his family's actions connected to these crimes?
Grove Press, Softcover, 2021

Friends in High Places (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #9) by Donna Leon
In Donna Leon's ninth novel featuring her celebrated protagonist, Commissario Guido Brunetti finds himself caught up in a typically Venetian problem: red tape over renovations. Visited by a young bureaucrat, Brunetti learns that, officially, his apartment does not exist. The extra floor that was added years before was never approved. But what begins as a troublesome headache ends with the bureaucrat found dead after a mysterious fall from a scaffold. Brunetti starts an investigation that takes him into unfamiliar and dangerous areas of Venetian life, and shows him, once again, what a difference it makes to have friends in high places.Grove Press, Softcover, 2008

The Girl of His Dreams (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #17 by Donna Leon
When a priest recently returned from years of missionary work in Africa calls on Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti with a request. Brunetti suspects the man has hidden motives. An American-style Christian group has begun meeting in private homes in the city, and it's possible the priest is merely wary of the competition. Nevertheless, Brunetti and his wife, Paola, decide to go undercover to probe further. But when a girl's body is found floating in a canal, Brunetti must put everything aside to investigate the secretive world of her people, the gypsies, who exist on the fringes of Italian society.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2008

The Golden Egg (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #22) by Donna Leon
Donna Leon's novels starring the wise and humane Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti have won fans and are bestsellers worldwide. In The Golden Egg, when Brunetti's wife, Paola, asks him to look into the death of the handicapped man who worked at their local dry cleaner, Brunetti is surprised to find nothing on the man in the official records: no birth certificate, no driver's license, no credit cards. As far as the Italian government is concerned, he never existed. And yet, there is the body. As secrets unravel, Brunetti suspects an aristocratic family might be connected to the case. But why would anyone want this sweet, simple-minded man dead?
Grove Press, Softcover, 2013

A Noble Radiance (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #7) by Donna Leon
In a small village at the foot of the Italian Dolomites, not far from Venice, the gardens of a deserted farmhouse have lain untouched for decades. But the new owner, eager for renovations to begin, is summoned to the house when his workmen disturb a macabre grave. Nearby, a valuable signet ring is found, reigniting an infamous cold case of kidnapping and disappearance involving one of Venice's oldest, most aristocratic families. The victim's cousin, next in line to inherit the family business and fortune, is the logical suspect, but Brunetti senses something more insidious at play. Only Commissario Guido Brunetti can unravel the clues and find his way into the heart of patrician Venice and that of a family grieving for their lost son.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2006

A Question of Belief (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #19) by Donna Leon
Donna Leon's bestselling series featuring the principled, warmhearted Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti has won her countless fans, critical acclaim, and international renown as one of the world's best crime writers. In A Question of Belief, Brunetti must contend with ingenious corruption, bureaucratic intransigence, and the stifling heat of a Venetian summer. With his hometown beset by hordes of tourists and baking under a glaring sun, Brunett's greatest wish is to go to the mountains with his family, where he can sleep under a down comforter and catch up on his reading. But before he can go on vacation, a folder with court records has landed on his desk, brought by an old friend. It appears that cases at the local court -- hardly known as a model of efficiency -- are being delayed to benefit one of the parties, a creative new trick for corrupting the system. And just when it looks like Brunetti will be able to get… Read More

Quietly in Their Sleep (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #6) by Donna Leon
In the sixth novel featuring Donna Leon's ever-charming and sympathetic protagonist, Commissario Guido Brunetti comes to the aid of a young nun, a nurse who has had five patients unexpectedly die and decides to leave her convent. During his inquiries, Brunetti encounters an unusual cast of characters but discovers nothing that seems criminal. Is the nun simply creating a justification for abandoning her vocation? Or has she stumbled onto something very real and very sinister -- something that places her own life in imminent danger? A beautiful, suspense-filled novel, Quietly in Their Sleep, is Donna Leon at the top of her form.
Grove Press, Softcover, 1997

A Sea of Troubles (Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, Book #10) by Donna Leon
On a beautiful spring morning on the island of Pellestrina, south of the Lido on the Venetian lagoon, a small boat moored at the docks suddenly explodes, killing two local clam fishermen. When it becomes clear that the fire was deliberately set, Brunetti decides to investigate. But when he tries to dig up information about the murder, the island's tight-knit -- and closemouthed -- community closes ranks, forcing Brunetti to accept Signorina Elettra's offer to visit her relatives there to search for clues. On the island, Brunetti finds himself torn between his duty to solve the murders and his concerns for the Signorina's safety. Though loyal to his beloved wife, Paola, Brunetti's concern for his boss's spirited secretary may be driven by more than a platonic feeling. Suspenseful, provocative, and deeply unsettling, A Sea of Troubles is an explosive and irresistible installment in this marvelous series.
Grove Press, Softcover, 2001