A Refiner's Fire

A Refiner's Fire by Donna Leon begins slowly with the first section dealing with a confrontation between two groups of young teenagers one night. The boys are taken to the police station where their details are taken and their parents are notified to collect them. 

When there is one boy left Commissario Claudia Griffoni offers to ensure that the fifteen year old arrives home safely. Later, she and Commissario Guido Brunetti learn that there appears to be a mystery about the boy's father and decide to investigate. During the novel we follow the investigations of Guido Brunetti and his team as they endeavour to discover what really happened in in Iraq twenty years earlier. 

The novel also reflects on the growth of youth crime in Venice and restrictions placed on police when attempting to interview young offenders under 18. Guido Brunetti and Claudia Griffoni use contacts to monitor social media sites used by some of the 'baby gangs' to announce their next planned activity.

Another well crafted novel by Donna Leon providing the reader with a glimpse into life in the city of Venice as well as the lives of Guido Brunetti and his family.

So Shall You Reap

The story of Guido Brunetti continues in So Shall You Reap by Donna Leon, number 32 in the Commissario Brunetti series.

When Guido is called in the middle of the night to attend a potential crime scene he discovers that the body removed from the canal is that of a man he had spoken to the previous day. Inesh Kavinda , an undocumented Sri Lankan, has been working at the Palazzo Zaffo dei Leoni and living in a house in the gardens of the property. How did his stabbed body end up in a canal and why was he killed?

During the investigation Guido discovers that Inesh had been reading a collection of articles relating to political unrest in Italy in the 1980s. This revives Guido's memories of those times and also causes him to reflect on his youth and some of the beliefs and ideals he had when a student.

As usual the author provides the reader with a picture of Venice - its geography, history and culture. Our understanding of Guido is increased as we learn more of his past and as we continue to witness his family life with Paola and their children. As the investigation into Inesh's death continues it becomes obvious that a knowledge of Italian political history is central to solving the murder.

Give Unto Others

It is always a joy to read another book set in Venice by Donna Leon. Give Unto Others is number 31 in the Commissario Brunetti series and it doesn't disappoint. Donna Leon's books are as much about Venice and the characters portrayed in the books as  about any crime that may have been commited.

This book is set after the major COVID-19 wave in Venice, a city that relies heavily on tourism but has been devistated by the effects of months of restrictions and fear that have basically reduced the once thriving city to a shell of its former glory.

When Guido Brunetti arrives at work one day he discovers that he has a visitor - a former neighbour from when he was very young. Elisabetta tells Guido that she is concerned that her daughter may be in danger and can he quietly investigate without making it official police business. Guido is reluctant to become involved but he remembers that Elisabetta's mother had always been kind to his mother and feels obliged to at least do some preliminary research - a decision that he later comes to regret.

As he investigates the story that Elisabetta gave hime, Guido soon discovers a darker story that may involve fraud. However it is also obvious that obtaining proof may be impossible. Meanwhile he does discover Elisabetta's real motive for her visit revealing a complex web of relationships and revenge.

Transient Desires

When two injured American tourists are found lying on the dock at the back entrance to a hospital, Commissario Guido Brunetti and Commissario Claudia Griffoni investigate. The two girls had been for a joyride on the laguna with two young Italian men when the boat was involved in an accident. Both of the investigators believe that there is more to the story than is initially revealed.

Transient Desires by Donna Leon is the 30th title in the Commissario Brunetti series of books set in Venice. Much of the book is about living in Venice and the relationships between Venetians and other Italians. It is also about the differences and tensions that may arise between the various law enforcement agencies as the two detectives work with the Carabinieri and the Guardia Costiera in order to solve a horrible crime.

The novel was written in 2020 and has occasional references to fewer tourists in Venice including the comment that it had not been wise to wish that there were no tourists in the city.

Once again I enjoyed spending a short time in a world inhabited by Guido Brunetti and his family as they discussed issues affecting their everyday lives, including the environment, as well as philosophical theories. I look forward to the next installment.

Trace Elements

Donna Leon has been writing this series of books about Commissario Guido Brunetti and Venice for many years. This novel is the twenty-nineth. I always look forward to a new novel in this series because the stories are about people, their love, fears and foibles, about living in Venice as well as a crime or two to investigate. It is summer in Venice and the author vividly describes locals trying to cope in a hot, crowded, tourist city where there are few places to escape the heat and the many visitors exploring tourist destinations.

In Trace Elements Guido and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, are asked to visit a woman who is in a hospice and has a story that she wants to tell the police. As they leave the hospice they are not sure whether the information that she gave them refers to a crime or not. On their second visit a few days later the patient dies. Guido and Claudia decide that the woman's story has to be investigated which leads to trying to discover how and why her husband died and what is really going on at a water plant that could be threatening the lives of people living and working in the surrounding area.

Added to this, when Vice Questore Patta becomes concerned with young pick pockets in Venice giving the city a bad name when a campaign in a magazine to promote the city is to be launched Guido is summoned the resolve the issue.

The issues in these novels are ethical issues and are never straight forward. They therefore provide Guido and the reader plenty to think about.

Unto us a son is given

When Commissario  Guido Brunetti's father-in-law asks him to investigate the actions of an old friend Brunetti is reluctant to do so, however he eventually agrees. Before long it seen becomes clear that other people are also concerned about the possible actions of Gonzalo who plans to adopt a younger man as his son. Then Gonzalo dies of natural causes so the investigation ceases. However, before a memorial service for Gonzalo can be be held by his friends in Venice one of the organisers of the service is murdered.

The murder only occurs towards the end of this book which is largely about relationships between the main characters, the city of Venice and the intricacies of Italian law. Descriptions of food continues to be important throughout the story as does Brunetti's love of literature which helps him relax. Bruneti is also asked to investigate a family whose young son is insulting and annoying the Vice-Questore's wife.

This is another excellent installment in the Commissario Brunetti series of books by Donna Leon.

The Temptation of Forgiveness

It is many years since I have read any of the Commissario Brunetti novels by Donna Leon so when a friend gave me a copy of the latest book in the series I was pleased to once again become immersed in the the world of Guido Bruneti and the Venetian Questura.

A woman comes to Brunetti's office concerned that her son is being sold drugs after school. Some time later the woman's husband is found injured after falling from a bridge. Guido Brunetti and his team investigate the many leads, often false trails, until discovering what really happened.

Like Louise Penny's books set primarily in or near Three Pines, the location, Venice, in the Brunetti books is always present and plays a dominant part in the story. The relationship between Guido Brunetti and his colleagues and family members is also an important feature of the novels. The human side of the main characters, as well as the suspects, is explored as Brunetti endeavours to discover not only who committed a crime but the circumstances behind their actions.

Beastly Things

Beastly things by Donna Leon, a Guido Brunetti novel, is number 12 in the series set in Venice but each can be read as a separate book where Commissario Guido Brunetti and his colleagues have a crime to solve. This time an unidentified body is found floating in a canal, therefore no obvious crime scene.

The crime, however, is only one part of Guido Brunetti novels. Descriptions of the city of Venice form a major feature of the stories. Members of Brunetti's family are not just background characters and by the end of the book the reader has experienced Brunetti's views, not just on resolving the crime but also on day to day life in Venice. In this book investigations lead to a slaughter house on the mainland with animal rights issues, particularly the killing of animals for food, becoming a topic for discussion among some of the characters.

About face

In this latest episode by Donna Leon, Commissario Brunetti is asked by an officer from a neighbouring police force to help investigate a murder believed to be connected with the legal dumping of rubbish, including toxic waste. His father in law also asks him for background information on the business dealings of a businessman who has asked him to become a partner in shipping unspecified gods to China. The subsequent murder of the police officer who has a photograph of the murderer encourages Brunetti to continue the investigation revealing links with the mafia. The book also focuses on Franca Marinello with her disfigured face and her love for classical literature.

As usual there is much reflection on Italian politics, corruption and ethical issues as the story unfolds.

Brunetti's Venice: walks through the novels

Toni Sepela provides an exploration of the City of Venice based on the series of Brunetti books written by Donna Leon. Donna Leon wrote the introduction. In the novels Brunetti walks through the streets of Venice or travels in the police boat or other water transport along the many canals as he solves his cases. In this book Sepela provides twelve walks varying from 1.5 to 2 hours duration covering different parts of the city. Each walk contains references to events described in the novels occuring at a specific location. Maps are provided showing the route with the places to stop numbered.

The focus of the guide is on Venice as observed by Brunetti. Donna Leon, through the novels, brings Venice to life and the guide allows both visitors to that city and readers at home to explore Brunetti's home city.

The girl of his dreams

When a young gypsy girl is found drowned in a canal, Commissario Brunetti and Ispettore Vanello discover that finding out her identity as well as how she died is not straight forward. Differences in culture, attitudes to people of different nationalities and the changes in Venice brought in to accommodate the interests of the tourists rather than the locals are some of the issues that concern Brunetti and his wife Paola. The concerns of a priest about the activities of a man who may be obtaining money fraudulently from gullible people is investigated by Brunetti.

In Donna Leon's books Venice and living in Venice provides an important component of the book as are Brunetti's thoughts on the issues that he is investigating.