A Question of Belief Book + PRICE WATCH * Amazon pricing is not included in price watch

A Question of Belief Book

Anyone who knows and loves Venice will treasure the Donna Leon series of crime novels. Donna Leon comes from New Jersey USA but has lived in Venice for over a quarter of a century. This best selling series is set in and around Venice using real landmarks which can easily be located (believe me I've seen it myself!) The books all feature Guido Brunetti a police Commissario a sceptical, deep thinking man who spends his working days fighting against an oft times corrupt society. Brunetti's family, his wife Paola and his children Raffi and Chiara, and colleagues Vice Questore Patta, Ispettore Vianello and the elegant Signorina Elettra (Patta's secretary) all appear in every book creating even more of a feeling of familiarity for us as we see them all progress though their lives.Her latest book "a Question of Belief" is the nineteenth novel in the series and is a delight to read as usual.The story begins in Venice during a summer heat-wave and the author describes the scene so vividly that one can almost feel the unbearable oppression brought about by the high temperatures and humidity while reading the opening chapters. The plot is concerned with Vianello's aging Aunt's involvement with an astrologer (to whom she is paying large sums of money) and irregularities in procedure at the local law court involving Luisa Coltinelli (a judge) and Araldo Fontana (court usher). After Fontana is found murdered, Brunetti cuts his summer holiday short and leads the convoluted investigation which pushes him further than ever into the depths of criminality and corruption.The author has once again produced a very enjoyable read and has provided stark contrast between the warmth and decency of Brunetti and his family, and the immorality of the criminal underworld. With detailed descriptions of Venetian buildings, Vaporetto stops, espresso's, prosecco's and large helpings of proscuito the book serves as a magnet pulling one back to Venice. I just hope I don't happen upon a murder next time I go. Though it would be very nice to meet Guido Brunetti himself.......!Read More

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  • Amazon

    Some authors -- even the best -- can show varying levels of consistency in their books, and sometimes deliver less than their top work. Which is why Donna Leon is considered one of the most reliable practitioners in the field -- so consistently high is the standard of her books. One might imagine by now that she would be repeating herself in her highly entertaining series of novels featuring Commissario Guido Brunetti, but there is little evidence of that. Leon, an American expat who has chosen to relocate herself to Venice (where she is friendly with such talented people as the singer Cecilia Bartoli), utilises her knowledge of her adopted city to great effect. As in the latest outing for Brunetti, A Question of Belief.

    Venice is sweltering in a heat wave, and Leon's doughty copper is looking forward to getting away from the city and relaxing with his family in the relative cool of the mountains. But his colleague Ispettore Vianello has other things on his mind than the weather; his aunt, seemingly befuddled by an obsessive belief in horoscopes and astrology, has been siphoning off considerable amount of cash from the family business. Vianello asks Brunetti if it would be possible to trail her -- and this unorthodox investigation points the detectives in the direction of one Stefano Gorini. This beneficiary of the aunt’s largesse is not everything that he seems.

    At the same time, it appears that there have been irregularities in the courts. At the Tribulane, an usher with a previously spotless reputation, Fontana, has been involved in suspicious business with a judge, Luisa Coltellini -- it appears that justice has a price. And then Fontana is brutally killed. Brunetti and Vianello now have more than enough problems to keep them even busier than usual.

    Apart from the usual impeccable plotting, there is the customarily sharp evocation of Venice (something, of course, that Leon can do with one hand tied behind her back). This is not, perhaps, the most sheerly entertaining in the series -- but with the issues of faith and corruption it addresses, it is one of the most provocative. --Barry Forshaw

  • ASDA

    As Venice experiences a debilitating heatwave Commissario Brunetti prepares to escape the city and spend time with his family in the mountains. 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.

  • 0434020206
  • 9780434020201
  • Donna Leon
  • 1 April 2010
  • William Heinemann Ltd
  • Hardcover (Book)
  • 272
  • 1st Edition
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