Death and Judgment

Commissario Brunetti #4

by Donna Leon

Een vrachtwagen crasht op een verraderlijke weg in de Italiaanse Alpen. Niet alleen de chauffeur komt om, maar ook acht vrouwen die in de laadruimte zaten opgesloten. Intussen wordt Carlo Trevisan, een beroemde advocaat, doodgeschoten in de intercity van Padua naar Venetië. Commissario Brunetti vermoedt een verband tussen de tragedies, zeker nadat twee dagen later ook de accountant van Trevisan wordt vermoord.


Een louche bar in Padua, waar zelfs de lokale inwoners zich niet wagen, lijkt de sleutel tot een crimineel netwerk. Maar er is nog een moord nodig voor Brunetti echt begrijpt wat er is gebeurd.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Italy, Audiobook, Detective, Mystery Thriller

326 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Donna Leon (born September 29, 1942, in Montclair, New Jersey) is an American author of a series of crime novels set in Venice and featuring the fictional hero Commissario Guido Brunetti.

Donna Leon has lived in Venice for over twenty-five years. She has worked as a lecturer in English Literature for the University of Maryland University College - Europe (UMUC-Europe) in Italy, then as a Professor from 1981 to 1999 at the american military base of Vicenza (Italy) and a writer.

Her crime novels are all situated in or near Venice. They are written in English and translated into many foreign languages, although not, by her request, into Italian. Her ninth Brunetti novel, Friends in High Places, won the Crime Writers' Association Silver Dagger in 2000.

Series:
* Commissario Brunetti

Reviews

[Zain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable!

Another enjoyable Commissario Brunetti mystery!

I love the way the author makes the city of Venice, and her neighboring cities, part of the story, as well.

Brunetti’s trips through the Calle are as interesting as the mysteries.

A thrilling five stars. 💫💫💫💫💫

[Blaine DeSantis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite my love and respect for Donna Leon books, I think she was going through a dark time when she wrote this. Or maybe she just got fed up with all the junk that goes on in Venice and elsewhere and decided to have Commissario Brunetti tackle some difficult issues. The book begins with a tractor trailer accident in which the contents of the trailer are destroyed - lumber and a load of foreign women! But life went on without a concern until all of a sudden 3 leading businessmen are killed and Brunetti is assigned to the case. Throughout the book we are forced to face the financial corruption and bribery that goes on in Italy, the inequality of the Italian judicial system where wealthy corrupt officials and politicians get their crimes basically swept under the rug, while pickpockets and other minor criminals suffer harsher penalties. We also get a very up close view of the sex trafficking and pornography industry with a final result that is both shocking and yet totally believable. Wonderful writing, but a tough topic, a topic we need to understand and address. Brunetti does his best but sometimes the best is not enough.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had tried the first book in this series years and years ago and for some reason, wasn’t impressed. But with two of my dear friends continuing to rave about the series, I decided to give it another go. My crazy library has all of the latter books, but is hit or miss with the earlier books. This was available so I decided to give it a try. I loved it! I loved Brunnetti, but I really loved his family and their normal, loving relationship.
Leon also made me feel like I was totally there - the slower pace, the love of food and wine, the corruption. His wife, Paola, provides a voice in the wilderness when it comes to discussing honor and ethics. The book starts with a tractor trailer accident where it’s discovered the cargo included foreign women. Then several businessmen are killed and Brunetti is assigned the investigation. The investigation ends up revolving around prostitution and human trafficking.
Leon provides a sly, dry sense of humor amidst the philosophy discussions and darker topics. I’m convinced now and will be seeking out the rest of the series that’s available.
I was very impressed with David Colucci’s narration and happy to see he narrates the entire series.

[Baba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Commissioner Brunetto case No. 4: Brunetti has to investigate the death of a top city businessman and the case leads him to a conspiracy of crimes against women. A solid and interesting detective thriller. 6 out of 12.

[Alex is The Romance Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

We return to the beautiful city of Venice and meet up once again with Commissario Guido Brunetti, in Donna Leon’s 4th book in the Commissario Brunetti Series.

A truck crashes on a mountain road in the Italian Dolomites, killing the driver and a cargo of unidentified women.
A month later, a prominent local lawyer, is found murder on an intercity train in Venice.

Two incidents that seem totally unrelated until Commissario Brunetti begins investigating the murder of the lawyer, who has a clean record – something Brunetti finds hard to believe in such a corrupt city like Venice.

And when the lawyer’s brother-in-law is murdered, Brunetti digs deeper into the coincidences that link the three crimes and discovers something so horrifying and so shocking that points to the powerful and elite society being part of a ring that deals with prostitution, human trafficking and the making of snuff movies and even child pornography.

This is a dark and sad story of how powerful people see themselves above the law and see corruption as just part of their lives. Corruption continues infiltrating everything in the city and how the country’s laws are so outdated and confusing, which makes it possible for criminals to bend the rules for their benefit.

Brunetti’s frustration at the abuse of power and how justice is manipulated is something that he feels strongly about.

“Why bother to put the boy who broke into a house in jail when the man who stole billions from the health system is named ambassador to the country to which he had been sending the money for years?”

We follow the thoughts and actions of different characters in the story as well as Brunetti’s, which gives us an insight about the case.

I enjoyed seeing the special bond Brunetti has with his daughter, Chiara, who even helps him out with the case by offering to be one of his “spies”.

We also see a bit of Brunetti’s humor……..

‘How will I know you?’ Brunetti asked, hoping della Corte wouldn’t be a cop who looked like a cop.
‘I’m bald. How will I know you?’
‘I look like a cop.’

The story is set in the 90’s and I had great fun reading about the new technology that was available at that time……Signorina Elletra, of course, is totally up to date with new items on the market…..

“I’ve had a modem installed on the Vice-Questore’s phone,” she said, pointing to a metal box that sat on the desk a few centimeters from the phone. Wires, Brunetti saw, led from the box to her computer.”

The results and conclusion of the case were frustrating and depressing.

Excellent story revolving around human trafficking and slavery which is still happening today.

[Jeanette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one near the beginning of the Brunetti series (#4) is not joyful. But it probably contains important concepts for the series and for the crux of Italian justice system's response to the horror of the sex slave, prostitution and snuff film industries using women shipped from Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, South America. And through that window also the context of Guido's associates within policing for the other districts in the Veneto. So it sets a pivotal stage. He is in Mestre, Padua areas especially through large chunks of this novel.

We also have some scrumptious meals. A truffle fettuccine and duck meal in Padua with his compatriot of their service, that's one that was superb. But most of this one is procedure and dire. It's probably the darkest of all the 25. (I only have one more out of all of those novels that I have not read at this time.)

Although there were some lighter moments with Chiara, that mood never surmounts the seriousness of this period for Guido. But that deal he makes with Chiara also ensues with a result that involves and hurts Chiara in eventuality. It's part of the territory for being a cop's kid. Rarely, rarely is that "getting caught in the loop of visceral mire to horrific crime" able to be kept isolated from/ to a cop's offspring. First hand, at that- I've seen it with my brother's kids. It's an issue that is hardly considered and yet quite real.

In this one Paola's jokes and work tales are more highly condescending than in any other of the books on top of it. So I can see that although this may NOT be a favorite Brunetti read for many, it actually holds some exact definitive structural core for what Donna Leon is telling us about the governmental levels and the depth of corruption in the authority.

But saying that, IMHO, she (the author) is essentially naive. Because that level of power brokerage and political hierarchy determining uneven consequence and corrupt influences perverting bureaucracy - it reigns far, far beyond the levels of Italy. And not just in a few places on this earth. Be they nations or countries or counties. Or departmental cabals. My city is far worse.

It's ironic that I kept this read until nearly last out of 25, not purposely either. Mainly it was because it was the one book that was held in the vast library system in the least numbers and with the lowest retention of copy (this book is 20 years old). So it was harder to get on ILL loan. And I DO understand why. This one was dark. Guido the kind policeman actually had to be the John as Guido the Plumber. It didn't feel right- and Venice itself could barely shine this Fall season within such a role play.

But it has some excellent quotes and holds a real core of why Guido can and will be strength.

Added later, because I realize I omitted something that's important. This also initiates two prime "methods" of the series. I always wondered what Elettra is "giving back" for the information she gets from "friends" in the hacking. Well, this one lets you into that picture completely. And Guido is utterly compliant in writing the "sorry we made a mistake" pay-up letter/letters . And so also in the issue with how he ultimately either controls or confronts Patta when the pressure is coming from above to instigate a blind eye. Guido is perfecting his radar in this book #4; to Patta /Scarpa and the real idiots like Alvise and the other stupido who never relates a completed message or includes a pivotal question when it is essentially needed. HIS DEFENSE ALERT IS THIS- when the morning begins with Patta saying three pleasant or mannerly comments in a row- WATCH OUT.

It serves him well.

[Paul Ataua · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wrote this review and posted it a long time ago. It still shows on my books, but appears I posted on a CD version, so here it is again. Copied and pasted..

Brunetti is called in when a high profile lawyer is murdered on a train. How could this be linked to a road accident involving a truck carrying a human cargo sometime earlier? The Brunetti series gets ever darker with a story including extreme pornography and prostitution, and again the Italian preoccupation with how difficult it is to make the rich accountable for their major crimes. Nice to see that this latter aspect is placed against the awareness that there is also widespread acceptance of minor transgressions by ordinary people. I do like this series.
Edit Review

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my fourth book of her series and I think I need a break. I love Venice and that is why I first strated reading this but so far, it has just left me very depressed. The main character seems in the end, is always left with very little power and the bad guys just get away with everything. This particular one just left me too sad to continue reading the series for now. The saddest part of all is that there is truth in this fictional book and the atrocities towards women still continues and nothing is being done about it. Prostitution, snuff films...they would not continue to exist if there was no demand for it. There would be an uprising if there was a film about a black man being tortured and raped but there are none when its a woman. Why do we demand less for women?

[Dorothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The political corruption and public moral depravity faced by Commissario Guido Brunetti as he attempts to do his job of maintaining law and order in his beloved city of Venice are utterly disheartening and demoralizing. Even just reading about them is disheartening and demoralizing. The depths to which human beings eagerly sink in order to gratify their desires or to enrich themselves is, quite simply, horrifying.

At one time in the not too distant past, I could have read these stories with more dispassion and objectivity. But today a society's descent into moral turpitude where the rich and powerful are able to befoul the water, air, and soil and to use defenseless fellow human beings in whatever way they choose just hits a bit close to home. Consequently, although I am as charmed as ever by Guido and his family, I found this fourth book in the series difficult reading.

The plot revolves around human trafficking. A group of powerful and influential men in Italy are bringing in women from poor countries - mostly Slavic women from eastern European countries - to be used as prostitutes or in pornographic films, including snuff films where the women are brutalized and killed, that are distributed in Europe and America. Typically, the women are promised jobs or love and marriage and a better life to entice them, but once they get to the country, their passports are taken and they are forced to do their "owners'" bidding.

All of this, however, is revealed incrementally. We begin with a truck filled with lumber and, as it happens, eight smuggled women, slipping on a snow and ice clogged highway and sliding off the road into a ravine. The driver and all the women are killed. This happens north of Venice and Commissario Brunetti is not involved in the investigation. He is only tangentially aware of it and the entire story soon slips out of the headlines and is essentially forgotten.

Sometime later, in Venice, a rich and powerful businessman is shot and killed in a train and Brunetti is assigned to the case.

A little later, another businessman dies from carbon monoxide poisoning in his closed garage. The initial autopsy findings show a large dose of barbiturates that would have caused him to be unconscious; then mysteriously, the autopsy findings are altered to support a finding of suicide.

Brunetti is still puzzling over his initial case when yet another businessman is killed; this one the brother-in-law of the first who had served as accountant for that man's business. He is shot three times just as the man on the train was. Brunetti suspects that all three deaths are related and begins to probe their lives to try to find a connection and a reason why someone might have wanted the three dead.

Brunetti encounters obstacles at every turn, but he has developed his own circle of trusted confidantes, fellow policemen, and persons in positions of power who owe him favors and are willing to find and pass along information to him. He doggedly pursues his investigation, calling on those he trusts for assistance. Obviously, Brunetti has learned to operate in the toxic swill of Venetian politics and survive.

This may be the most pessimistic yet of Donna Leon's Brunetti novels and it is certainly the most graphically violent. Leon lives in Venice and one intuits that she has extensive knowledge of the inner workings of the city and what makes it run. One can only hope for the sake of the Venetians that she is exaggerating for dramatic effect.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like the entire Commissario Brunetti series because I get to take a break from my normal life and read about fettucine truffle pasta. That said, this is my least favorite book so far. Without giving too much away, the plot of this book revolves around human trafficking and horrific sexual violence against women, which ruins the escapism for me. I just don't like reading books in which sexual violence is a major subplot or plot point, and I avoid them now if possible.

However! The first half of this book had some pretty funny moments, and I highlighted a lot more in this installment. It features:

- The aforementioned fettucine truffle pasta and a detailed description of the truffle being shaved onto said pasta
- Paola describing American literature as "Puritans, cowboys, and strident women"
- The very fashionable Signorina Elettra referring to her computer whiz friend as an 'acker'
- Many equivalencies between lawyers and whores, mostly because they are notably difficult to obtain client lists from
- Brunetti talking to his daughter, Chiara, about a contest to name a penguin at the Rome Zoo ("Spot"? come on Chiara)

One thing that was missing in this book was Venice. It was much less of a character here, though this passage did make up for some of that:

“We are a pessimistic people, aren’t we?” Brunetti asked.

“We once had an empire. Now all we have,” she said, repeating the same gesture, again encompassing the Basilica, the campanile and, below it, Sansovinos Loggetta, “all we have is this Disneyland. I think that’s sufficient cause for pessimism.”

Brunetti nodded but said nothing. She hadn’t persuaded him. The moments came rarely, but for him the city’s glory still lived.

As I've said before, I appreciate the politicism that Donna Leon brings to her novels - she has some great lines in this one about the Italian tax system - but this particular subject is not one I personally enjoy reading. It may be time for me and my BFF Brunetti to take a break. But I'll be back!!!!

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was in terms of the plot a depressing and grim read with a depressing and grim ending, yet realistic. The story revolves around a sex slave prostitution ring and snuff movie business, involving people very high up in Italian society. The gem at the heart of these books is Guido Brunetti, his wife and family.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are extremely dark books, and this is one of the darkest. A truck crashes in the mountains near Treviso - the driver is killed, as are several unidentified women being transported from the Balkans. Several murders then occur in Venice, and eventually the web of profit from this modern form of sex slavery and snuff films turns out to be connected to all three of the murders. The murderer...I will not spoil this...the outcome is both satisfying and excruciatingly frustrating.
The books are enjoyable despite the darkness, because of Guido Brunetti's personality and family life, which in this case is directly connected to the solution of the murders. The city of Venice is a character too, and in an entirely natural way assumes prominence through Guido's eyes, as he takes solace from the beauty of the city and gains strength to pursue the truth, even though the cards of the venal Italian justice system are stacked against him.
I cannot think of another series that so seriously and directly addresses issues of morality and justice without becoming preachy or unreadably sombre. This is my second reading of books 2, 3, and 4 in the Brunetti series, and every one has been equally fascinating the second time through.

Leon discusses this book in an interview...
http://italian-mysteries.com/leon-int...

It is one of her favorites because it explores the idea of vigilante justice.

Edit, post-Trump, 2017:
Leon first published this in 1995. That would have been just after Berlusconi's election.
From Wikipedia, just to remind us:
"Berlusconi was Prime Minister for nine years in total, making him the longest-serving post-war Prime Minister of Italy, and the third longest-serving since Italian unification, after Benito Mussolini and Giovanni Giolitti. He was the leader of the centre-right party Forza Italia from 1994 to 2009, and its successor party The People of Freedom from 2009 to 2013."

However the corruption to which she refers must have gone on for years before 1994:
"All, or what seemed like all, of the major political figures who had ruled the country since Brunetti was a child had been named in accusation, named again on different charges, and had even begun to name one another, and yet not one of them had been tried and sentenced, though the coffers of the state had been sucked dry. They'd had their snouts in the public trough for decades, yet nothing seemed strong enough -- not public rage, not an upwelling of national disgust -- to sweep them from power."

The English writers whom Paola loves and reads compulsively and teaches to students knew about honour. "But it wasn't important just to them, the writers; their whole society thought some things were important: honour, a person's good name, one's word."

Signora Trevisan, wife of the lawyer who is murdered, responding to Brunetti's questions about those responsible for making and distributing the snuff tapes: "They never talked about the tapes. Not really. They just said things, and I understood what they meant."
"He didn't bother to contradict her, certain as he was that this was going to become the truth around which her future would be constructed -- to suspect is not to know, and if you don't know, then you aren't responsible, not in any real way, for what happens. His certainty grew so strong that Brunetti's soul sickened with it, and he knew he could no longer stay in the same room with this woman."

Reading these books, now, in this time -- I have never before longed for the existence of hell -- but now I do, if only because justice will be possible. Beyond the now, beyond history.

[Nina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Killing sex-workers and then also the witnesses may be close to real life but it really doesn’t make for a good story.

[Alan (the Lone Librarian rides again) Teder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brunetti and the Traffickers
Review of the Grove Press paperback edition (April 2014) of the original Harper Collins hardcover (June 1995)

This one was disturbing and its brutal segments did not bear looking at, so TW.

Brunetti is drawn into the horrors of human trafficking, prostitution and worse, in this slowly unravelling investigation. The cold open is away from Venice entirely and is a matter of fact record of a trucking accident where human cargo is discovered. Brunetti is called in when a lawyer is murdered on a train in what is, at first, suspected to be a robbery. Gradually more complications and doubts arise as a suspicious widow, a questionable accountant, and a duplicitous lawyer are interviewed. Brunetti's daughter Chiara is drawn into the case due to her familiarity with the murdered lawyer's daughter, but she and her parents are horrified by her discoveries.


Front entrance of the Questura (Police Headquarters) in Venice, Italy [actually the former convent of San Francesco della Vigna] in a film still from the German television adaptation of "Death and Judgment" (2000). Image sourced from Fictional Cities.

Trivia and Links
There is a really fascinating interview with author Donna Leon at ItalianMysteries.Com even if it was done 18 years ago. She discusses all sorts of background to the books and characters and also gives the reason that she won't allow the books to be translated into Italian (and it wasn't because she feared criticism by her neighbours in Venice).

Although it was the 4th book, Death and Judgement was filmed as the 1st episode "Vendetta" (2000) of the German language TV series (2000-2019) based on the Donna Leon / Commissario Brunetti series. There is an extended series of clips from the episode with actor Joachim Król as Commissario Brunetti and actor Michael Degen as Vice-Questore Patta on YouTube here (in German language, but you can turn on auto-translate for various languages including English).

An English language summary of the German language Commissario Brunetti TV series is available at Fictional Cities (Spoilers Obviously). As explained in the above interview, the TV-series was a German production as the books took off in popularity the most in the German speaking countries of Europe as Leon's publishing agent was Swiss-German and knew that market the best.

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars - Dutch hardcover

In Death and Judgment, the fourth in her Commissario Brunetti series, Leon writes, “villains ruled the land. All, or what seemed like all, of the major political figures who had ruled the country since Brunetti was a child had been named in accusation, named again on different charges, and had even begun to name one another, and yet not one of them had been tried and sentenced, though the coffers of the state had been sucked dry.”

Again: Brunetti “often thought that the only safe procedure a person could undergo at the Ospedale Civile was an autopsy. It was the only time a patient ran no risk.”

Invariably, Brunetti is forced to work around the orders of his boss, Vice-Questore Patta, whose overriding concern is that the Commissario not jeopardize the favor he enjoys from the local elite. A typical admonition from Patta runs along these lines: “‘Brunetti, don’t go stirring up trouble with this.'”

Despite Brunetti’s brilliant detective work, the end result of his investigations all too frequently is a cover-up.
As the long-suffering Brunetti notes in a conversation with his secret collaborator, Vice-Questore Patta’s extremely competent secretary, “‘For fifty years, ever since the end of the war, all we’ve ever been is lied to. By the government, the church, the political parties, by the Police."

Is this an accurate picture of Italy today? I haven’t spent enough time in the country or traveled widely enough there to be able to answer the question.

It may be no exaggeration to say that Death and Judgment, like the other novels I’ve read in the Commissario Brunetti series, is a work of social commentary as well as a murder mystery. Like many of her contemporaries, Donna Leon demonstrates a mastery of sociology as well as skill in crafting a suspenseful novel.

[Bobbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again these Commissario Brunetti novels are difficult to put down but also very dark and disturbing, especially these last two. I hope that the next one will be less so. In this one I was somewhat disappointed in some poor decisions made by Brunetti which had serious consequences. Also, I found the ending of this one rather dissatisfying.

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

We’re in Commissario Guido Brunetti’s world here, where as a homicide police detective in Venice he always solves the crime but often finds that the corrupt rich and powerful behind the scenes are protected and untouchable. Such is the case again here, where some very upper-crust swine are pulling the strings behind a lucrative prostitution and porn ring.

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

DEATH AND JUDGMENT (aka A Venetian Reckoning) (Police Proc-Venice-Cont) – VG
Leon, Donna – 4th in series
Penguin, 1995 – Paperback
*** Commissario Guido Brunetti’s newest case is the murder of a prominent international lawyer. As he investigates, a link is found between this murder and the murder of an accountant being investigated by a colleague in Padua. These two threads tie back to an winter accident with a truck going off an icy road resulting in the death of several woman without identification.
*** This is a very well written story of corruption, power and greed. Brunetti is a wonderfully refreshing character; a loyal husband, caring father and respected policeman who loves his city. The humor, relationships and emotions, however, are realistic and not saccharine. The secondary characters are dimensional and interesting. Leon is a wonderful writer who brings Venice to life but doesn’t spare on its problems. Although I thought I knew where the story was going, I found myself surprised and the ending depressingly realistic. For those of us who read for character but like good plots as well, I highly recommend this book and series.

[Cherie · Rating 5 out of 5]

They just get better!

[Susan in NC · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars, this series just gets better with each book. I’m so glad I started at the beginning, and that Leon has so many mysteries to look forward to in the Commissario Brunetti series, set in modern-day Venice.

Well, this book is set in the late 1990s, with things like internet still new enough that it creates a running joke of sorts between Brunetti and Elettra, hyper-efficient secretary to his ridiculous boss, Patta. He’s another running joke, with his social climbing and love of luxuries.

But there’s nothing humorous about the human trafficking, prostitution and other sordid evil going on, with a background of the latest corruption scandal rocking the government. This mystery opens on a snowy mountain road in Italy, where a truck goes off the road, killing its driver and dumping the cargo all over - but among the lumber being transported, eight women were hidden away.

It’s soon forgotten, but then a successful Venetian lawyer, specializing in international law, is assassinated on the train; a week later, his brother-in-law, also his business manager and accountant, is shot the same way. Meanwhile, an official in Padua apparently commits suicide, but a Padua policeman contacts Brunetti asking questions - the autopsy results showed enough barbiturates were in his system that he couldn’t have walked, let alone driven himself into his garage, shut the door, and sat there in the running car. Now the autopsy results have been altered - could there be a connection to the two Venetian murders?

Brunetti and his family and fellow officers always create an entertaining, gripping, yet dark mystery, but this one has a sordid and less than satisfying outcome. All was made clear, but it felt like the corruption and the dark side won - and the evil got too close to home. I look forward to the next in the series to see how Brunetti and family are doing.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

A prominent Venetian lawyer is murdered on a train. The case is assigned to Commissario Brunetti. Soon a well-known person in Padua dies of a bullet-wound in his own car. Although the Padua police officially call it a suicide after altering official records, one detective there knows better, confiding in Brunetti. The brother-in-law of the Venetian lawyer who served as his accountant ends up dead too. Meanwhile the phone records of the Venetian and Paduan men points to a connection with bars where foreign prostitutes work. I'm a bit uncomfortable reading about prostitutes and sex crimes of the nature featured in this novel, but it does show the corruption in Italian law enforcement and government. We get to meet Guido's daughter more in this novel. She attends school with the lawyer's daughter and begins her own investigation and with unfortunate consequences. I listened to the audiobook read by David Colacci who did an excellent job. (3.5 stars)

[Deb Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti series can be counted upon for consistency in every way. Her characters are fully fleshed out and believable, descriptions of place are detailed enough to draw a picture but not overdone, and the plots and subplots are well-drawn.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mystery will keep your attention.

It is an early book from this author's series of mysteries set in Venice.

Along with the who-done-it you get social commentary. Donna Leon shows a political world which is not enthusiastic about exposing crime perpetrated by the elite. Detective Brunetti's boss warns him about "stirring up trouble". Skepticism of this world is shown through Detective Brunetti's family. He has his wife try to instill honesty and loyalty in their daughter who doesn't see how this fits in the world she sees.

It is interesting, if this is how it is (or was in 1990's Venice) how much suspects and witnesses would tell the police without lawyers.

Short and entertaining. Not sure how realistic this could be.

[Eric_W · Rating 5 out of 5]

Commissario Brunetti, a regular readers of Rarebits, will remember, is the creation of Donna Leon. He's stubbornly honest in an Italian society that is portrayed as rife with criminal behavior, a country so overwhelmed by new laws that are enacted one day only to be repealed the next, that the distinction between what is wrong and what is criminal is often nebulous.

Paula, Brunetti's professor of English spouse and delightfully moral character, issues stern reminders to Brunetti of the difference and their conversations are priceless. Brunetti is a complex man who has an engaging wit, a rapiersharp mind, and strong love for his family. Constantly under pressure from his superiors to ignore crimes that involve the elite, in this case his metal is tested. A well-known lawyer, Carlo Trevisan, is discovered shot to death on the train from Padua to Venice. Initially written off as a robbery gone bad, Brunetti has his doubts and when an accountant from a respected firm is found dead, ostensibly of his own hand but with Trevisan's phone number in his book and substantial amounts of a barbiturate in his bloodstream, Brunetti's crap detector goes into overdrive. Soon the links to a bizarre truck accident in the mountains where many young women are found dead, crushed by a load of lumber, fall into place, and Brunetti discovers a large web of international prostitution involving highly influential citizens of Venice. As the investigation proceeds, Brunetti learns that more than prostitution is involved. He discovers that a series of tapes was being commissioned and sold by the dead men that had shown the rape and killing of women in Croatia by Serb soldiers. A pair of mislaid and forgotten expensive reading glasses leads Brunetti to a travel agent, a former prostitute who had been in league with the men in supplying girls from other countries. She was the murderer, she admits to Brunetti, disgusted by her colleagues enjoyment in watching the rapes and brutal murders of the women, not because of the deaths -- after all the women would have died eventually anyway. She reveals that other very important men were involved in the extremely profitable business and knows that she will be killed. Brunetti arrests her, insists she be guarded, but is horrified to learn the next morning that she had been taken to Padua by order of the Ministry of Justice and special branch police. How had they learned so quickly of the arrest when Brunetti had made ever effort to keep it secret? This is an outstanding novel.

Leon, who has lived in Italy for many years (like Paula, a professor of English), provides a jaundiced view of daily Italian life where the only safe procedure for a patient in an Italian hospital is the autopsy, and train strikes are a regular occurrence, and corruption exists at every level of society. She clearly worries about the effects of corruption on the moral fiber of that society and what it does to its members

[Ilana (illi69) · Rating 3 out of 5]

From April 2012 — A truck meets with a terrible accident in the snowy Dolomites, and spilling out of it's bowels among the cargo of wood are also strange mannequins... but the mannequins are bleeding, which must mean they are real women. The horror of this accident is only a small presage of more to come.

Commissario Guido Brunetti is put on the case of the murder of a prominent lawyer, shot dead on an intercity train. Then an accountant and business associate of the lawyer also turns up dead, and Brunetti starts suspecting the connection might be an international prostitution ring. His 14-year-old daughter Chiara offers her help as an apprentice investigator; she's been to school with the murdered lawyer's daughter and may be able to unearth some clues. But no one is prepared for the extent of the horror she uncovers in the process, least of all Chiara herself, and Brunetti can't forgive himself for unwittingly exposing his beloved daughter to such monstrous crimes. I’ve read several novels in the series before and knew that Leon tends to combine an insider's view of Venice and the comforts of the inspector's home life with the vilest of crimes and conspiracies, but the nature of one of the crimes committed against women in this particular instance were so evil that I was quite shocked. But in the end, Brunetti is a man with a conscience and in comforting his daughter, he also comforts his reader; heinous crimes won't go away, but love and kindness are also here to stay. Recommended, but this ones necessitates a solid stomach.

My blog: TotallySurreal.com

[Book Concierge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Digital audiobook narrated by David Colacci
3.5***

Book # 4 in the Commissario Brunetti mystery series, set in Venice, Italy. This case starts with a tractor trailer catching fire, destroying the cargo, which includes foreign women. Then three prominent businessmen are murdered. And Brunetti’s investigation leads him to an organized group of sexual traffickers.

This was definitely one of the darker works in this series. As usual, the Commissario relies on his wife for advice and comfort, but his daughter insists on helping and that gets uncomfortable very quickly. I love the atmosphere of these novels, but the seedy underbelly of Venice depicted here made me disinclined to ever want to visit.

Leon crafts a good mystery, with enough clues keep the action moving forward and a logical solution. She also does a great job of putting the reader right into the setting. And I love the scenes of Brunetti at home, which make him so much more human and fallible and approachable. It’s a series I’ll continue reading.

David Colacci does a great job of performing the audiobook. He sets a good pace and I love the voice he gives these characters.

[Lobstergirl · Rating 2 out of 5]

A truck tumbles off a snowy road in the mountains of northern Italy, spilling its cargo of lumber and Romanian women. A well-known lawyer is assassinated in a train compartment. And a 14-year-old girl has a case of herpes....Commissario Brunetti must link these disparate events together, while eating pasta fagioli, cotoletta, duck, and fettucine with truffles, and drinking prosecco and grappa. Sadly, plot developments don't quite live up to the promising beginning. And the herpes, which really could have become an intriguing story arc, doesn't lead anywhere.

[Norman Weiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread.

Der Roman ist aus dem Jahre 1995: Das Faxgerät ist Ausweis von Fortschrittlichkeit, ein Mobiltelefon ist noch kein Standard und die Menschen rauchen selbstverständlich überall.
Der frühe Brunetti kommt noch ohne die gesellschaftspolitische Verbissenheit aus, die mich bei den späteren Roman mitunter stört. Zwar geht es auch hier um einen gesellschaftlich relevanten Mißstand, der den Hintergrund für das Verbrechen bildet, doch der Roman fokussiert sich auf den Fall und die Ermittlungen der Polizei. An der Wucht der Kritik ändert das keinen Deut, im Gegenteil!

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

A particularly sad, sordid and brutal journey for Commissario Guido Brunetti. One wonders how he (and Ms. Leon) manage to preserve their decency and dignity in the face of it. But perhaps that is part of what keeps us reading: hope in our hero-detective, who in preserving himself, helps us to preserve ourselves.

[Pete · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'm 100 percent in control of this situation and can stop reading these books at any time

brunetti exploring the rage-dad space a little here. gets pretty pretty TV-MA when the videotape thing happens. it's hard to contextualize the lower case p politics of these books because when they came out i was 15 and lost in final fantasy VII. so i dont know if the poetic urgency of gender revenge was on trend then or what. still satisfying for evil penis-owners to get killed in 2020, so viva le difference or whatever you say in veneziano