Even Commissario of Police, Guido Brunetti, used to the labyrinthine corruptions the city, is shocked at the number of enemies Wellauer has made on his way to the top – but just how many have motlve enough for murder?
The beauty of Venice is crumbling – and evil can seep through its decaying stones…
A world-famous musician is killed, poisoned, during the interval of an opera he was conducting in Venice. To start with, it seems inconceivable anyone would do such a thing: he was a revered genius. But as police Commissario Brunetti investigates, he discovers Brunetti was a bully, a homophobe, and worse. By the end, it seems everyone had a motive, so just who administered the fatal dose?
This is a slow, steady police procedural, as Brunetti walks around a freezing cold Venice, interviewing people, drinking coffee in cafes, drinking wine at home, outmanoeuvring his incompetent boss, and avoiding his wife’s aristocratic parents. Unfortunately, I guessed the who and (immediate) why fairly early on, but I did stick around to find the next level of complication. Some readers rave about the sense of place, but I just felt miserable and cold.
