Donna Leon

The twisted maze of Venice's canals has always been shrouded in mystery. Even the celebrated opera house, La Fenice, has seen its share of death ... but none so horrific and violent as that of world-famous conductor, Maestro Helmut Wellauer, who was poisoned during a performance of La Traviata. Even Commissario of Police, Guido Brunetti, used to the labyrinthine corruptions of the city, is shocked at the number of enemies Wellauer has made on his...

The memorable characters and Venetian drama that have long captivated Donna Leon's many readers are on full display in this novel. Surprised, if not dismayed, to discover from his superior, Vice-Questore Patta, that leaks are emanating from the Questura, Commissario Guido Brunetti is even more surprised by the appearance in his office of a friend of his wife's, fearful that her son is using drugs. When Tullio Gasparini, the woman's husband, is found...

When making routine enquiries into a possible bribery case that could embarrass the mayor - an embarrassment Vice-Questore Patta is very keen to avoid - Commissario Brunetti receives a call from his wife, Paola, who is evidently very upset. The middle-aged deaf mute with the mental age of a child who helped out at Brunetti's dry cleaners has been found dead - an 'accidental' overdose of his mother's sleeping pills - and for some reason Paola is distraught...

As an opera superstar, Flavia is well acquainted with attention from adoring fans and aspiring singers. But when one anonymous admirer inundates her with bouquets of yellow roses - on stage, in her dressing room and even inside her locked apartment - it becomes clear that this fan has become a potentially dangerous stalker. Distraught, Flavia turns to an old friend for help. Familiar with Flavia's melodramatic temperament, Commissario Brunetti is...

Commissario Brunetti is investigating a cold case by request of the grand Contessa Lando-Continui. 15 years ago her teenage granddaughter, Manuela, was found drowning in a canal. She was rescued at the last moment but in many ways it was too late; she suffered severe brain damage and life was never the same again. Once a passionate horse rider, Manuela, now aged 30, cannot remember the accident, or her beloved horse, and lives trapped in an eternal...

As Commissario Guido Brunetti watches his mother buried, he takes some solace in the cloud dappled sky. As ever, his wife Paola is at his side. 'There's nothing to remember about her except the good', she says. And that, thinks Brunetti, is correct. But then a ten-year-old gypsy girl, Ariana, is found dead in the canal.