Through a Glass, Darkly, Friends in High Places, Acqua Alta, Death at La Fenice

SUMMARY: Beautiful and serene Venice is a city almost devoid of crime. But that is little comfort to Maestro Helmut Wellauer, a world-renowned conductor whose intermission refreshment comes one night with a little something extra in it-cyanide. For Guido Brunetti, vice-commissario of police and detective genius, finding a suspect isn't a problem; narrowing the large and unconventional group of enemies down to one is. As the suave and pithy Brunetti pieces together clues, a shocking picture of depravity and revenge emerges, leaving him torn between what is and what should be right -- and questioning what the law can do, and what needs to be done.

Beautiful and serene Venice is a city almost devoid of crime. But that is little comfort to Maestro Helmut Wellauer, a world-renowned conductor whose intermission refreshment comes one night with a little something extra in it-cyanide. For Guido Brunetti, vice-commissario of police and detective genius, finding a suspect isn't a problem; narrowing the large and unconventional group of enemies down to one is. As the suave and pithy Brunetti pieces together clues, a shocking picture of depravity and revenge emerges, leaving him torn between what is and what should be right — and questioning what the law can do, and what needs to be done.

Library Journal

If your taste is for contemporary fiction set in Italy, here are some irresistible novels: Italian Fever by Valerie Martin (Vintage. 2000. ISBN 0-375-70522-8. pap. $12) and Francesca Marciano's Casa Rossa (Vintage. 2003. ISBN 0-375-72637-3. pap. $14). And you certainly won't want to go to Italy, especially Venice, without bringing a few Donna Leon mysteries featuring Commissario Brunetti, whose love of good food and despair about corruption in Italian politics play prominent roles in every book. Two favorites are A Noble Radiance (Penguin. 2003. ISBN 0-14-200319-0. pap. $6.99) and Death at La Fenice (HarperTorch. 1995. ISBN 0-06-104337-0. pap. $6.99). Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

The twisted maze of Venice's canals has always been shrouded in mystery. Even the opera house, La Fenice, has seen its share of death. But nothing so horrific as that of world-famous conductor, Maestro Helmut Wellauer - poisoned during a performance of La Traviata. Even Commissario of Police Guido Brunetti is shocked at the number of enemies Wellauer has made on his way to the top - but just how many have motive enough for murder? Investigating the poisoning death of a world-renowned conductor, vice-commissario Guido Brunetti of Venice sifts through the dead man's many enemies, uncovering a life of depravity and revenge that makes Brunetti question his own morals The third gong, announcing that the opera was about to continue, sounded discreetly through the lobbies and bars of Teatro La Fenice.