Death at La Fenice: (Brunetti 1) (A Commissario Brunetti Mystery)

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The setting is the Venice Opera House (La Fenice) and the victim is a famous conductor. I enjoyed this concept having worked in classical music and spent a great deal of time with opera singers. The descriptions rang true, although the disrespect shown to the music by the audience isn’t something I’ve ever experienced thankfully. It would annoy me just as much as a member of the audience as it would if I were performing. Although the story shows its age in some ways, I found the mystery to be a solid whodunit and the characters, especially Brunetti and his wife, quite intriguing. Naturally, as one can guess, I really loved the Italian setting and the author’s descriptions of Venice, which gave the story a unique atmosphere. He’s forced to make choices between what the law is and what he believes is right. And that’s where we see the side of Brunetti that makes him such a moral person.

A gripping first mystery, as beguiling and secretly sinister as Venice herself. Sparkling and irresistible.” — Rita Mae Brown The latest thing I realised before starting this review is that there is a massive clue of the murder in the title of the book itself. That took a lot of nerve. I have never seen a mystery book do that before. There is little stuff like that in the book. Donna Leon trusts her readers. Or perhaps she has no time for the more obtuse among us. Donna Leon seems to know a lot about the higher echelons of Venetian society. Her writing for parties or group activities is beyond reproach.The writing style and the pacing make this novel a wonderful read. Leon does an excellent job of making the reader feel like they are part of the case. The mystery has a lot of twists and a bunch of fun characters that make it feel real. That is why it is hard to believe that Leon wrote the novel “as a joke.” This is the first book in the long running Commissario Brunetti series. I’ve been curious about Donna Leon for ages but have never gotten around to sampling any of her work. This book is available in the Kindle Unlimited program, at the moment, giving me a great excuse to finally see for myself why this series has endured. A slow burner with a satisfying ending. Venice itself is as important a character in this book than any of the human ones. It is beautifully described without romanticising it. We’re shown the beauty and the ugliness in equal measure. Italy is the land where men and women are prized for their beauty. There is a scent of scandal and a deepening of tragedy as Brunetti takes on the case of the murdered conductor, Wellhauer. The victim is German. The author comes very close to revealing how handsome Wellhauer was. But she did not at all reveal why such an eligible woman like Paola got tied to Guido Brunetti. There are authors who will never directly reveal how good looking their characters are. That means that less facts are told, and also less facts are shown.

I have read @ ten of Donna Leon's books and this review reflects my opinion of most of them. Some have a slightly better story, a little more engaging than others, but for the most part, the books are about Brunetti, and about Venezia, and the Italian people. Death at La Fenice is the 1st book in the exciting Guido Brunetti Series by Donna Leon, set in the beautiful, romantic, mysterious and unique city of Venice.

Crime Fiction

From the first gallery, there came a burst of coughing; someone dropped a book, perhaps a purse; but the door to the corridor behind the orchestra pit remained dosed. Why bother using your head? Why bother explaining things or trying to find sense in them? It's that simple. People do things because they are either Italian or not. That explains everything! Why, Donna Leon, that's so simple it is....incredibly stupid. Or brilliant. That way you can get away with not using your head and still publish a novel. So, the joke is on the readers. Guido Brunetti is a police officer in Venice. His title is that of Dottor. He is a high ranking officer. Hi there, my name is Troy McClure. You may remember me from movies such as This Book is Wonderful, and Donna Leon is Completely Fine. This is the first time I've read the one that started them all. I can't remember when I read my first Commissario Brunetti mystery, but I loved them from the start. First and foremost, they are set in Venice and La Serenissima is most definitely a presence. From the vaporetti to the feral cats, Leon captures the essence of the city until you can almost smell the sea.