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ruinedbyreading's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
claudia2945's review against another edition
2.0
I mostly enjoy reading this series, but this was too violent for me.
d_ae's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.75
Quite a rushed ending
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Rape and Trafficking
govmarley's review
3.0
Boy, oh boy, do these books make me want to visit Venice.
Guido dives into the dirty underbelly of Venice's sex trade and saves the day. This one stayed with the same successful formula, with interesting twists and turns, and just the right amount of family interactions.
Really looking forward to book 5.
Guido dives into the dirty underbelly of Venice's sex trade and saves the day. This one stayed with the same successful formula, with interesting twists and turns, and just the right amount of family interactions.
Really looking forward to book 5.
awebofstories's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I'm back with Guido Brunetti after DNF'ing the 3rd book in the series. I can't yet say that this is a series you don't need to read in order, but you can skip the 3rd book and be just fine in the 4th!
Donna Leon did some interesting things with this book that I felt had mixed results. The first is that she opens with the scene of a truck accident, which is clearly more than just a case of cargo moving. While this will definitely hook you in, it doesn't quite hook into the story as much as I would hope. It also robs the narrative of the mystery of "what is going on," as you will know from the first scene what the underlying situation is. The ending didn't quite work either. While I always knew what was happening, I didn't know who the culprit was until Leon let all the pieces fall into place. But, then, it seems like she wanted the ending to be slightly open, but to me, it just felt rushed, as if she had written herself into a corner.
However, beyond that, this was a pretty strong mystery. The clues are meted out at a good pace, and while we know what is going on, it doesn't seem crazy that Guido doesn't know what is happening. I also really enjoyed the fact that Leon pulled Paola and Chiara more into this story. So far, they've been in the background, but they have their own roles here. On a less generous note, I was also pleased that Raffi was elsewhere for this book as I have yet to warm to Guido's son.
As always, Leon brings Venice and its environs to life. I love all the little geographical details she includes. She also brings the secondary and even tertiary characters to life and keeps them interesting for the reader. As this book was written in the 1990s, there are a few moments where there is a bit of "time shock," such as when Guido wishes he had one of those "portable phones." These bits are not flaws in the book but rather entertaining reminders of the past.
I'm glad to be back with this series, and I look forward to continuing on as it comes closer to the present day.
Donna Leon did some interesting things with this book that I felt had mixed results. The first is that she opens with the scene of a truck accident, which is clearly more than just a case of cargo moving. While this will definitely hook you in, it doesn't quite hook into the story as much as I would hope. It also robs the narrative of the mystery of "what is going on," as you will know from the first scene what the underlying situation is. The ending didn't quite work either. While I always knew what was happening, I didn't know who the culprit was until Leon let all the pieces fall into place. But, then, it seems like she wanted the ending to be slightly open, but to me, it just felt rushed, as if she had written herself into a corner.
However, beyond that, this was a pretty strong mystery. The clues are meted out at a good pace, and while we know what is going on, it doesn't seem crazy that Guido doesn't know what is happening. I also really enjoyed the fact that Leon pulled Paola and Chiara more into this story. So far, they've been in the background, but they have their own roles here. On a less generous note, I was also pleased that Raffi was elsewhere for this book as I have yet to warm to Guido's son.
As always, Leon brings Venice and its environs to life. I love all the little geographical details she includes. She also brings the secondary and even tertiary characters to life and keeps them interesting for the reader. As this book was written in the 1990s, there are a few moments where there is a bit of "time shock," such as when Guido wishes he had one of those "portable phones." These bits are not flaws in the book but rather entertaining reminders of the past.
I'm glad to be back with this series, and I look forward to continuing on as it comes closer to the present day.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault
Moderate: Trafficking
the_bee_writes's review
4.0
This was one Donna Leon's Brunetti stories with the most suspense. I nearly bit my nails of and I think I read in about two days or so. I am not usually a fast reader but that one took me in.
Even though the topic, especially the description of the video with the rape and the killing of a woman, really disturbed me.
If you like Brunetti you love this one!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dies war eines, der spannendsten Brunetti Buecher, die ich je gelesen habe. Ich habe mir fast die Naegel abgebissen und las das Buch in ungefaehr zwei Tagen. Normalerweise lese ich nicht so schnell aber dieses hatte es mir einfach angetan.
Obwohl das Thema und speziell die Beschreibung des Videos einer Vergewaltigung und Toetung einer Frau mich wirklich verstoert hat.
Wenn Du Brunetti magst, dann magst Du auch dieses Buch
Even though the topic, especially the description of the video with the rape and the killing of a woman, really disturbed me.
If you like Brunetti you love this one!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dies war eines, der spannendsten Brunetti Buecher, die ich je gelesen habe. Ich habe mir fast die Naegel abgebissen und las das Buch in ungefaehr zwei Tagen. Normalerweise lese ich nicht so schnell aber dieses hatte es mir einfach angetan.
Obwohl das Thema und speziell die Beschreibung des Videos einer Vergewaltigung und Toetung einer Frau mich wirklich verstoert hat.
Wenn Du Brunetti magst, dann magst Du auch dieses Buch
cheryl6of8's review
3.0
I love spending time with Guido Brunetti and crew, but it is often not a positive ride. I am beginning to worry that the corruption rampant in Venice and Italian government is actually becoming more and more evident here in the US. As a government bureaucrat, I find that discouraging. Hopefully, like Brunetti, I will be able to continue to fight the good fight. In this book, the fight is particularly good given the crimes that are rampant in it, including sex trafficking and murder among the high and mighty. Signorina Elettra, as always, is a gem, and the discussion of food made me hungry. I will definitely have to visit Venice for more than just a tourist day trip -- I hear that there are walking tours based on this series, which would be good, because Venice is a character all its own in these books and I want to know her better.
kathleenitpdx's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5