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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
My current obsession with La Traviata brought me to this book, in which a Karajan-ish conductor is poisoned after the first act. Leon’s Venice is wonderful, kind of run down, cold, wet, foggy... a glorious relic. The characters are all lots of fun, although there wasn’t much reason to care about whodunnit... the conductor is particularly unpleasant and I wasn’t feeling much sympathy for his widow, either. Cool politics too, decidedly antifascist, something you can’t take for granted anymore. Does Brunetti kind of bumble around in the other books, or do the plots get a little tighter?
dark
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Murder
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
My addiction to mysteries continues, with two books by Donna Leon, set in Venice (which of course is half the charm). The first of her series concerns a poisioned conductor at the opera and is called Murder at La Fenice. The detective, Guido Brunetti is attractive and certainly smart, but a little mysterious himself (this despite the wife at home and other homely details). The writing is gracious and interesting and the political convictions are honorable. Uniform Justice, a later book in the same series is actually much better (better paced and more complicated a crime). Interestingly enough, so far, no one ever comes to justice!
posted by RodneyPhillips @ 7:23 AM
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A very slow-paced and surprisingly dark mystery that included very evocative descriptions of Venice and Italian culture.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
medium-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
Commissario Guido Brunetti makes his debut in this wonderful mystery set in Venice. World-renowned Maestro Helmut Wellauer is taken suddenly ill after the second act of La Traviata – or so management would have the audience believe. But it’s clear to the doctor who volunteers her assistance that the Maestro is beyond help. In fact, he’s quite dead when she arrives at his dressing room. It quickly becomes clear to Brunetti that there are several possible suspects, and that the victim, while a musical genius, had a very dark history.
I was quickly caught up in the plot, and was kept guessing to the end. I also enjoyed the depth of character, and especially the relationship between Brunetti and his lovely wife Paola. This has been on my TBR for a long time and I don’t know what I was waiting for. So glad I finally got to it; I’ll definitely keep reading this series.
I was quickly caught up in the plot, and was kept guessing to the end. I also enjoyed the depth of character, and especially the relationship between Brunetti and his lovely wife Paola. This has been on my TBR for a long time and I don’t know what I was waiting for. So glad I finally got to it; I’ll definitely keep reading this series.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No