Customer Reviews

Fatal Remedies

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Venice, the City of Love, is also the city of crime--at least, it is in Donna Leon's charming, beautifully written series of mysteries. Guido Brunetti works for the Venice police, and he lives in the city with his wife and two children. Guido and his colleagues usually have to deal with murder, theft, and political corruption involving strangers, but in this particular story the "criminal" is very close to home. When his wife, Paola, commits a vandalous act of social protest and is arrested, our marvelous, quirky hero is forced to "solve" the case. This leads to the exposure of some actual crime and criminals, which was Mrs. Brunetti's intention all along.

Ever since Death at La Fenice: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery, the mystery world has been graced by the presence of this thoughtful, brilliant detective and his city. FATAL REMEDIES is one of my favorites in the series because it focuses a great deal on the wonderful Paola Brunetti, and she's my favorite character. If you like good, old-fashioned detection in a fascinating setting, you'll like Donna Leon. Fans of the late, lamented Inspector Morse or George Simenon's Inspector Maigret will probably love the Brunetti series. I know I do. Highly recommended.

Donna Leon's books could be billed as "ripped from the Italian headlines" as Law and Order once was on American television. She touches upon the issue of sex tourism in this installment of Bruno, and weaves Bruno's wife into the storyline much more than usual. I always enjoy Leon's books, and this is no exception. Highly recommended.

A Washington Post reviewer called her writing style a "gentle pace." I call it boring. I thought this tale would never begin; then I thought it would never end. Way too calm and predictable for today's fast paced thiller reader. I will not read her again.