Description
Book Synopsis''Complex and thought-provoking and lingers in the mind'' Sunday Times
Neither Commissario Brunetti nor his wife Paola have ever had much sympathy for the Italian armed forces, so when a young cadet is found hanged, at Venice''s elite military academy, Brunetti''s emotions are complex: pity and sorrow at the death of a boy close in age to his own son, and contempt and irritation for the arrogance and high-handedness of the boy''s teachers and fellow students.
The young man is the son of an ex-politician, a man of an impeccable integrity all too rare in Italian politics. But as Brunetti - and the indispensable Signorina Elettra - investigate further, no one seems willing to talk. Is this the natural reluctance of Italians to involve themselves with the authorities, or is Brunetti facing a conspiracy of silence?
''Silken prose and considerable charm . . . an unlovely story set in the loveliest of cities'' Washington Post
Trade ReviewThere is the joy of contemplating Venice: the veiled and ancient heroine, with a sad haunted beauty slipping away year by year. Read it is the dusk, with a grappa -- Libby Purves * Good Book Guide *
Brunetti ... long ago joined the ranks of the classic fictional detectives * Evening Standard *
Complex and thought-provoking and lingers in the mind * Sunday Times *
Wonderfully familiar characters, a powerful sense of place and expert plotting * Guardian *
