He glanced up into the horseshoe of the still darkened hall, tried to smile, failed, and abandoned the attempt. “Excuse, ladies and, gentlemen, the difficulty. The opera will now continue.” What a ripping first mystery, as beguiling and secretly sinister as Venice herself. Sparkling and irresistible.' Rita Mae Brown 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.

Brunetti is assigned to investigate the murder. I like him, as well as the fact that he adores his wife. A gripping first mystery, as beguiling and secretly sinister as Venice herself. Sparkling and irresistible.” — Rita Mae Brown A world-famous German opera conductor has died at La Fenice, and Commissario (Detective) Guido Brunetti pursues what appears to be a murder investigation without leads.Brunetti finds out that Wellauer was moralistic and prejudiced against gays. He reneged on a deal with the gay director to place a friend of his in a performance, citing that he need not honor a deal with someone who is gay. He also threatened to tell Flavia's ex-husband about her lesbian affair with American millionaire archaeologist Brett Lynch, so that Flavia's abusive ex-husband could gain custody of their children. Brett admits that Flavia saw the conductor during intermission and that they fought about the threats. 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. Another sweltering month in Charlotte, another boatload of mysteries past and present for overworked, overstressed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. Summary: The first book in the Commissario Guido Brunetti series is very accomplished and a rewarding read. It's best read before the 24th book in the series as the later book doesn't give away the ending, but you'll know of one person who didn't kill the Maestro. When famed conductor Helmut Wellauer is found dead in his dressing room between Acts 2 and 3 of the of LA TRAVIATA at the La Fenicia theatre, Brunetti is assigned to investigate the murder by cyanide poisoning.

Death at La Fenice chronicles Commissario Guido Brunetti's investigation of the death by cyanide poisoning of renowned German conductor Maestro Helmut Wellauer in the middle of a performance of La Traviata at the Venice opera house, La Fenice. Brunetti learns that Wellauer is a scoundrel. Worst, Brunetti learns that Wellauer was a pedophile, raping young girls of 12 or 13. Brunetti realizes Wellauer's wife poisoned him because he raped her daughter by a previous marriage, not killing him but causing him to go deaf. Wellauer takes the cyanide himself, after realizing his hearing loss is permanent and severe, and Brunetti helps the widow cover up her misdeeds for the sake of her daughter. I chose this book, the first in the Commissario Brunetti mystery series, because the setting is Venice, and my family and I will be briefly visiting there soon. Donna Leon does a wonderful job describing the city. If you’re looking for the type of mystery that you can’t put down, this isn’t it. Except for the ending, when it all comes together, this book is more about characters and the setting. A famous, but not particularly likeable conductor is found dead in his dressing room at the La Fenice theatre (Teatro La Fenice), an opera house in Venice. 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. 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.Wellauer made good on his threats to Flavia, as a letter comes from her husband's attorney, threatening action. Brunetti comforts Brett, telling her that they have no case without Wellauer's testimony. Then he visits Clemenza again and uncovers the true story. Clemenza's sister was only twelve, and she was raped and impregnated by Wellauer while he was having an affair with Clemenza. Putting the pieces together, Brunetti realizes that Elizabeth Wellauer, after finding that her husband sexually abused her daughter from a previous marriage, poisoned Wellauer with antibiotics to make him go deaf. Realizing that his music was gone, Wellauer killed himself. Brunetti reports the death simply as a suicide, not wanting to drag Elizabeth Wellauer's daughter through a hurtful court case. There was, however, a strange monologue in the party given by one socialite. The conversation between the guests was like from a 19th century novel. That is not because there is a relapse into archaic language, but because of its long tirades and unfunny jokes. Donna Leon cannot write a good joke. I liked Brunetti's in-laws more than his kids. I mean, the kids are less sympathetic to me than the elders. He immediately realizes that there’s a lot more about the victim than what he’s being told by the suspects …….his much younger wife and soprano, Flavia Petrelli and her lesbian lover, Brett Lynch and the people in his life who have been offended by his homophobic views. Brunetti also discovers Wellauer’s past as a Nazi sympathizer. As I said before, the author left a few things to the reader. She did not spell out everything. What she did mention more than a couple of times was Guido's totally carefree disposition to accept drinks from everyone. Mostly strangers. This was cultural, but then Italy is both the country of knifing and poisoning, so I was left wondering what was happening with those pegs. The chief of Guido was nicely made up. In more ways than one too. He is a narcissistic, impatient, stupid, selfish, and lazy officer who got his job because he knew the right people. I find it interesting that among all these characters, Leon made this minor one the best looking one in the book. The character, called Patta, is very vivid to me. I pictured a middle aged Brandon Quinn as him. 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.

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.” Okay, anyway. The story opens at the beginning of the third act of Traviata at the famous Fenice opera in Venice. The conductor, a man named Wellauer, has been found dead of cyanide poisoning in his dressing room. There are plenty of what we'll call The Usual Suspects (I watched Casablanca last night) - a much younger wife, a passionate soprano, a betrayed performer, and plenty of journalists and musicians who know way too many of the conductor's dirty secrets. Enter police commissioner Brunetti, who has to figure out which of these people had the best reason to want the conductor dead. Heald, Tim. “Donna Leon talks about corruption and death in Venice: interview.” The Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group, 7 May 2009. 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.

Death at La Fenice is Donna Leon’s first novel in her Guido Brunetti series, set in the beautiful city of Venice. Guido Brunetti is a commissario (detective) for the Venetian police and investigates the the death of world-famous conductor Helmut Wellauer, who was poisoned in his dressing room during an opera. The novel is written in 3rd person limited, describing Brunetti’s thoughts to the reader throughout. Brunetti must investigate Wellauer’s death as he discovers the genius had more enemies than he initially suspected. Venice is the perfect setting for this modern cozy, as Leon emphasizes the smallness and interconnectivity of the Venetian community, limiting the list of suspects to the music world of Venice. I wasn’t blown away by this but it’s the first in a long series and so I assume they get better. I chose to read it only because I’m going to Venice in September and wanted to get in the mood! It’s very well written, however, and so I’ll probably be tempted to read more. characterization is well-done. of special note are how strongly characterized the women are. in particular, two central characters: the physician wife of the deceased - a famous and exceedingly unpleasant opera conductor - and an American archaeologist who is the (lesbian) lover of one of the suspects.