Death at Le Fenice

In Donna Leon's Death at Le Fenice, the first installment in the Commissario Brunetti Italian mystery series, we were taken into the world of the Italian police with interesting new characters. For Guido Brunetti, the Lieutenant of the Italian police, he arrived on his first crime scene at an opera. He discovered the dead body of the German Maestro, Helmut Wellauer, and investigated his past, even in German. Although he was a well-loved maestro, his life wasn't so called musical, when there was a lot of bad harboring secrets Guido discovered, even with his marital life. In the end, he discovered why and how he died by cyanide poisoning with a shocking twist.

This was a great introduction to the Venice mystery series. I cared about Guido and his family and about Clemenza, who harbored such grief. Some characters I didn't care so much. I loved the vast Italian and Argentian locations for the dual scenic settings for this series. This would take you to the world of opera and behind the scenes with great story-telling and grip you by the reins. Great drama, non-stop action and suspense and lots of intense intrigue.

Will you discover the death at Le Fenice? If so, give this one a try today!