Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. I have chosen to write this honest review voluntarily and it reflects my personal opinion.
I have read one of the previous books in the series, and although I enjoyed the details about Venetian people and the life there, I found the detective plotline slow. This book seems to take my previous thoughts to the extreme: it is full of Venetian details, and how particular the people are in their speech and behaviour towards each other so that the murder plot seems incidental. I loathed the start with its handling of the discovery that a police colleague was gay, it seemed laboured and agreed with keeping the fact a secret. I would have given it a mid-range rating based on the fact that some readers may enjoy the minute detail and slow pace but I cannot recommend it as an interesting read, I stopped reading at 38% so reduced my rating to 2 stars.

Another brilliant storyline of a murder in Venice.

Unfortunately, a long illness has prevented me from submitting reviews at the time of release.

My heart always gives an extra beat of pure happiness when it sees a new book by Donna Leon devoted to Commissario , Guido Brunetti and his team. A hand is found floating in one of Venice’s canals. Some time later, the body is discovered and the process of identifying the victim and his history takes Brunetti and his team into some very unexpected places.

I love that this series is set in Venice, a city very close to my heart. I love the pace of the investigations. There’s always time for a lunch break and good coffee. I love the team who work with Brunetti and most of all, I love Brunetti’s family who always play a big role in any of the stories.

Well written, thoughtful and wholesome detective series, set in beautiful Venice.

The characters' lives, families and friendships are interwoven throughout, including a subplot about a colleague who is arrested at a Gay rally. The main investigation revolves around a neglected palazzo and the murder of an undocumented Sri Lankan who had been living in the garden house of the property, and who it happens Brunetti had recently met, albeit briefly.

With no official documentation relating to the victim, Brunetti makes use of unofficial channels and the local grapevine, discovering a motive amongst the victim's surprisingly extensive and diverse library, which includes newspaper reports relating to terrorist attacks in Italy.

This latest volume in the long running police series takes a little while to arrive at the central mystery. Beginning with an insight into what happens when one of Brunetti's colleagues is arrested at a Gay rally, the real plot revolves around a neglected palazzo, the professor and his wife who live there, and the murder of an immigrant Sri Lankan who had been living and working in the villa, but had no official existence in Venice. The Sri Lankan, whom Brunetti had met briefly, possessed a small library focusing on Buddhism, crime novels and, more significantly, Anarchist terrorism in Italy dating back to Brunetti's own youth. What was the man doing? Why had he been murdered? Who was the killer?

As always, this is a well-written and thoughtful novel. The mystery throws up ghosts from Brunetti's own past, and the homophobic side plot highlights more contemporary issues. A worthwhile read.

This was my first introduction to Guido Brunetti the Venice detective. We follow him as he strolls around his city knowing everyone and everything about what is going on. The pace is slow and it took me a while to get used to the writing style but everything changes when the body of an undocumented worker is pulled from the canal. While Guido hunts for the murderer connections are drawn between the idealistic youth politics of those involved and of the policemen’s younger selves and how our ideas change over time.

Guido Brunetti is called out to a dead body in one of the canals. When he recognises the man as someone he encountered days before, he is put on the case to investigate. But who would want to kill an old Sri Lankan man who few even knew existed?

I haven’t read any of Donna Leon’s previous books in this series, so didn’t know any of the back stories of Brunetti and any of his colleagues, which I felt was a disadvantage. The setting, in and around the canals of Venice, is delightful, but the plot was a bit of a letdown. Unfortunately the murderer was easily identified from an early stage, and the investigation proceeded with little controversy or shock. However,nit was a well written story and I would definitely give Leon another chance, but perhaps I should start from the beginning of the series.

This is now book 32 in this much loved series, and having been reading theses novels myself, for the last 25 years,(nearly as long as Leon has been writing them) I've enjoyed every single one.
This new novel looks at a cold case and is slowly told and explored as we read more about the wonderful Brunetti and his home of Venice.
Another good tale to add to this now long list of stories.

I’m a bit late in coming to read a Brunetti novel as this is book 32 in the series.
However; not knowing Brunetti’s background didn’t impact on my enjoyment of the novel. The novel is a gentle crime novel without any great complicated twists. Instead it concentrates on the characters and their relationships which are drawn in detail. The novel is in no way slight as it gently introduces themes such as the rise of the far right in Italy and the intolerance towards the LGBTQ+ community.
An excellent read - I have plenty of Brunetti novels to catch up with now!

I had not read Donna Leon before this book, and I think that her style, although I can see its merits, it is not for me. I was not really interested in the characters or storyline and after a few chapters gave up, so I cannot really judge it properly. Clearly, Leon has an eye for atmospheric description of place and character and perhaps I would have appreciated more the story if I had come to it having read the previous books in the series.

This I am almost ashamed to say is the first book in this long running series that I have had the pleasure of reading and I now know what I have been missing. Although I have never been to Venice I felt immersed in the city and its culture and I had no problems with the plot not having read its predecessors. The story evolves in a very gentle way and the writing style is excellent a complete antidote to the blood and gore styles of many modern crime novels. In Commissario Brunetti the author has created a gentle family man who is also a thoughtful and brilliant detective .
This book has been a real pleasure to read and will not be the last of the series I shall read.

This is another wonderful treasure from Donna Leon. It centres around a cold case - a scenario increasingly popular in modern crime stories - although it is triggered by a murder very much in the present. It weaves together a number of strands of thought-provoking material examining hate crime and attitudes to prejudice, as well as how well or little we know about those we work with every day. Through attention to detail, the police team gradually unravels the secrets of both present and past. All too often in this series, it seems that even though the police "solve the crime" they cannot bring the criminals to justice in the conventional way, and at best some compromise has to be made. However, in this case, despite the powerful figures involved, you are left with no doubt that those responsible will face prosecution.
Leon displays an admirable economy of style in her writing, where every sentence vividly conveys the essence of her meaning without being overly wordy, and her characters come to life with real depth without needing to explain every last detail of personality - or physical appearance... [Here I should say for those familiar with this book series, Signorina Elettra is an exception as we are treated to full descriptions of her wonderful clothes, mostly I think as they are so much appreciated by Brunetti]. I was interested to note that this is the first "post-pandemic" (if we can say that) book I have read and Covid is referenced I think in a rather clever way, with Brunetti casually finding that he has a face mask left as a kind of relic in his pocket, and not feeling the need to wear it - still present, but not centre stage.
The Brunetti series has been with us for over 30 years now, and I'm tempted to describe them as "gentle" although that has come to mean "lightweight", which these books are definitely not. Leon consciously avoids political controversy, even though there are many examples of the more localised political machinations within the Italian police; in fact this particular story more or less opens with one such "accommodation" between departments. Overall, if her plots have any underlying themes, they are overwhelmingly towards issues with the environment - and you do not have to look very far to be faced with these concerns in Venice, where the books are set. However, do not think that Leon engages in clumsy eco-crusades in her writing - they are mystery stories full of interesting characters where these - often very serious - issues simply provide the backdrop.
Brunetti himself is an interesting protagonist to have gained such a mainstream following over the years, as he is somewhat intellectual, loving opera and often to be found reading ancient philosophers. He has a happy home life - not presented as unrealistically idyllic - with his wife and children providing robust exchanges during their meals together, and insights which would otherwise bypass Brunetti.
Despite the fact that their working day is interspersed with regular visits to local cafes for brief coffees, (and Brunetti generally returns home for lunch), you never feel that the detectives are anything less than dedicated and conscientious workers. Transport in Venice is by vaporetto - but there is also much walking, often seen as a pleasing alternative by Brunetti, during which he never fails to admire and appreciate the architecture and beauty of his home city. But I think it is his basic sense of sanity and decency in a rather less than sane environment, that instills such trust in the reader.
It's not necessary to read the books in order; although Brunetti's family and the age of his children do develop through the stories, it is easy enough to place the stories within the chronology.
So... if you have never read any Leon books before - start now!

If this book had been written in Italian and been read by an Italian then there would have been more understanding of the nuances of the Italian police and the Italian way of life and I suspect it would have more impact. For me, it had as much impact as a wet flannel.

Whilst I enjoy a good meander, this tale spent more time meandering than was good for it. It took so long to get to where the story started and so l-o-n-g to get anywhere at all that I am surprised that I finished it and now that I have, I wonder why I did. Very likely because this was a book that I was reviewing and I was loathe to "give up" on the task I had undertaken.

Donna Leon never fails to deliver in her inspection tor Brunetti series of books. This one gives more insight into the main character and his earlier life whilst also adding to the history of Italy

This is very much in the tradition of the Brunetti series - a murder, lots of descriptions of food and set in Venice. This time Brunetti is dealing with the death of a Buddhist man, living in the garden house of an old friend of his. However, his death is brutal and apparently without motive. Various prejudices are aired concerning both immigrants, non-Venetians and homosexuals, but it is handled well.

These aren't gritty dramas, but the story winds you in and Brunetti is, as ever, a charming and kind man with a good family. I enjoy the series very much. Although it often makes me hungry with all those descriptions of his meals!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK and Cornerstone for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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32 books devoted to one character is quite an achievement and it is testimony to Donna Leon’s crafting of Commisario Guido Brunetti that we still have things to learn about him.

As Brunetti undertakes a regular cull of his books to make way for new ones and muses on the three sessions a week that his wife Paola teaches at the University he is called to the aid of a colleague. Alvise has surprised Brunetti and Ispettore Vianelli by becoming caught up in a protest and arrested. Such matters are delicate not so much because of the nature of the protest, but rather because the delicacy of navigating the protocols over the arrest of a fellow officer is a tricky one to traverse. But this is, of course, where Brunetti excels – in understanding the language and the body language and what needs not to be said in order to bring matters to a satisfactory conclusion.

Signora Elettra has been away at an important cyber security conference but returns unimpressed. The Italian Police have a long way to go before they catch up with her quietly impressive skills.

Brunetti hears news of a well-known burglar who is reputedly now back in operation in Venice but that has to be put aside when he is called out to the discovery of a hand, quickly followed by a body, lifted from the Canal. Brunetti is surprised to discover that he has met the man, a Sri Lankan, only recently. Such is the way of Venice that, in the course of following up a query from his father in law, he had enquired only recently at the Palazzo in whose somewhat neglected grounds the Sri Lankan lived , to see if the property might be for sale.

The Palazzo has a nunnery as a neighbour and as Guido investigates he finds more about Inesh Kavinda, the murdered man, who was undocumented. He used to do odd jobs for the Palazzo’s owners, including helping Professore Molin to take his daily walks. So the team have to piece together the scraps of information they can find in order to make a complete picture of the man. One of the odd things they discover from looking through his shed/cottage in the grounds is a scrapbook of newspaper cuttings that he has kept.

Kavinda had a finger bone in his pocket which is curious to say the least. And the newspaper cuttings relate to past terrorism activities in Italy which seems very much at odds with the Buddhism he practiced.

Brunetti is acquainted with one of the owners. Gloria Molin he knew from his youth, though they have not met since. Professore Molin, in the process of trying to lay claim to a noble heritage, is not very helpful but Brunetti is effusive in his humility as befits one of the lower orders. “Brunetti gushed with thanks, as though he were the public fountain in Campo Santa Margherita, free to spill its freshness at the feet of Professor Molin.” Flattery and obeisance is clearly the way to secure the co-operation of such an esteemed figure and as always it is Brunetti’s understanding of the human psyche that gives him his advantage.

Gloria Molin describes Inesh as a man who was a tireless worker; who helped many older people and was kind and gentle with them and who loved his family and his books. Though his reading matter was mainly English novels, he also had an interest in Italian History and had asked her about The Red Brigade.

As Brunetti, Vianello and Claudia Griffoni investigate, with the help of Signora Elettra’s distinct specialist skills, they have to piece together the various scraps of information they are able to garner in order to establish a fuller picture of what happened.

It is Brunetti’s understanding of life, the class system and Venetians that makes these books so special. Together with his trusted team, they work diligently on the small bits of information they gather until they can see the whole picture and when it comes together it isn’t pretty.

But as always, Brunetti is calmed by his contact with the rhythms and cadences of the city and its people and as he follows the case through we learn a little more about Guido as a young man and why especially he is less than fond of jackets with leather patches on the elbows.

Verdict: Donna Leon again delights with the well-plotted investigations of Guido Brunetti. We love to understand his resentment of the surveillance age even as his investigations benefit from it. We enjoy his reflections over various espressos – because leaving his place of work at the Questura helps to restore balance to his life and certainly nothing does that more than heading home for lunch with his wife and children. It is in the trivialities of life that Guido finds his peace; that and knowing that wrongdoing will not prevail under his watch.

An unregistered Sri Lankan, Inesh Kavinda, is found dead of multiple stab wounds. Commissario Guido Brunnetti of the Venice Police investigates in this, the 32nd book in the series. The dead man had been living in a small ‘house’ in the overgrown garden of a Palazzo tucked away in a backwater area. The palazzo is owned by Professore Renato Molin, a lecturer at the University, and his wife Gloria. Guido knows her and has, in fact, previously met Inesh, which might seem an excess of coincidence but, as Brunetti frequently points out, everybody in Venice knows everybody else. A search of Inesh’s house turns up some interesting eclectic reading, including a surprising amount of material relating to the terrorist activities of the Red Brigade and its adherents during the 1970s and 1980s. Guido had been a student in the latter part of this period and had briefly become involved with the political landscape but not the violent methods of the time. With some insight, therefore, he employs logic, not necessarily supported with evidence, to untangle and explain the motive for the murder and identify the killer.
The Commissario and his team are well loved characters with a large fan base. This is the first book about them I have read so I come with no prejudices. As a police procedural it follows a standard path, albeit a rather nonchalant one. Readers who like fast pace, dynamic story lines will not find them here. The plot is not particularly complex and the case easily solvable, but that is a minor concern. The story is really about Italian history, and political conflicts, and a philosophical observer who happens to also be a participant. It is also about Venice as a character in the proceedings; indeed the basic plot could happen anywhere but the story could only be in Venice.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Brunetti is asked by his father in law to find out if a rumour that a particular property is up for sale has any truth in it. He knocks on the door in question and is greeted by a Sri Lankan man, He is told no, it is not for sale.
Later he is called to a body in the canal is stunned to discover that it is the same man who answered the door to him earlier in the day.
The investigation leads back to a time of politics, kidnapping and terrorism and bad memories surface for Brunetti.
Interesting.

I found this book a little confusing and slow going. The plot seemed to meander without much direction or even investigation. Also minor character's seemed to come into play for no real purpose and no link to the mystery. There seemed to be a lot moving between the past and present that didn't help. Having said all that this is a new series to me so this might explain some of my confusion. The story did do a great job of bringing Venice of the era to life. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

On a cold Venetian winter’s night, Commissario Guido Brunetti is called out by a colleague, Ispectorre Vianello. A body has been seen in the waters of a canal and he goes to investigate. It’s soon apparent that what happened to the victim was no accident and that it will now become a murder investigation.
But Brunetti recognises the victim as they had briefly met when he had been asked by a friend of a friend to ascertain if the Palazzo Zatto dei Leoni was for sale. The victim had been the man who had answered the door and informed him that it was not. And at the mortuary the staff find a mysterious object in his waistcoat pocket. – part of a human fingerbone.
He is soon identified as Inesh Kavinda, an undocumented Sri Lankan, who had been living in the garden house of the palazzo. As Brunetti searches the house he discovers books on Buddhism, the Tamil Tigers and a scrapbook which Kavinda had bought from a local bookstore. It features clippings, maps and manifestos that relate to a chapter in Italy’s more troubled past. The 1970’s were a time of protest and factions resorting to violence to achieve their aims in overturning the current political order. It makes Brunetti recalls his youthful aspirations from the 1970’s and idealism that could have found form in these same ways. It was also a time of alliances and in the scrapbook Brunetti finds the names of a group of three men; Rubini, Neri and Molin. The latter, now a university professor, is the owner of the palazzo and Inesh had been helping him with his mobility after a stroke as well as assisting his wife, Gloria around the house. Neri is now dead and his son gives Brunetti a bag of clippings and other memorabilia from that era. In them Brunetti finds another mystery. A notorious unsolved missing person case. Somehow they are all connected and he has to find the thread that links them altogether.
It was a joy to enter Brunetti’s world again with Venice, a city I have visited and fell in love with, as a dark and dramatic backdrop and almost a character in itself. A true Venetian, Brunetti knows its secrets and ancient rivalries. As he says’ (it’s)such a small place, tiny gene pool…’ as nearly everyone knows everyone. This enables him to explore more unconventional ways of gathering information such as approaching postmen, neighbours, passersby, café conversations over coffee and gossip. He knows how to negotiate the politics at the Questtura with his colleagues Signorina Elettra and Commissario Griffoni and his rival, Vice Questore Patta. Brunetti has also realised that he may have problems ahead with the pairing of two police officers, Alvise and Brandini. Alvise has recently been arrested at a gay rights rally, much to everyone’s surprise and Brandini is a member of a Christian group. They will be chalk and cheese.
‘So shall you reap’ is the latest, the 32nd (!) in fact of the long running Commissario Brunetti series. It has been a while since I met with the Commissario and his world. These are not fast paced thrillers but, instead, the author allows the story to unfold in its own time and reveal its secrets slowly, subtly and leisurely. There is much that is left unspoken for the reader to discover, especially about the real relationship between Ikesh and the Professor, until events weave together to culminate in a shocking final page. This is one of the strengths about the author’s writing and plotting and one of the many reasons why I have enjoyed reading them so much.
It was also a pleasure to meet Brunetti’s family again: his two teenage children, Chiara and Raffi and his adored wife Paola. They are the backbone of his life.
I think it is time to catch up with the Commissario and his world again from where I left off.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC.