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Reading lists

9 beach reads set in Italy

A photo of Donna Leon, author of Give Unto Others, side-by-side with the interview title, 21 Questions, on a fuchsia and grayscale background.

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Interviews

‘Unlike Dickens, Trollope understands women’: 21 Questions with Donna Leon

A Refiner's Fire

Commissario Guido Brunetti returns with a gripping and powerful case about the murkiness of power and a test of loyalties 
 
'Perfectly crafted . . . this only proves what a truly great writer [Leon] has become' Mark Sanderson, The Times 
 
'One of the most subtle and exquisite detective series ever' Washington Post 
 
When two teenage gangs are arrested after clashing violently in one of Venice’s campi, the son of a local hero is implicated. But when Commissario Guido Brunetti is asked by a wealthy foreigner to vet this man, Monforte, for a job, he discovers that Monforte might not be such a hero after all. 
 
This seeming contradiction, and a brutal attack on one of Brunetti’s colleagues by a possible gang member, concentrate Brunetti’s attentions. Soon, he discovers the sordid hypocrisy surrounding Monforte’s past, culminating in a fiery meeting of two gangs and a final opportunity for redemption. 
 
A Refiner’s Fire is Donna Leon at her very best: an elegant, sophisticated storyteller whose indelible characters become richer with each book, and who constantly interrogates the ambiguity between moral and legal justice.

One of the best European novelists around

The series that has shadowed Brunetti for three decades is an epic achievement

One of the most subtle and exquisite detective series ever

This is Donna Leon at her very best, with rich characters and elegant, sophisticated storytelling

Dead Good Books - The best crime and thriller books of 2024

Only in a Donna Leon novel could you find Tacitus (“They make a desert and call it peace”) and Nancy Sinatra cited on the same page. You never know what she’s going to say next. If her increasingly sardonic wit provides more surprises than the perfectly crafted plot, this only proves what a truly great writer she has become.

Where else but Venice would you find a policeman who reads Proust, appreciates the beautiful things in life and cannot work on an empty stomach? . . . Like many of her readers, while I came for the crime, I stayed for the characters and Italian culture.

Donna Leon is author of the much-loved, best-selling series of novels featuring Commissario Brunetti and one of The Times' 50 Greatest Crime Writers. Widely considered one of the best detective series ever, with admirers including Ursula K. Le Guin and Val McDermid, the Brunetti Mysteries have won numerous awards around the world and been translated into thirty-five languages.

When two teenage gangs are arrested after clashing violently in one of Venice’s campi, the son of a local hero is implicated. But when Commissario Guido Brunetti is asked by a wealthy foreigner to vet this man, Monforte, for a job, he discovers that Monforte might not be such a hero after all. 
 
This seeming contradiction, and a brutal attack on one of Brunetti’s colleagues by a possible gang member, concentrate Brunetti’s attentions. Soon, he discovers the sordid hypocrisy surrounding Monforte’s past, culminating in a fiery meeting of two gangs and a final opportunity for redemption. 
 
A Refiner’s Fire is Donna Leon at her very best: an elegant, sophisticated storyteller whose indelible characters become richer with each book, and who constantly interrogates the ambiguity between moral and legal justice.

By Its Cover

The intelligent and capable police commissioner Guido Brunetti confronts crime in and around his home town of Venice.

The 23rd installment in the brilliant Brunetti series from The Sunday Times bestselling author, Donna Leon. 
 
A Washington Post Bestseller 
A New York Times Bestseller 
 
‘Inspired by the real-life looting of the Girolamini Library in Naples, this book adds to Donna Leon’s best-selling Commissario Guido Brunetti series . . . Leon’s description of the setting is vivid’ New York Times 
 
‘Will both delight and strike fear into bibliophiles’ hearts. . . . A finely drawn tale that encompasses theft, blackmail, emotional violence, and murder, as well as a rich array of characters . . .’ Boston Globe 
 
When several valuable antiquarian books go missing from a prestigious library in the heart of Venice, Commissario Brunetti is immediately called to the scene. The staff suspect an American researcher has stolen them, but for Brunetti something doesn't quite add up. 
 
Taking on the case, the Commissario begins to seek information about some of the library's regulars, such as the ex-priest Franchini, a passionate reader of ancient Christian literature, and Contessa Morosini-Albani, the library's chief donor. 
 
Soon Brunetti finds himself submerged in the dark secrets of the black market of antiquarian books. Alongside his ever-faithful team of Ispettore Vianello and Signorina Elettra, he delves into the pages of Franchini's past and into the mind of a book thief in order to uncover the terrible truth.

The multiple award-winning Leon has lost none of her talent for weaving intrigue, and the atmosphere of Venice is as beguiling as ever.

Leon's command of the baroque Italian thriller is second to none.

An excellent entry in the Brunetti series … There are few detectives with whom I enjoy spending time more and I must now endure the long wait for Leon’s next book.

Donna Leon was named by The Times as one of the 50 Greatest Crime Writers. She is an award-winning crime novelist, celebrated for the bestselling Brunetti series. Donna has lived in Venice for thirty years and previously lived in Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Iran and China, where she worked as a teacher. Donna's books have been translated into thirty-five languages and have been published around the world. 
 
Her previous novels featuring Commissario Brunetti have all been highly acclaimed; including Friends in High Places, which won the CWA Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction, Fatal Remedies, Doctored Evidence, A Sea of Troubles and Beastly Things.

A Washington Post Bestseller 
A New York Times Bestseller 
 
‘Inspired by the real-life looting of the Girolamini Library in Naples, this book adds to Donna Leon’s best-selling Commissario Guido Brunetti series . . . Leon’s description of the setting is vivid’ New York Times 
 
‘Will both delight and strike fear into bibliophiles’ hearts. . . . A finely drawn tale that encompasses theft, blackmail, emotional violence, and murder, as well as a rich array of characters . . .’ Boston Globe 
 
When several valuable antiquarian books go missing from a prestigious library in the heart of Venice, Commissario Brunetti is immediately called to the scene. The staff suspect an American researcher has stolen them, but for Brunetti something doesn't quite add up. 
 
Taking on the case, the Commissario begins to seek information about some of the library's regulars, such as the ex-priest Franchini, a passionate reader of ancient Christian literature, and Contessa Morosini-Albani, the library's chief donor. 
 
Soon Brunetti finds himself submerged in the dark secrets of the black market of antiquarian books. Alongside his ever-faithful team of Ispettore Vianello and Signorina Elettra, he delves into the pages of Franchini's past and into the mind of a book thief in order to uncover the terrible truth.

The Golden Egg

The twenty-second instalment in the internationally acclaimed, bestselling Commissario Brunetti series 
 
'The familiar characters and Venetian location are described with remarkable freshness and, as always, the edifying result is both amusing and thought-provoking.' Sunday Telegraph 
 
'Donna Leon has a wonderful feeling for the social complexities of Venice, where corruption is as old and deep and treacherous as the canals.' Daily Mail 
 
A New York Times Bestseller 
 
When a local man is found dead after overdosing on sleeping pills, Commissario Brunetti's wife can't help but ask him to investigate. The sweet, simple-minded man had worked at their local dry cleaner and Paola loathes the idea that he lived and died without anyone noticing or helping him. 
 
But what seems to be an open-and-shut case of suicide soon proves to be anything but. Brunetti soon discovers that there is nothing on the man: no birth certificate, no passport, no driver's license, no credit cards. Stranger still, the dead man's mother refuses to speak to the police. As secrets unravel, Brunetti begins to suspect that an aristocratic family might be somehow connected to the mystery . . .

The familiar characters and Venetian location are described with remarkable freshness and, as always, the edifying result is both amusing and thought-provoking

Leon’s impeccably plotted, utterly involving Italian-set novels (featuring the food-loving Commissario Brunetti) have rarely been less than excellent. So it proves with the latest, The Golden Egg. Involved in routine enquiries into a possible bribery case, Brunetti hears from his wife Paola of the death of an educationally-challenged man who worked at the Brunetti’s dry cleaners ... The Golden Egg is Donna Leon on top form.

If there’s a writer for whom the law of diminishing returns has been revoked, it’s Donna Leon. The doyenne of Italian crime fiction, whose stamina in returning time and again to her Venetian beat is matched only by her curiosity, she has proved herself, in the space of 22 titles, not only an able detective novelist, but the author of something more substantial ... It is one of the joys of Leon’s work that she can take readers into the sinister heart of Italy, and yet, in the person of Brunetti and his companions, convince us that not all is lost.

The introspective Brunetti, a man with a healthy sense of the absurd and a sharp eye for the fading grandeur of the city’s architecture, makes for good company as he negotiates the perilous labyrinth of Venetian police office politics. Deceptively languid in its pace and a masterclass in mood, The Golden Egg … is a meticulously crafted example of how even the most apparently innocuous of crimes can reveal a trove of history.

The Golden Egg is Donna Leon on top form.

[T]his is a much darker version of Brunetti-land than the earlier novels…The character of the deaf mutes seems to serve as an allegory of the political landscape of Italy – the public silenced and ignored, whilst those in power continue the ancient Italian tradition of fiddle-playing.

The descriptions of Venice and Venetian life are beautifully written and acutely observed … The author clearly has an excellent understanding of the Italian psyche and a profound knowledge of Venice and Venetian life.  This is the 22nd book in Donna Leon’s Commissario Brunetti series and I can’t wait for the 23rd.

'The familiar characters and Venetian location are described with remarkable freshness and, as always, the edifying result is both amusing and thought-provoking.' Sunday Telegraph 
 
'Donna Leon has a wonderful feeling for the social complexities of Venice, where corruption is as old and deep and treacherous as the canals.' Daily Mail 
 
A New York Times Bestseller 
 
When a local man is found dead after overdosing on sleeping pills, Commissario Brunetti's wife can't help but ask him to investigate. The sweet, simple-minded man had worked at their local dry cleaner and Paola loathes the idea that he lived and died without anyone noticing or helping him. 
 
But what seems to be an open-and-shut case of suicide soon proves to be anything but. Brunetti soon discovers that there is nothing on the man: no birth certificate, no passport, no driver's license, no credit cards. Stranger still, the dead man's mother refuses to speak to the police. As secrets unravel, Brunetti begins to suspect that an aristocratic family might be somehow connected to the mystery . . .

Beastly Things

‘The book is written with that depth of thought about crime and humanity that characterises the best of Leon’s work.’ Independent 
 
‘[A] fine, atmospheric novel…Twenty-one books on, [Leon] has lost none of her delightful skill and wit.’ Evening Standard 
 
When a body is found floating in a canal, strangely disfigured and with multiple stab wounds, Commissario Brunetti is called to investigate. He is convinced he recognises the man from somewhere, but with a pair of distinctive shoes as the only clue, the case cannot progress. 
 
Recalling a violent farmers’ protest that took place the previous year, Brunetti suddenly remembers the victim. But what was his involvement with the protest, and what does it have to do with his murder? Acting on this fragile lead, Brunetti and Inspector Vianello set out on an investigation that will lead them from Venice’s placid canals to the slaughterhouse, and into a terrifying world of blackmail and corruption. 
 
Both a gripping case and a harrowing exploration of the dark side of Italy's food industry, Donna Leon's latest novel is a compelling addition to the Brunetti series.

The book is written with that depth of thought about crime and humanity that characterises the best of Leon’s work.

[A] fine, atmospheric novel…Twenty-one books on, [Leon] has lost none of her delightful skill and wit.

Donna Leon’s elegant and compelling crime novels enjoy great success throughout the world. On the surface, this is another entry in a reliable long-running series. But it's also an oblique addressing of some complex issues with typical intelligence and perception.

Beastly Things is a perfect accompaniment to a hot day and a cool glass of white wine. Superb.

[Leon’s] books paint such an appealing portrait of modern Venetian life that they’ve sent droves of holidaymakers to the city.

A Question of Belief

'Leon's books are a joy, and the 19th Venice-based Commissario Brunetti novel is well up to her consistently high standard.' Guardian 
 
As Venice experiences a debilitating heatwave, Commissario Brunetti escapes the city to spend time with his family. For Ispettore Vianello, however, the weather is the last thing on his mind. It appears his aunt has become obsessed with horoscopes and has been withdrawing large amounts of money from the family business. Not knowing what to do, he consults Brunetti and asks permission to trail her. 
 
Meanwhile, Brunetti receives a visit from a friend who works at the Commune. It seems that discrepancies have been occurring at the Courthouse involving a judge and an usher with a flawless track record. Intrigued, Brunetti asks Signorina Elettra to find out what she can while he's away. 
 
When news reaches Brunetti that the usher from the Courthouse has been viciously murdered, he returns to investigate. But why would someone want a good man dead, and what might his death have to do with the Courthouse discrepancies?

About Face

‘Super sleuth Brunetti again patrols Venice's dark canal ways in this Italian crimefest. Once again, Brunetti proves he's more than a match for the local mob’ Mirror 
 
‘Elegant, effortless . . . another great Brunetti outing' The Independent 
 
When Commissario Brunetti is visited by an investigator from the Carabinieri looking into the murder of a truck company owner, he is intrigued. Not long before his death, Stefano Ranzato had been caught hauling goods illegally for the Mafia, and was pressured into becoming an informant. The Carabinieri suspect that the Mafia killed Stefano to ensure his silence, but what did the man discover that cost him his life? 
 
The stakes are high and the investigation complex as Brunetti is drawn into working with a rival Italian police department – and when another person connected to the case is murdered, Brunetti must race against time to uncover the truth before it happens again. 
 
‘[A] brilliant series’ Sunday Telegraph

Donna Leon

Stories of a writing life

Donna Leon’s memoir, Wandering Through Life, gave her legions of fans a colourful tour through her life, from childhood in New Jersey to adventures in China and Iran, to her love of Venice and opera. Nowhere, however, did she discuss her writing life. 
 
In Backstage, Donna reveals her admiration for, and inspiration from, the great crime novelists Ruth Rendell and Ross Macdonald, examining their approach to storytelling as she dissects her favorite books of theirs. She expresses her love for Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations and her appreciation of Sir Walter Scott’s generosity of spirit. And she chronicles the lengths amount of research she undertakes to be able to present authentically, through Guido Brunetti and his colleagues, places and characters far from her own experience: interviewing a diamond dealer in Venice to open up the world of blood diamonds; meeting, through back channels, a courageous sex worker and women’s rights activist to depict accurately the trafficking of women in Italy. 
 
Venice is central in her memory, whether recounting the semi-comic irritation of a noisy elderly neighbor or the origins of the city’s Carnevale. Her teaching career yields memorable tales: helping a young Black boy in a Newark, New Jersey elementary school; instructing young Iranian pilots in English just before the 1979 Iranian Revolution; taking her students at a Swiss private high school to the famous Frank Zappa concert in Montreux interrupted by fire. 
 
Throughout, she is as good a storyteller about herself as she is a chronicler of Guido Brunetti’s crime adventures. Readers will be as caught up in her world as she is in his.

Donna Leon

Books by Donna Leon

Series by Donna Leon

A Commissario Brunetti Mystery

Articles featuring Donna Leon

9 beach reads set in Italy

‘Unlike Dickens, Trollope understands women’: 21 Questions with Donna Leon

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