Donna Leon is back! I love the Commissario Brunetti series, but I haven't really enjoyed the last few books. I think it's because they dealt with political or social issues that don't particularly interest me. I did admire Beastly Things because Leon showcased slaughterhouses, and animal welfare is something I fight for.
Anyway, Falling in Love is a good, authentic mystery. Flavia Petrelli, opera star and an acquaintance of Brunetti's, is singing in Tosca at La Fenice. A mysterious fan is frightening her, sending her hundreds of yellow roses, to opera houses in different cities and, in Venice, to her apartment door. She doesn't want to make a big thing of it, but she's unnerved. At dinner one night, she tells Brunetti what has happened. Although he doesn't feel that it's a police matter, he agrees to investigate a bit.
Things step up a notch when a young singer Petrelli complimented is pushed down a flight of stairs and Petrelli's ex-lover, whose house she's staying at while in Venice, is attacked. This makes things more serious and definitely a police matter, so Brunetti digs deeper. A very valuable necklace points him in the right direction.
The ending is dramatic. I saw it coming, as you will, but it's a good one anyway. I can almost hear the music.
Sounds like a story worthy of an opera :)
ReplyDeleteI have never seen an opera and keep bypassing the opportunity. On the one hand, I think I'd love them. On the other, they're usually so long. But why would that make me shy away from them? Sometimes I watch TV for hours at a time. Fear of classics? I used to have that problem with classic books, afraid to read them because I wouldn't get everything about them. A friend told me just to read the damn books and enjoy them. Good advice!
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