Blood From a Stone and Through a Glass Darkly By Donna Leon
Picking the new Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery by Donna Leon from a box of new books is like being presented with a box of chocolates - only better!
Blood From a Stone is now in paperback and her newest novel, Through a Glass Darkly is new in hardcover. So escape the snow and cold and treat yourself to a holiday in Venice with Donna Leon.
Blood From a Stone addresses the issue of the large immigrant population of Africans in Venice - many of whom sell knock-off designer handbags on the streets.
Make a living
They are desperately trying to make a living far from their homes and in constant fear of being caught by the police. They come and lay out their offerings in a minute, but at the first sign of a policeman they disappear in an instant.
When one of these street merchants is killed Brunetti cannot imagine why anyone would kill a man who has nothing.
What he uncovers reveals the desperate lives of these men and the corrupt Venetians who use them to their own advantage.
As he often does, Guido finds himself in a very dangerous situation - fearing not the criminals on the street, but the criminals in the palazzos and those holding political power. Also, as always, we enjoy reading about the relationships within Guido’s family and the office politics at the police station.
Through a Glass Darkly takes us out to the island of Murano, home of the world famous glass factories.
There is conflict in the family who own one of the oldest and largest of the glass manufacturers - and there is conflict between those with environmental concerns and the same company.
Brunetti must be careful to divide his personal relationships from his job - discover if the environmental concerns have any basis in fact, and to find out what the family in question has to hide.
These are books to take to a cozy corner, to spend the day exploring the canals and campos of the magical city of Venice. From a distance we can share a little of Donna Leon’s love for the city of Venice and its people.