by Donna Leon
Part of Commissario Brunetti, book 14
First published 2006
A street vendor selling counterfeit handbags dies during a confrontation in Campo Santo Stefano on a frigid December night in Venice. American tourists browsing his merchandise become the primary witnesses. The victim was a vu cumpra, an African immigrant selling goods without permits outside regular business hours. Commissario Guido Brunetti initially assumes the killing stems from disputes among the marginalized immigrant workers who lack money and social ties. The murder appears professional despite this theory. Brunetti enters Venice's hidden immigrant underworld and uncovers valuable stakes within this secretive community. His wife Paola grapples with their daughter's biases toward immigrants while Brunetti confronts similar prejudices in his own police department. His superior Patta orders him to abandon the investigation, but this only strengthens Brunetti's resolve to find the truth. The case forces Brunetti to navigate corruption that extends into the highest levels of Venetian society.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, thriller
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, social-commentary
Setting: Venice, Campo Santo Stefano
Period: December
355 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Penguin Books
Content warnings: racism