Friends in High Places (A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery)

This novel/mystery holds its own with Leon's whole series featuring the Commisario. There is always a bit of humor. What was missing in this one for me was her usual elaboration of Italian food but I survived and didn't hit the fridge while reading which is probably a good thing.

I never tire of the beautiful backdrop for human pettiness and corruption in Venice. Brunetti and his family with their wholesome life and good food contrasted with the underbelly of greed and bureaucratic ineptness

The storyline moved along so slowly that I almost put the book down. There isn't a mystery or body until more than 1/3 into the book. By then, I almost didn't care! It is mostly a character study of the main character, but isn't very engrossing. Not a hit with me.

I adored this book! I'm reading the Leon/Brunetti books in order and I consider this, Book 8, the best so far. Leon's use of language is superb, her sense of humor quiet, clever, and perfectly on point, and her characterization of Commissario Guido Brunetti never better. He faces, as always, the corruption and filth of Venetian politics and life, is disgusted by it, shocked by those who give in to it, yet wonders whether his attempts to battle it are for naught, as the powers that be do indeed have friends in high places. His and Paola's moral discussions, the tenderness of the couple's relationship, and the humor and closeness of his family life present beautiful background stories. The corruption-based murders are wrapped in a plot that twists and turns and is always satisfying. I couldn't wait to return to this book at the end of each sitting. It's not necessary to have read previous books in this series to enjoy this one. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

The murder of a govenment employee keeps Brunetti chasing around to find the guilty party.

Pros: Venice...can you go wrong with a story set in Venice? Good present day feeling/ reality to the settings. Believable dialogue and actions from the characters. Brunetti seems to have a reasonable dimension to him. Much of the description of Italian life appears to be quite authentic.

Cons: The plot didn't fully wrap up. There are several "What happened to ....." that are totally unresolved at the end. This may be more realistic, but its very unsatisfying for readers. The final solution is totally disappointing for readers. A "straw man" is set up and knocked over as the solution to the problem. I won't say more to avoid spoiling it.

Comments: I hadn't looked up Leon until nearly the end of the book. As I suspected, she lives in Venice, hence the authentic feel. If you're going to write on this level of detail, you have to be very familiar with a place. Writers who want an exotic setting but aren't familiar with the place typically write in a general touristic (I just created a new word...!) type style. She has a pretty good vehicle for stories, and she writes reasonably well from a sentence structure point of view, she just needs to improve her plot line and placing of segments of stories.

Bottom Line: If I get really low on material, I might come back and try another one of these.

In this ninth foray into Venetian politics and crime, Donna Leon's writing really shines. Guido Brunetti and his family are involved in a problem -- Was their apartment legally constructed after the war? The young man who brings the bad news is soon killed.

Brunetti wants to handle the problem himself; he does not want to use the 'people in high places' that he knows (specifically his father-in-law, the Comte or the Contessa). When the problem arises, in no way does Guido or Paola consider going to the bureaucracy directly -- but look to other machinations to make the problem to go away.

The characters are memorable and the situations seem so much taken from the headlines. Guido is "Everyman" -- trying to do the right thing under impossible odds. This series just seems to get better.

Guido Brunetti
1. Death at La Fenice (1992)
2. Death in a Strange Country (1993)
3. The Anonymous Venetian (1994) aka Dressed for Death
4. A Venetian Reckoning (1995) aka Death and Judgment
5. Acqua Alta (1996) aka Death in High Water
6. The Death of Faith (1997) aka Quietly in Their Sleep
7. A Noble Radiance (1997)
8. Fatal Remedies (1998)
**9. Friends in High Places (1999)

Donna Leon's "Friends in High Places" has everything (or almost everything) for a reader seeking a tautly plotted story, many characters most deftly delineated, and a Venice so detailed Leon might claim, as James Joyce did, that if Dublin (Venice) were to vanish tomorrow, it could be re-created from these books.

The story reaches out to anyone who ever received an unexpected and probably unwelcome letter from the Internal Revenue Service or who ever got or dreaded the after midnight call from the police about the child-man/woman whose possible involvement with drugs has you worried, or who has been helplessly appalled at casual evil consistently overlooked. Or, who just wants to see how Commissario Brunetti gets by in tracing the roots of evil with a little help from his network of friends and a lot of help from his own ingenious mind.

Brunetti is contentedly reading Xenophon's "Anabasis," the retreat of the Greek 10,000 soliders through the mountains of Persia, possibly in the Greek. He is interrupted by an unexpected and thoroughly unwelcome visit from the earnest but apparently honest young official of the Ufficio Castato, a Signor Rossi. It seems there is no paperwork establishing the existence of the home in which Brunetti, his erudite wife Paola, and their two children have lived for more than a decade. Failure to produce the paperwork could have expensive and dire consequences.

Having delivered his message and shown, when invited to view the lower floors from Brunetti's terrace, a terror of heights, Signor Rossi leaves. Not long after, he calls Brunetti to discuss "..a personal matter" on the telefonio. Advised to use a more secure line, Rossi never calls back---but the next morning's paper reports a catastrophic fall from a high place in the course of Rossi's work as a building inspector. "An accident," say the official reports. Little more is needed to set Brunetti and his colleagues including the computer wizardess Signorina Elettra, on unauthoriZed the chase.

The chase proves to have considerable barriers, blind alleys, and pits of corruption, introducing us to two unforgettably named vultures, Angelina Volpato and her husband Massimo, who prey on the unfortunate, inexperienced, desparate people who need loans. Vulpine indeed, and land-sharks. The trail involves not only the dead Rossi but also Vice Questora Patta's youngest, a farmer couple whose son is found dead with a young woman in the same building from which Rossi had fallen, and closes with two chapters as psychologically right on and as gripping as any in the Leon (and other) series.

The story, then, is a page-turner, unless you demand a corpse on page 1 and plenty of gore on most pages thereafter. "Friends in High Places" has plenty of action, but some is investigative, cerebral. More Sherlock H. than Mickey S.

This book offers still more:

--a list of what the Brunetti's read and what they think about would be a treasure in itself. Not only Xenophon but also in "Friends in High Places", the Napoleonic Aubrey/Maturin series

--there's hardly a wasted word. The names, for example, have resonances to opera, to literature and to character. The mind that created Brunetti is no less swift and astute than the Commissario's own.

--Venice herself, for arm-chair travelers and for those lucky enough to be heading to La Serenissima

--a consistent moral stance, that can continue to be outraged at corruption, doubtful of systematic change, yet determined to do what one person can to light a candle in the darkness

Anything to dislike? Not for this reader. The book is a fine value, new or used, for an afternoon (or more, much more) in Brunetti's world---and that of the Beates whose "I get by..." could be playing in the background as one reads.

I like this author. I have read all her previous books and I will read more.

When Donna Leon is hitting on all cylinders, she is the best.

But, she was not hitting on all cylinders with this one.

I became a tad anxious when the "teasers" for the book alluded to bureaucratic investigations-- I was warned. In her prior books the vignettes on Italian bureaucratic incompetence have been amusing. But in Friends In High Places they became too long and quite frankly, boring.

About the plot denouement, the less said the better. A number of story lines were left hanging. The plot resolution was facile.

I repeat: I like this author and will read her again. Hopefully, this one was just an aberrance.

This is one of the more engaging of the Commissario Brunetti series. The story is relatively simple. After a young bureaucrat stops by the Brunetti apartment to let Guido know that his house may be whisked out from under him for lack of proper permits, the man is soon found dead. Of course, Brunetti suspects and we veteran readers know that he has been murdered. Brunetti is soon on the case and manages to solve the original murder while leading us through a trail of drug dealing and overdose,criminal money lending, and contact with the decaying Venetian aristocracy.

The usual Leon players and motifs are present. Wife Paola views Guido's work from an empathic, ironic distance. Guido struggles to keep his execrable boss Patta at bay. Guido eats well, and frequently. Signorina Elettra does her usual superb job of minutely precise and encyclopedically complete research while appearing like the cover of Italian Vogue. Her non-romance with the uxorious Guido continues to simmer far below the surface, and this reader at least wonders whether it will ever come to a boil, if only for the briefest of moments. That would be fun to see. Guido has to eat crow when his well connected, aristocratic father in law uses his influence to solve the apartment approval problem that got the case going in the first place.

There are some especially nice touches in this volume done well but not so well in other Leon works I have read. The descriptions of Venice scenes and life are rendered lovingly as always, but in fine lyrical prose unusual for Leon. The story of Guido's personal problems dovetails nicely with the crime story. The interweaving is not only deft but adds a layer of meaning to the story.

All in all, a most enjoyable visit to Venice, with one of our best crime writers.

First sentence: When the doorbell rang, Brunetti lay supine on the sofa in his living room, a book propped open on his stomach.

Commissario Guido Brunetti's lazy Saturday is interrupted by a visit from Franco Rossi of the Ufficio Catasto. There is a question about the legality of Guido's apartment. Rossi's fear of heights is apparent when Guido tries to take him out to the terrace so it makes no sense when Guido learns Rossi has died after falling from a scaffold.

Brunetti's case goes beyond the murder into moneylenders, drug dealers, greed and love

Brunetti is a wonderful character and very much alive for the reader. He is different from the normal protagonist in that his home life and strong relationship to his family is as much a part of the story as the crime.

Leon's writing is wonderfully poignant and descriptive whether it be to convey Brunetti's love of his city or his frustration with the corruption on which it runs. There is a wonderful line where Brunetti's points out the irony of how Italy being part of the EU is forcing Venice to be less corrupt. Her dialogue is true and audible.

Leon has created a wonderfully twisty plot with lots of different threads, although some of them where a bit hard to put together. As an American, it's not always easy to understand how things work, but the conclusion is a very satisfactory one. What I find most fascinating is the machinations Brunetti must employ to achieve justice that have nothing to do with the law.

This is another great book in an excellent series.

If you've liked the Guido Brunetti mysteries, you will probably feel that this is one of the best in the series.

What's it all about? Commissario Guido Brunetti meets an honest public official, and crime follows as those who cheat and admire cheaters seek to remain hidden from honest men.

If that's all this book represented, it would be but an average mystery. Ms. Donna Leon adds a more intriguing element to the story: Corrupt practices breed more corruption . . . both of the heart and of the pocket book. To make the story more effective, she places Guido and Paola Brunetti in the middle of temptations that he isn't able to resist.

In Venice, the Ufficio Catasto is in charge of approving building plans and being sure they are faithfully carried out. As in many cities, homeowners try to avoid extra taxes by keeping improvements hidden from the government. Franco Rossi arrives from the Ufficio Catasto to ask Guido if he has the plans for his apartment. Why? The Ufficio Catasto has no record of plans or permits for the apartment.

What does this mean? Guido may have to pay a large fine; he may have to make substantial changes in the apartment; or he may have to demolish the apartment. None of those choices seem attractive. What about using a little influence to avoid the problem? That temptation dangles before the Brunettis throughout the story.

But they are not the only ones who have such challenges -- Vice-Questore Patta also has the need for some help with public matters. Guido finds himself placed in the middle of that moral choice as well.

During the course of the story, Guido also learns about other unpleasant parts of the underbelly of Venice "civilization" that lurks beneath the beautiful exterior that the tourists love to admire.

It's a powerful story that will leave you seeing Venice differently than you have before.

Enjoy!

...in Friend's in High Places. The book starts with a surprise visit by a building inspector to Commissario Brunetti's home. During this visit, it comes out that the right paper work may never have been completed for the addition of the floor he lives on, and that it may have to be torn down.

That scarcely sounds like the start of a mystery, but when the inspector dies in a very suspicious incident, the mystery builds quickly. Paralleling this mystery is a sordid tale of what hard drugs are going to Venice. It's a sad, but believable tale.

As Leon has progressed the series, she increasingly likes to introduce moral questions into her plots. Many characters, including Brunetti and his boss, the loathsome Vice-Questore Patta both have to face decisions about when to circumvent the system and ask for favors in high places.

Friend's in High Places stands out for the level of detail about financial corruption in Venetian society. One might almost suspect Leon of having a business background as she takes us through evidence of corruption tax avoidance, and outright fraud. it's a very detailed retelling done with total conviction.

Recommended highly.

I came across this volume, "Friends in High Places," quite by accident at my local branch library, to which it had just been transferred in conformity with a policy of shifting the paperback stocks from branch to branch every few months. It appears to be well along in a lengthy series featuring Guido Brunetti, who holds the rank of Commissario in one of Venice's many police forces. Despite entering in medias res as it were, I found Brunetti, his family and his genially corrupt environment to be perfectly accessible.

This is, I suppose, primarily a police procedural, but not even that venerable form has been untouched by the taint of the cozy mystery. It seems almost inevitable that the book should contain asides dealing with the architecture of the Commissario's home, his understated but obviously powerful problems with his rich father-in-law, his immediate superior's family problems and other such diversions from the main line of the book. Hammett, I recall, never felt the need to provide such marginally relevant stuff for his Nameless Detective, nor Chandler for his Marlowe, but I assume that the contemporary reading public--or if not them, then the author's editors must demand it.

From the information within this book--and no more than that--I conclude that the author, Donna Leon seems to know Venice fairly well--certainly better than many writers who set their tales in my own home town of San Francisco, making an unholy hash of its geography, sociology and history.

I also conclude that Ms. Leon, in common with many writers, particularly those of British extraction, neither knows nor cares much about the nuts-and-bolts operations of any real police force, and particularly of Brunetti's. Her Commissario comes to his office and then leaves it virtually at random. He has no discernible case load. He is without any visible administrative responsibilities, although he seems to hold the number three position in his force. He has no court appearances, either scheduled or potential. He takes up cases at apparent personal whim. He has no organizational colleagues or rivals. He issues no commands to subordinates, except to a civilian secretary whom he shares with his boss. All these unlikely things are, in fact, characteristic of most police procedurals these days, so they cannot be regarded as a black marks against this one.

Of more significance, though, is a bit of laziness on the part of the author. That secretary I mentioned a moment ago plays an important role in this novel. She uses her computer skills to provide Brunetti with information whenever the author finds it convenient for her to do so. Since the author has made Brunetti effectively both computer illiterate and indifferent, she never has to bother with explaining just how that secretary manages to dredge up the supposedly guarded data and, perhaps more significantly, how she avoids discovery and penalties for her hacking. The secretary is, in short, just a useful device rather than a true character in the novel. Even Agatha Christie's Miss Lemon had more substance to her.

In the same category is an authorial shortcut in the structuring Ms. Leon's tale. We non-Venetian readers have to be fed a considerable amount of raw information on Venetian banking, alternative money-lending and the consequences arising from both. She accomplishes the task in this book by making Brunetti an entirely blank slate, forcing him to ask questions about things that should be common knowledge to any Venetian, and d----d well ought to be known by any high-ranking cop.

Finally, there is the conclusion of the book. It's not bad. It actually makes sense--enough sense for a mystery novel, anyway. It might even be (sort of) realistic. Nevertheless, it is noticeably underpowered. My reaction at the end of the book was, "Is that all?" While admittedly the real world does not often act that way, within a novel I expect the pay-off to be commensurate with the build-up. Sadly, it is not in this book.

Despite all this nit-picking, I rather enjoyed "Friends in High Places." Donna Leon is a competent wordsmith. Brunetti is an appealing character with a charming habit of confusing Charley Chan-like observations with actual wisdom. Venice is an attractive location. And, as I said, the ending actually made a bit of sense--a rare enough accomplishment these days.

These positive aspects are just enough to lift the book from the mediocrity of three stars to a very ... very weak four stars.

If I encounter Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti on a bookshelf at some time in the future, I have every intention of following his new adventures.

LEC/Am/2-09

Without a doubt, "Friends in High Places" is Donna Leon's best book in her mesmerizing Commissario Brunetti series. "Friends" is the ninth in this outstanding series and Leon has not failed her fans with this latest edition, which, for some unfathomable reason, is not yet published in the States!
The author is able to capture what very few writers in the mystery genre do-- she creates such memorable characters that the reader actually feels he really knows--and even possibly understands--her creations. Certainly, Leon does to Venice what few other writers do to their settings. It is unbelievable that she is able to understand fully the mechanizations of the modern Venetian. She has weaved her plots so intricately--and plausibly--in her series, which seems short of a miracle for some "outsider"--she's an American!--to be able to grasp the bureaucracies of that system, be it religious, political, social, even the illicit "trade" bureaucracies.
With her unforgettable Brunetti and his family, Leon's themes run throughout her novels: among them the "moral path" which is at odds with what Venetians have come to expect and to accept, it seems. If one has a problem, the solution is to utilize his "friends in high places"--a favor for a favor--to solve it. The corruption seems to permeate all aspects of their lives.
But, of course, first, this is a murder mystery, and here, again, Leon is in top form. How exquisitely she leads the reader through this valley of temptation and evil! Yet, despite the impossible task of ever "cleaning up Venice," Brunetti plods on. He alone, it seems at times, knows right from wrong. He takes refuge and solace from his wife Paola; he loves his two children, and his greatest fear is that something evil might harm them.
He senses something is very wrong when a local bureaucrat is found dead; it is labeled an accident, but Brunetti has his suspicions, especially after this bureaucrat had previously contacted him to tell him that he had vital information that he must reveal to him, and to him alone. Before this revelation can occur, he is found dead. Brunetti doesn't believe in coincidences, especially when an attorney who is involved in a corruption investigation is found murdered by a sniper--an attorney whose telephone number Brunetti had found in the bureaucrat's wallet.
From this point on, Leon and Brunetti move cautiously--and sensibly--through this tangled, deceitful web.
The author is quite astute in her observations and realist she is, the endings of her books are not always the "happy ever after" type. Frequently, Brunetti has to con- cede to powers greater than his; he alone cannot stem the flow of corruption--and the Brunetti world, as seen through the series, seems to have no boundaries on corruption, be it from illegal dumping of toxic wastes to the illegal sex trade with local travel companies to the smuggling of drugs from Eastern Europe. Leon leaves no holds barred and the reader is often left to wonder if there really are truly decent folk anymore. Leon does not imply that the corruption is only in Venice, that Pearl of the Adriatic, but leads us to assume that such corruption--especially with today's big bucks, can be anywhere. The average reader knows this all too well, anyway.
For Leon fans, reading this book is not just an inclination, it is a must, naturally;
for new readers, it's also a great read, after reading this one, they will want to go back to the eight previous ones. Indeed, it's a "aventura felice della lettura"! (...)

In Italy, Buildings or Apartments should always be listed - officially, and should always have two sets of records for buildings with any reconstruction plans that have happened or happening - officially. When purchasing a property, the new owner retains one copy from the pervious owner - officially. The other would be retained by the Ufficio Catasto - officially. These plans are stored and used by the Ufficio Catasto to show that building permit's were issued and planning permission was given to improve upon such historical buildings and that the building does actually exist. This would be the official process, unofficially certain plans or records become misplaced.

Franco Rossi from the Ufficio Catasto pays a visit to Guido Brunetti's top floor apartment, to inform him that although his building plans exist, his apartment is not listed on the plans therefore he also believes that his apartment should not exist, not only does this amaze Brunetti as they are quite clearly sitting in his apartment, but the awkward situation would be Brunetti cannot produced any plans either. Franco Rossi informs Brunetti that his apartment is under investigation. Brunetti decides to start his own investigation using his friends to get this matter sorted out, unfortunately before this can happen the real investigation starts a few months later when Franco Rossi is found dead at another building site after falling from scaffolding, accident or foul play? Commissario Brunetti unofficially investigates.

This Story weaves itself into different directions giving Brunetti lots to deal with in the heart of his city, drug dealers, petty thugs, money lenders and day to day corruption ranging from the crook on the street to people in power, where does it all end.

Once again Leon gives to us life in Venice very vividly written; you can almost see it and smell it. The fictional comical characterisations come thorough again in this book as it does in pervious ones. My two favourites the wonderful Sicilian Vice-Questore Giuseppe Patta (Brunetti Boss), who's always up to his old tricks of power playing and Signorina Elettra (Brunetti hidden source), sharp as a razor mind, who's day to day outfits couldn't get any saucier their about to send Brunetti into a midlife crisis. This book also makes reference to, Through A Glass, Darkly which became the name of Donna Leon's 15th book in the whole Brunetti series.

Brunetti could do know wrong in the flow of corruption. This book shows Power Playing at all levels.

I've been reading this series in order of publication, I hope. This is the best so far.

With Donna Leon you have to remember it's about the atmosphere and the journey. Not the destination.

As soon as I figure-out what the next book in the series is I'm going to read it.

Commissario Brunetti gets a visit by a young civil servant to talk to him about his apartment. A couple of days later Brunetti gets an urgent phone call from the same man, who is very nervous and wants to talk to the commissario. Brunetti doesn't get the chance, because a couple of hours later, the young man is found ... dead. Then, a young man and a girl are murdered at the same location as the civil servant. Brunetti starts his investigation.

This silver dagger award winner is another exciting crime story from Donna Leon. As always, the characters come from all regions of the Venetian society. Some of the themes, like drug abuse and bribery, and the interesting writing style make this book into another page turner.

This is vintage Donna Leon. Excellent descriptions of Venice...memorable characters...thoughtful insights into human qualities of honor, honesty, corruption and arrogance. My only criticism is that the ending is tepid and all issues are not fully resolved, in my opinion. Leon is very uneven as a writer. When she's off, she's terrible. When she's on, she's magnificent. In this book she comes off very close to the latter. I would say this is one of her better books.

It starts with three chapters about Venice bureaucracy over building permits so I seriously considered giving up. But then the police procedural kicks in as a bureaucrat ends up dead. It’s a solid, very well-written, kind of high-brow mystery with a well-considered philosophical discussion about using friends to get out of legal trouble, for things small and big. This is supposed to be her best book in the Commissario Guido Brunetti series, winning a Silver Dagger award. But it just didn’t compel me enough so I don’t think I'll read more. And, frankly, the gender dynamics were sexist — example: Brunetti and his wife Paola both work full-time jobs but she does the cooking and cleaning, and he stands there watching while she does it. Bechdel test: Fail. Grade: B

Having read all of Helen MacInness and Sherlock Holmes (after midnight) as a grad student I couldn't stand reading anything less and so gave up mysteries for over 35 years. Looking for something to read on the train, I bought my first Donna Leon book (A Noble Radiance) in the station in Stuttgart and have read nine of her novels so far. Commisario Brunetti and his sharp-tongued wife (who, like Leon, accidentally teaches English in Venice) are never boring. So far, I've not guessed the plot before it developed, and the description of Venice and Italian life is fantastic. A wonder that she's not been run out of town tarred and feathered, if not be the city fathers or the patrici, then by The Church. Enjoy, when you need something entertaining and intelligently written, with attention to geographic and cultural detail.

Nancy in Seattle, WA : It was difficult to read of the the extensive immorality and complacency in the government of Venice. Leave your ideals at the door while reading. How difficult to be a morale detective in such a setting.

Another entry in the long line about nefarious things going on in this wonderful city. If you liked Leon's other books, you will not want to miss this one. She writes with her usual craftsmanship and knowledge of the city.

Another in her series of intelligent, literate mysteries, with her protagonist Guido Brunetti and his university professor wife, Paola, and their two teenaged children. A delight. Subtle, funny, and clever.