Drawing Conclusions (A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery)

She is thoughtful and includes other insights--not just sticking only to the mystery involved. Interactions with the family of the main Decetive adds another dimension that is enjoyable. A very fine use of the language and insights into Venice.

Touching, moving, sad ...... Poignant. Leon captured the essence of the Brunetti's relationships/ interactions with his wife, co-workers, witnesses and suspects. My heart broke when Morandi expressed his love for Maria and the regrets of past deeds.

As an Italian it was interesting how the author referred to the differences in Italy between the north and south and justly referred to the difficulties within the government agencies. A little light weight in character development but enjoyable read.

As always Donna Leon writes a story that has twists that keep the reader from putting the book down. The reader continues to develop their "friendship" with all the characters of her works. That you get to know a bit more about Venice with every read adds to the enjoyment of the book. I look forward to her every effort. jgm

Possible alternate ending: The woman who died had an upstairs newighbor with access to the keys. Gabriella was a woman from Alba Libera who, it seems, left with some paitnings from the apt where she ws being protected. The guy from whom she was proected is named Nico, same as the man the neighbor. visited in Palermo. Could they have intruded after the man looking after his wife left the victim whilst she was still alive?

The Brunetti books are always interesting, with clever plots and the characters that draw you in and make you want to know them; especially Brunetti's family. The fact that it takes place in beautiful Venice is an added attraction for me.

leon shows us complex characters interacting in difficult situations. inspector moretti never loses his humanness, doggedly solves the mysteries. and leon's description of the food can almost be scooped up out of the page. bella italia, bella venezia!

Having visited Venice, I really enjoy Donna Leon's stories. She intertwines a very enjoyable police procedural with Brunetti's family and the streets of Venice. This book has an intriguing mystery and a satisfying conclusion.

Love Venice! Donna Leon's mysteries take me back to Venice where I can walk with Commissario Brunetti, ride the vaporetto, and enjoy the wine and food vicariously. A good plot and interesting characters are a bonus!

More superb writing from Donna Leon.
I have little to add to the reviews that have already been written; personally, I read so many books, the real surprise is to read one that is just well-written, plain and simple. Just as Rossini claimed to be able to set a shopping list to music, we feel from the first page that Ms Leon could write the instruction and teardown manuals for a Venetian vaporetto and we would be enthralled.
I've read them all, and this is surely one of the better ones, the characters remain well in character, such that we sometimes feel that the dialog is been transcribed from one of the outdoor tables during the lively lunch scene at Corte Sconta.
If you read the books in order, you will see the characters age and change: Brunetti acquires a computer; the kids grow up. More subtle is the change in the language that reflects the outlook of the main characters.
The writing is velvet. Sometimes, we need to be reminded.

In Drawing Conclusions, we find Commissario Brunetti investigating more out of curiosity than out of overwhelming evidence that a crime has been committed. More introspection and less ruffling the feathers of his superiors, lead to a more thoughtful story, including an old-age home run by nuns, a son who is a veterinarian, and dishonest art dealers.

The victim is a retired school teacher who, in retirement, has become involved in helping battered women. Not all live in Venice, but come there to escape the threat at home. Inspector Vianello and Signorina Elettra contribute in their usual manner, although Brunetti is still not entirely comfortable with the Signorina's methods. Still, what she can find out, legally or illegally, helps him more than he likes to admit.

Although the bureaucracy Brunetti contends with does not permeate this story as much, it always lingers in the background, ready to pounce at any moment. Since his superiors don't see that there was a crime in the death of the widow, he works as fast as he can. Even in his own mind, though, he isn't certain that there is a crime to investigate.

The homey touches are mostly absent here. Paola and their children appear only briefly. They are missed. The story drags somewhat in the final two or three chapters and Brunett's doubts are achingly described over and over. It is this part of the book that brings it down a bit. Still, it is an interesting and quick read. Leon has not yet gotten to the stage in her series when the stories lack interest or poignancy.

This is the 20th Commissario Guido Brunetti novel, the first published in 1992. As an overall tag for what the book is about, I would say it's a story of possible crimes.

Guido Brunetti is an interesting, thoughtful person; highly observant, very little escapes his notice, from the color of grass, to faint bruises along the neck of a dead woman, Signora Altavilla. Along with the bruises, he considers the placement of furniture in the woman's apartment as peculiar. These are two of the elements that set him on an examination of Altavilla's life and habits. Coroner Rizzardi states the woman's death was from a heart attack and she was known for heart problems. Brunetti wonders if the heart failure could have been precipitated by an act of violence against her.

He pursues the possibility, aided by his assistant, Inspector Vianello, and by Signorina Elletra, the secretary of his immediate supervisor, who is adept at finding all kinds of info. These characters are ongoing in the series, but I had no trouble picturing them and understanding the relationships Brunetti had with them. The same is true with his wife, Paola, and their two teenage children. I enjoyed the family scenes and the loving sparring between them.

I did find Giuseppe Patta, Brunetti's immediate supervisor, is a bit of a cliché--more interested in appearances than crime solving. But Signorina Elettra's personality is so smartly drawn, I think I could recognize her on a street.

Brunetti's wonderment if a crime had been committed against Signora Altavilla is the focus of the book; his quest for information turns up other elements that are also possible crimes--events dealing with the an estate and a will; a game of swindle among charity cases. Brunetti pondered them all as he tried to decide what really happened to Altavilla.

As he does this, he is still ever observant to his surroundings; descriptions of the Venetian cityscape are nicely presented, and (I haven't been to Venice) I assume they are accurate since Donna Leon has lived in Italy for more than 25 years.

I am, however, dissatisfied with ending; I kept checking to see if there was more and still wonder if the e-galley I rec'd was missing a chapter. Although Brunetti seemed satisfied with what he learned, other possibilities remained as to what happened to Signora Altavilla. Her "guest," who left suddenly, hadn't been ruled out (it was a didn't-seem-to-fit phone call cast suspicion here); I even have unanswered questions about her son. And then there are the missing pictures...

I also wonder why so much information is given in Chapter 1 about Signorina Guisti, who found Altavilla's body. Do we really need to know about her breakup with a guy and what his family was like? I kept waiting for something about that to resurface later in the story; but actually, the signorina is mentioned only a few times after chapter 6.

The intricacies of the government agencies and public services was at times funny and interesting. In all, I enjoyed the book: Well crafted with interesting characters.

First Sentence: Because she had worked for decades as a translator of fiction and non-fiction from English and German to Italian, Anna Maria Giusti was familiar with a wide range of subjects.

When a woman finds the body of her neighbor, Comm. Guido Brunetti is called to the scene. The medical examiner pronounces the cause of death to be a heart attack, but Brunetti has questions created by the blood from a wound on the victim's head and a bruise near her throat. A search for the truth leads Guido to a home for the elderly, but it takes the assistance of Insp. Vianello and the talented Signorina Electtra to learn the truth surrounding the victim's life and death.

There are many reasons to love Ms. Leon's books. From the very first page, you are drawn into the story with no desire to leave it until the final line.

Leon creates such a definitive sense of place you feel you are by Brunetti's side. The love both the author, and thus the character, have for Venice is apparent yet not idealized. They are aware of the flaws and decay which surrounds them, while realizing the irony of the city's physical decay adding to its perceived charm. Her description of meals always leaves me hungry.

Brunetti's relationship with Paola creates a solid core to both Brunitti's character and the story. The dialogues between them bespeak a long marriage between two people who love, respect and understand one another as often exemplified by the humor in their conversations. One characteristic which makes Brunetti such a good policeman is that he accepts the possibility of "less tangible phenomenon." In this case, it is feeling the "traces of a troubled death" in the victim's apartment that causes him to investigate further in spite of the examiner declaring the cause to be a natural death. Including such details as Brunetti's view of faith adds to our understanding of the character.

The somewhat enigmatic Signorina Elettra Zorzi is brilliant and clever and someone from whom no information is safe. You also feel she would be a dangerous person to annoy as her revenge would be subtle yet effective. Leon does not slight the supporting characters either. Even the most minor player is fully developed and memorable.

Even the strongest opening, the most evocative sense of place, and the most natural dialogue can't support a book without a compelling plot. No worries here. There are interesting observations on the differences between Italians from the North and South as well as a fascinating insight of battered women and the private system of safe houses to protect them. There are intriguing ethical and legal questions to make you think. And there are truths; some simple, but truths nonetheless, about that which is really important and the lengths to which one will go to protect it.

If you're looking for car chases and fist fights; look elsewhere. "Drawing Conclusions" is a wonderfully written book that will stay with you after closing the cover.

DRAWING CONCLUSIONS (Pol Proc-Comm. Guido Brunetti-Italy-Cont) - Ex
Leon, Donna - 20th in series
Atlantic Monthly Press, ©2011, ARC - Hardcover ISBN: 9780802119797

Guido Brunetti is having dinner with Vice-Questore Patta and Lieutenant Scarpa, forced into this social occasion ostensibly to discuss promotions. Guido is praying for the end of the world or, at least, some violent distraction by armed intruders so that he could grab a gun and rid himself of the two men. Brunetti is not a a violent man but dealing with these men at the Questura is one thing, dealing with them on his own time is something else again.

When his cell phone rings, Brunetti thinks it might be his wife, calling him in order to offer him a pretext for leaving. Instead, it is a real call is from the Questura. A woman has been found dead in her apartment, within walking distance of the restaurant. Neither Patta nor Scarpa would ever answer such a call, so Guido is free to leave and do his job as required. He arrives to learn that Anna Maria Giusti, returning from a few days in Sicily, had gone to her neighbor's apartment to collect her mail. Signora Altavilla, a retired teacher in her sixties, is dead. There is some blood near her head but there are no signs of overt violence.

Brunetti has been doing his job for a long time but he has not become jaded. "A short time later, the men emerged with a stretcher, the form on it covered by a dark blue blanket. Brunetti was glad to see that the blanket was clean and freshly ironed, though he knew it made no difference." Doctor Rizzardi, the pathologist, refuses to give Brunetti any opinion on the cause and manner of death but Guido "has a feeling" that something other than natural causes is at play. Inspecting her apartment, the police discover packages of unopened women's underwear in a variety of sizes and individually wrapped toiletries The quiet schoolteacher opened her home as a safe haven for battered women. Men who attack the women they know would not be likely to have qualms about attacking a woman they didn't know.

As the police continue learning about the dead woman, they discover another aspect of her life, another example of her altruism. She was a frequent visitor to a home for the aged, a willing listener to the stories told by people in their latest years. The director describes Signora Altavilla as a "confessor", hearing things that people would never tell members of their families. "Madre Rosa referred to her terrible honesty....". The confessor believed that absolution required restitution of goods and of reputations. Perhaps someone was afraid of the knowledge she had for even old stories can be dangerous.

In this book, there is one crime but two strands that lead to it. Leon again wraps the story around societal problems. Signora Altavilla was poking at the people who live in the shadows, those who abuse women and those who take advantage of the elderly. Brunetti is the heart of the story as he is in all the books in the series. He has not lost his humanity and he does not close his eyes to the difficulties imposed by following the letter of the law. His partnership with Signorina Elettra, the force behind the Venice police, has always led to criminal behavior. She steals information and he aids and abets her by using what she finds. Together, they work for the people of their city in ways best not investigated. Their's is a business relationship, evolving over the years as they deal with the bureaucrats responsible for serving the best justice money can buy.

Leon seasons the story with moments that reflect Brunetti's compassion, principles, and love of the ordinary things in life. As the family gathers for dinner, "It simply filled Brunetti's heart to have them there and to be able to see and hear them, knowing they were safe and warm and well-fed." He wants nothing less for the people who come into his professional life, whether old or young, wealthy or not. He is from the working class and married into the ruling class. He knows that despite their differences, he and his father-in-law are kindred spirits when it comes to family. The battered women have no family to whom they can turn. The elderly have their welfare in the hands of strangers. Guido wants to protect them as he protects his own children.

When one of the strands leads back to events fifty years before, Brunetti has to look at a basic truth from which choices are made. "...even the worst of men wanted to be perceived as better than they were." History is always being re-written by those who abandoned conscience for cash and convenience. As Brunetti discusses bad choices made in order to bring about a positive result, he thinks of Henry of Navarre. In 1589, when the French Protestant was the last man standing in the line for the throne of France, he had to return to the Catholic Church in order to be crowned king. Henry, eager to be Henry IV, said "Paris is worth a Mass." For Guido life in twenty-first century Italy is about the end justifying the means.

Donna Leon fills every page with details that can be spoilers. As with all the Brunetti books, DRAWING CONCLUSIONS moves very quickly. Leon is another author whose books beg to be read at one sitting. She does not provide pat endings but she provides endings that are true to her character. Brunetti is a rock. He may be worn by storms but they never change the essence of the decent man that he is.

Donna Leon develops Commissario Brunetti’s character as much as the mysteries he solves. Drawing Conclusions is a solid mystery novel about the death by heart attack of an elderly widow. Leon carefully weaves Burnetti’s personal grief, from the loss of his mother, into the subplot of his investigation. She delightfully integrates the environs of Venice every inquiry the empathetic investigator pursues.

Leon can draw out an exchange of dialogue with finesse. I enjoy slowing down with her as she adds breaks between dialogue sequences that heighten character personalities and the environment as much as the exchange of words.

Commissario Guido Brunetti is called to investigate the death of middle-aged woman in her apartment. She had been dead for a few days. There was a cut on her scalp, blood on the floor and radiator, and a few light marks near her neck. The death appeared to be a heart attack.
The woman was the mother of Vice-Questore Guiseppe Patta's son's former veterinarian and Patta wanted to know what happened. Fast.
His first priority is learning about the woman. With the help of his assistant Vianello and the ever-efficient Signorina Elettra, his investigation takes him into a hospital, church, and nursing home. He learns about domestic violence and the care of the elderly. And there is the ever impure government with which he must deal.
While conducting his investigation, Brunetti observes "People knew things they said and thought they did not know. Wives and husbands learned far more about the other person than they were ever meant to learn." It is by investigating this gray area that he is able to solve the case.
Like all of the Brunetti books in Donna Leon's series, the story flows without the gore, violence, or gratuitous sex found in many similar works. Instead we find real people facing real situations and reacting in ways that point the way to a solution via indirect lighting. The ending is unconventional but, in Brunetti's mind, are just for this situation.

"Drawing Conclusions" is Donna Leon's 20th book in her series featuring Guido Brunetti, a police detective in Venice. My recommendation is to start with the first book in the series, "Death at La Fenice", which was one of the best. But if you don't have the time to read the first 19 books, then this one can be read as a stand-alone.

A retired teacher, Costanza Altavilla, is found dead by her neighbor. When she sees that there is blood on the floor, she calls the police. The pathologist subsequently decides that the cause of death was a heart attack. But there was a cut of Signora Altavilla's forehead. Could she have hit her head when she fell? And what would explain the marks that were found on her body? Brunetti wonders if someone could have precipitated her heart attack.

When he interviews her son, who seems to be very nervous because the police are involved, Brunetti learns that Signora Altavilla has been spending her time talking to the neglected residents of an old age home. He also finds that she used her apartment to hide abused women. And it appears that some of her paintings are missing . Could any of these things have something to do with her death?

As usual, Brunetti enlists the help of Signorina Elettra, the secretary of his boss, who is one the most fascinating characters in detective fiction. When she buys flowers for the Questura, she doesn't ask for a receipt. Instead, she just happens to have a receipt for some color ink cartridges for about the same amount. Brunetti, who's very ethical, doesn't want to know how the flower purchase will magically be transformed into an ink cartridge purchase. She finds it easy to break into computer systems to find the information that Brunetti asks her to obtain. As she tells Brunetti, any eighteen year old can break into the public systems. She explains that the difficulty is that the information is so disorganized that it can take her a long time to find what she is looking for.

In the end, Brunetti ignores the corruption, lies and minor crimes. He only wants to make sure that justice is done.

Book 20, in the Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

As usual Ms. Leon's social concerns always play a prominent component of her mysteries; in her latest tale she looks into how a civilized society treats abused women and the elderly. The catchy setting is the romantic waterways of Venice with the loveable and caring Commissario Brunetti at the helm.

The story opens with the death of sexagenarian, Widow Costanza Altavilla, from what appears to be a fatal heart attack in her apartment in Santa Croce. The medical examiner concludes, no foul play, death by natural causes. Brunetti's experience and instincts lead him in a completely different direction, why would an elderly woman living alone have clothing of different sizes and style not fitting her stature? Digging deeper he uncovers the fact she was running a clandestine safe house for women seeking shelter from domestic abuse, perhaps her death is the result of an encounter with a violent partner of one of these women. Eventually the enquiry brings him to a senior citizens home and to a gallery of a questionable art dealer......and with the help of Inspector Lorenzo Vianello and the ever-resourceful Signorina Elettra Zorzi, the truth surfaces and justice prevails.

As we expect from Ms. Leon, the novel is beautifully written, narrated with elegance and sly humour. Set against a backdrop of police indifference and corruption we see another side of Brunetti, distressed and having contradictory feeling towards the casual attitude of his fellow Venetians. The story is well-paced and moves very quickly with some unexpected twists to keep us guessing till the end, a never ending game of speculation trying to guess what really happened to Signora Altavilla. As always, the domestic interludes play a vital part of Donna Leon's novels, this one is no exception. She has seasoned her story with moments that reflect her protagonist's compassion, principles and the love for the simple pleasures of life.

"Drawing Conclusions" is an interesting and captivating addition to the series I enjoyed thoroughly.