A Noble Radiance

Journey to the evocative streets of Venice as workmen uncover the body of the kidnapped son of one of Venice's most aristocratic families. Detective Commissario Brunetti has the capacity to sympathize with the most unworthy of victims and the drive to go beyond the obvious to expose the truth, uncovering the sins of even the most respected. While Samuel Gillies's reading drags at first, along with Leon's plot, Gillies soon finds an acceptable rhythm. Gillies's dignified baritone and calm, quiet sureness bring vintage character to Brunetti. The seventh of the Commissario Brunetti mystery series, this selection is also a touching story of the policeman's personal life as he considers what brings one true happiness. F.L.F. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine

August 25, 2003
Providing insight into Venetian society through the lens of a gripping intellectual mystery, this atmospheric tale from Leon (Uniform Justice, etc.) finds Inspector Guido Brunetti investigating an aristocratic family with a shady past. When a rural landowner discovers the body of Roberto Lorenzoni, who was kidnapped two years earlier, Brunetti immediately suspects the victim's family. The Lorenzoni clan bears the legacy of betraying the Jews of Venice during World War II, and from these ashes, its members have created a thriving enterprise. Roberto's cousin Maurizio, who's next in line to inherit the family fortune and business, is the logical suspect, but Brunetti senses something more insidious at play. As he works his way through Italian three-course meals and family crises, he uncovers disturbing details about the Lorenzoni family. Leon deftly depicts the tensions between Brunetti and his ambitious Sicilian boss, as well as the irony of the justice system ("Imprisoned parricides receive fan mail; officialdom and Mafia dance hand in hand toward the ruin of the state"). Brunetti emerges as an intelligent, somewhat world-weary individual who believes in his cause if not the system itself. In short, he's the ideal protagonist for this culturally rich mystery.