Death in a Strange Country (Commissario Brunetti Book 2)

Death in a Strange Country by Donna Leon is a Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery, Book #2.There is very good plotting and excellent characters. Guido’s walks are very atmospheric.Again, the city of Venice is one of the main characters in the series.I find the corruption, the dishonesty and the greed very sad and frustrating. Some parts of this bookwere hard to read. But a very good addition to this long-running series. ****

The next outing for Commissario Guido Brunetti is as good as the first. Guido is a man of honor in a corrupt but beautiful city.

I'm new to this series but am already hooked! Brunetti is such a human character - the emotional displays make the reader feel deeply for the victims and even the perpetrators. Super excited to read the next book.

a intxriguing and detailed take on the vagaries of what passes for justice in Italy ... found the intelligent criticism of the US on the early 2000's compelling and not insulting as much of what was mentioned has been verified since the book was written. This is the second of a long series which I conti ue to read. I find it fascinaring to read about how justice is meted out in other countries.

The corruption on so many levels in this book is so demoralizing. Murders passed off as suicides or else brushed under the carpet as just another crime committed by a local not very smart young hoodlum. Insurance fraud, illegal dumping of toxic materials by complicit governments and governmental officials both high and low. Threats to those that would investigate and reveal the corruption in some cases, actual retribution to others. And in the end, a good man left in tears and wondering how his father-in-law is involved and yet, not wanting to know, since his wife will, at her father's death, take up running his business enterprises. Venice is a beautiful place and Brunetti loves it with all his heart, but under the surface so much darkness. I don't know if I could visit there without thinking about it, for though this is fiction, there is, I think, more than a little truth in the tale.

The plot and characters hold my attention. The suspense in maintained.

This series has been recommended to me for some time now, but the first I have seen of it was a Kindle special this month. I really liked the book, and I really liked the characters. It is book 2 of the series, but the first I have read of it.I enjoyed the tour of Italy I got in this book, and appreciated the foreign intrigue. I have read a few other books set in Italy, so some of the terminology was familiar. This book deals with an American Army doctor that gets killed in or near Venice. Commissario Brunnetti is put in charge. With an attempt to avoid spoilers, this book dealt with a lot of political intrigue between the Italian police and the American Army personnel presence at a post a train ride away, where the victim was stationed. I found myself trying to figure out what time frame this book takes place in, which was a little distracting.The book ended on a sad note, and not everything was fully tied up and settled. That was good and bad about the story. Maybe it will be built upon in the next book, maybe not, but I found myself sad after reading this one. That isn't my usual reaction, and the writing was good, and the book moved well. Still thinking about this one, and I guess that is a good thing.

Every death is a waste to someone. Yet, mysteries nearly always require at least one. The death of a young person is even a greater waste. Commissario Brunetti is confronted by the death of a young American soldier and soon after his investigation begins, the death of his lover. Venice and the landscapes of northern Italy are certainly among the most beautiful in the world. Yet, there are murders. And these murders have to do with a tangle of gangsters and gangster politics that uncovers a disregard for the future of the beautiful landscape in the same way they disregarded the future of these young people. Brunetti is the hero of these mysteries of Ms. Leon and yet he is not a hero in the sense of striding through life like a collossus sweeping away the evil that men do. No. There is altogether too much evil for anyone to clean it up. Brunetti is an ordinary man living in a society that seems only to value it's present and so disregards the law, the people and the land if any of those stand in the way of short term profit or advancement. Often in these books there is not much justice for the murdered when they have died due to their interference with or their proximity to such disregard. And so it is with this book. However, from time to time there is some kharmic retribution, and so it us with this story. Ms. Leon's story is extremely well told. It is a pleasure to read even if some of the subject matter is disturbing. Any mystery fan will be delighted. She deals not only with crime but with some of the large social issues of our time. It gives the simple mystery a richness which keeps me coming back.

This is the second in the long-running Brunetti series. I read the first few some years back and am now re-reading, from the beginning, and enjoyed this more the second time around.The first novel was a more traditional mystery, with a murder in an opera house. Leon now moves Brunetti away from the glitz and glamour and offers up the reader a far more nuanced and political novel. It begins with a body found in a canal, a young American seemingly murdered in a botched robbery. However, things are rarely so obvious in Venice, and, before long, Brunetti is investigating the dumping of toxic waste and crimes which lead from an American army base to high-ranking cover-ups, involving the government and, of course, the mafia.Although serious in a subject, there is humour, often dark, usually involving Brunetti's clueless superior, Patta. In addition, Brunetti is forced to go to his father-in-law for help and to realise that his beloved wife's father is a man whose wealth may also come from dubious means. At times, you feel that Brunetti is the only man with morals, but then his fellow police officers step in and help him out and you realise that, even if corruption is widespread, he is not alone. I really look forward to reading on in this series and re-discovering Leon's so-well realised world.

I'm only on my second Commissario Brunetti book, and am totally hooked on the main characters and the intriguing setting of Venice. It's a place visited on my honeymoon, but then only seeing the historic side and the key art collections, there's so much more as I've gathered to the real life of Venice to see.Looking forward to book 3, doesn't seen to be availableon kindle!?

I really like Brunetti, and I love the Venetian setting of these books. I love the politics that come into it, and the way the Venetian life-style is depicted - so very different from the tourist version. But I was a bit disappointed in this story. It contained all of the above, but it what it didn't really have at the centre of it was a murder mystery, sadly. My overall impression was that the author had a germ of an idea, but it simply wasn't enough to fill the book - hence my view that there was something missing, it felt kind of stretched out and at the same time I kept waiting on something else happening. On saying that, I read it quickly enough, and I'll be coming back for more of Brunetti. I just hope his next case is a bit more satisfying.

Evoking Venice on every page, this intriguing story had me well absorbed. The likeable Dottore Brunetti and his love of Italian food make for a highly entertaining hero tackling another mystery with his characteristic intelligence. Referencing the role of US forces in Italy as well as Mafia, corruption and the collapse of Italian politics, this novel covers a lot of ground and is a very good read.

Yes I am hooked. This is the second of Donna Leon's Brunnetti stories. It is quite a different story from the first. The 'Strange Country' is the American base in Vicenza and the description of the place, and the way of life the American community embrace there are minutely described as is the richer life lived by the Venetians. One is very aware of Brunnetti's distaste for the concrete buildings and the American way of life as he travels to and from this location from Venice. Life in Venice is also well described - asparagus sandwiches, tiny delicious sugary pastries, strong coffee and grappa. There are also amusing and witty situations. Take this 'When Brunnetti turned to leave, Vianello asked, 'What about the deal I make with him? Will we keep our part of it? At this Brunnetti turned back and gave Vianello a long look. 'Of course. If criminals can't believe in an illegal deal with the police, what can they believe in?' I have ordered Brunnetti 3 & 4.....!!!!!