Author:Donna Leon
'Donna Leon's deft and descriptive words do for Venice what Canaletto did for this serenest of cities with his brushes and paint palette and bring it to life in all its reach and colourful gaiety...[An] intriguing tense thriller. The ending is to die for.' Daily Express
A New York Times Bestseller
A National Indie Bestseller
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In Death at La Fenice, Donna Leon's first novel in the Commissario Brunetti series, readers were introduced to the glamorous and cut-throat world of opera and to one of Italy's finest living sopranos, Flavia Petrelli - then a suspect in the poisoning of a renowned German conductor. Now, many years after Brunetti cleared her name, Flavia has returned to the illustrious La Fenice to sing the lead in Tosca.
As an opera superstar, Flavia is well acquainted with attention from adoring fans and aspiring singers. But when one anonymous admirer inundates her with bouquets of yellow roses - on stage, in her dressing room and even inside her locked apartment - it becomes clear that this fan has become a potentially dangerous stalker. Distraught, Flavia turns to an old friend for help. Familiar with Flavia's melodramatic temperament, Commissario Brunetti is at first unperturbed by her story, but when another young opera singer is attacked he begins to think Flavia's fears may be justified. In order to keep his friend out of danger, Brunetti must enter the psyche of an obsessive fan and find the culprit before anyone comes to harm.
Donna Leon’s deft and descriptive words do for Venice what Canaletto did for this serenest of cities with his brushes and paint palette and bring it to life in all its reach and colourful gaiety…[An] intriguing tense thriller. The ending is to die for.
—— Daily ExpressThis is Leon at her best … Her writing is as ever subtle and elliptical and conversations and people always have multiple layers which often only reveal themselves on second reading … This is a compelling read and kept me up long past my usual bed time as I just had to finish it to find out what happened. The nail biting finale was well worth staying up for.
—— JillySheepThe star of the story is Venice itself and Donna Leon, who has lived there for thirty years, brings the city to life . . . I read the book in two sittings . . . glued to the page as the tension ramped up - and everything came to a very satisfying finale.
—— The Book BagThe author provides us once again with an entertaining mystery and an opportunity to catch up with the estimable Guido Brunetti. Leon never disappoints.
—— CrimesquadAs always, a gentle and intriguing look at life in Venice, the vagaries of the police force, and a sharp and clever investigation from Brunetti mixed in a delightful way, is at the heart of this novel. Another enjoyable outing for this complex, intelligent detective.
—— EurocrimeIt’s always a pleasure to read a Brunetti novel; doubly so in this case.
—— Promoting CrimeIn Even the Dead, Black goes beyond the atmospheric stage and scene setting, delving deeper than in any previous novel into the soul of his pathologist hero Quirke, an enigmatic loner whose voice colours every page as if staining it with nicotine
—— Sunday HeraldStep through The Gates of Evangeline with Charlotte Cates, a grief-stricken Northerner tasked with uncovering a Southern dynasty's dark secrets. Hair-raising and heart-rending, Hester Young's first novel is one of buried shame, children taken too soon, and, ultimately, of immense true love that binds across the mortal divide.
—— Miranda Beverly-Whittemore, New York Times best-selling author of BittersweetThe hothouse atmosphere of Evangeline and the tortuous and tangled motives of its denizens make for an enjoyable puzzle box of a mystery. An eerie but inviting debut.
—— Kirkus ReviewsIn Hester Young's haunted Louisiana, the ghostly labyrinth of the past opens its great doors to deliver up a lush gothic thriller. The Gates of Evangeline is a darkly marvelous debut, a classic whodunnit stitched with otherworldly chills.
—— Jedediah Berry, author of the Hammett-prize winning The Manual of DetectionA grieving mother but a determined journalist. What a box of mysteries this story is. Life, death, heartache and hope for the future. I loved it. Very much a book you don’t want to put down. A fabulous first novel. I hope this is the first of many, particularly if ‘Charlie Cates’ is involved.
—— Mojo MumsYoung’s The Gates of Evangeline is a stunning debut novel. A lyrical, haunting, heart-wrenching work of suspense with echoes of du Maurier, Hitchcock, and King.
—— Reed Farrel Coleman, New York Times bestselling author of Robert B. Parker’s The Devil WinsHaunting, heartbreaking, yet ultimately hopeful...Young handles the spectral elements with restraint as her tremendously sympathetic heroine seeks to build a new life after death.
—— Publishers WeeklyA dreamy, Southern gothic mystery…Young’s novel is powerful and captivating.
—— New Orleans MagazineA dangerously good thriller
—— Wegener Dagbladen (Holland)This thriller gets under your skin and won't let you go. One thing is very clear at the end: we want to read more about Holger Munch and Mia Krüger!
—— Booksection.de (Germany)A very sophisticated and terrifying thriller, which keeps the reader guessing and gasping to the very last page. The story is powerful, the style is fluent, and the cast of characters is simply irresistible
—— Thrillermagazine.it (Italy)