The Jewels of Paradise

Oct 11, 2024 3:21 PM

Author:Donna Leon

From the bestselling author of the Brunetti crime series comes The Jewels of Paradise, a gripping tale of intrigue, music, history and greed and Donna Leon's first stand-alone novel.

Caterina Pellegrini is a young Venetian musicologist hired to find the rightful heir to an alleged treasure concealed by a once-famous, but now almost forgotten, baroque composer. Sworn to secrecy, Caterina can solve the mystery only by searching through the papers contained in two chests that have not been opened for centuries.

As she delves into all quarters of his life, she is drawn into one of the most scandalous affairs of the baroque era. What dark secrets do these chests hold, and just whom can she trust?

Reviews

Jewels of Paradise demonstrates the author’s deep understanding of Venice, and is an entertaining work that questions the changing values of life over the ages. Like life, it makes you wait to the end to understand the plot.

—— Selected by Lord Browne (former Chief Executive of BP) as his summer read in the Financial Times

Written with all Leon's elegant delicacy combined with her ability to reveal the truth almost without your noticing, this is a little gem of a book, immersed as it is in Leon's own love for the baroque.

—— Daily Mail

[it has] all the ingredients of a zippy historical mystery in an intriguing new genre…Leon seamlessly interweaves the Italian cultural heritage into her story, and hasn’t lost her feeling for everyday life

—— Spectator

Splendid … a fascinating historical mystery. Full of authentic details and wittily recounted ... Leon’s 22nd novel has a freshness which indicates her delight in the subject

—— Jane Jakeman , Independent

Fans of Leon’s work will find much to enjoy here, particularly her elegant descriptions of day-to-day Venetian life and the city’s architectural wonders, and Caterina makes for an enjoyably irreverent companion for the tour.

—— Irish Times

Donna Leon’s skill with intrigue, clues and suspicion and suspense means that even the most ardent Brunetti devotee ought to find this book a good read.

—— Literary Review

The perfect stocking filler for fans of the Commissario Brunetti series … A gripping tale of music, intrigue and obsession.

—— The Oldie

Return of the master . . . Having plumbed the devious depths of the Cold War, le Carré has done it again for our nasty new age

—— The Times (on 'Our Kind of Traitor')

A wonderful story, a superb debut... Whatever you do stick with it, this is a remarkable book and deserves to be read.

—— Miles Orchard , milorambles.co.uk

a superb & accomplished debut, beautifully written & with a heart of sadness ... Loved it! ... Great debut

—— Stav Sherez

Part Lisbeth Salander, part Jason Bourne, Munroe comes out swinging hard again. . . . A gritty, suspenseful novel.

—— Library Journal

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