Schon besser!: Nachdem ich den Fall "Sanft entschlafen" mit drei Sternen sehr durchschnittlich bewertete, muss ich diesmal einen Stern mehr geben. Dieser achte Roman ist sehr unterhaltsam und klug durchdacht. Mir gefällt vor allem auch die Schilderung des polizeilichen Dienstbetriebs und des Alltags in Italien. Ist schon alles sehr entspannt. Was ich allerdings diesmal nicht so gut fand: Man hat eigentlich keine Chance, den Fall für sich selbst zu lösen. Es gibt hier nämlich zwei parallele Handlungen, die nicht zusammenhängen. Naja, einfach überraschen lassen. Auf jeden Fall absolut lesenswert!

Fatal Remedies, the eighth installment in Donna Leon's Commissario Guido Brunetti series, begins with Brunetti's wife, Paola, throwing a rock through a travel agency's window. The vandalism is an act of protest - the travel agency provides sex tours in third world countries. Paola is not arrested, but then she does it again, and there is nothing Brunetti can do to stop her arrest and his own administrative leave. But when the owner of the travel agency is found murdered with a note referencing his pedophilia, Vice-Questore Patta assigns Brunetti to the case. As usual, Brunetti focuses on learning as much about the victim and his associates as possible, eventually leading him to look into the various businesses and business associates that might have had a motive for murder.

This was quite a well-paced book, and finally there was a hint that perhaps the guilty party may receive true justice. So many of Leon's books end with a sort of shrug toward the corrupt Italian legal system, so it's satisfying to think that at least one of her bad guys might get what's coming to him. Another solid installment in the series. ( )

#8 Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery in which Guido's wife Paola becomes a lawbreaker. Convinced she must do what she can to stop travel agents from booking "sex tours" to places like Thailand where the tourists have very young girls procured for them in what essentially amounts to rape and pedophelia, Paola gets up in the middle of the night and throws a rock through the window of a local travel agency known to cater to these types of tours. She does this twice and causes a bit of scandal for Guido as the newspapers hound him, her and the Questura. Guido's boss, Patta, puts him on administrative leave until the owner of the travel agency ends up murdered in his apartment--visciously strangled, with a note referring to him being a pedophile. Further investigation of course reveals that Paola's timely rock-throwing just provided an easy excuse for someone else who had it in for the man to kill him. Another solid entry in the series, although I didn't enjoy this one as much as the last--which is my signal that "two in a row is enough." LOL I think it may just have been the subject matter and the emotional roller coaster that Guido was on in part, though. ( )

Fatal Remedies
Donna Leon

8th in the Commisario Brunetti series, set in Venice, Italy.

An early morning phone call from the Questura summons Brunetti to complete the arrest, for vandalism, of--Paola, his wife. She’s thrown a rock through the window of a travel agency, protesting its knowing complicity in sex tourism to third world countries, where children are prostituted to pederasts. While in sympathy with her rage, Paola has broken the law and put Brunetti in a lose-lose situation; not only is he in a massive argument with Paula, he is put on administrative leave by Vice-Questore Patta because he refuses to either deceive his wife or make deals for her, insisting the she and she alone has to decide whether and how to settle. The whole thing becomes a media circus, a nightmare for the family.

Then the owner of the travel agency is murdered, and Patta conveniently forgets that he has suspended Brunetti, giving him the case.

This is one of the best in the series. Leon has taken yet another social issue--sex tourism in third world countries--and has woven an incredible discussion of the different views of the morality of action by means of the very real argument between Brunetti and Paola. There is absolutely nothing forced or preachy or phony about it, and it works like a charm, not only to illuminate the issue but to give incredible depth and intensity to the story. The plot itself is one of her best; there is an unusual amount of action in it, since Leon prefers to write character-driven, real-life stories in a small Italian city that is relatively crime-free. But the action is there, and it’s a page-turner. The denouement is very well done, and is a surprise, a satisfying one.

By this time, if you’re a fan of Leon’s books, you know what to expect in terms of her solid recurring characters, the authenticity of the ambience of Venice, and the way she weaves her plots.

One of the strongest in the series--highly recommended. ( )

Commissario Guido Brunetti continues to solve crime in the charming city of Venice. His calm methodical processes and steadfast belief in justice help uncover the truth behind murders and lies. Donna Leon shares with us the life of a simple Venician man who lives for his family and who enjoys his food. ( )