Fatal Remedies

A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

By: Donna Leon

Narrated by: David Colacci

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Commissario Guido Brunetti's career is under threat when his professional and personal lives unexpectedly intersect. In the chill of the Venetian dawn, a sudden act of vandalism shatters the quiet of the deserted city, and Brunetti is shocked to find that the culprit waiting to be apprehended at the scene is a member of his own family. Meanwhile, he is also under pressure from his superiors to solve a daring robbery with connections to a suspicious accidental death. Could the two crimes be connected? And will Brunetti be able to prove his family's innocence before it's too late?

©1999 Donna Leon and Diogenes Verlag AG, Zurich. All rights reserved. (P)2012 AudioGo

Vandalism against evil

law-enforcement, murder, murder-investigation, protests, Venice, greed, trafficking

Have to admit that I don't really comprehend the need for an individual alone to make protest against a social evil as I've always worked in conjunction with others even if I had to gather them. But it makes for a good background to the statement of social evil as well as Brunetti's test of beliefs. And the murder investigation was good, too.
Narrator David Colacci has the trick of using American standard Italian and Sicilian accents to differentiate the multiple male characters down to a science.

Great series

What did you love best about Fatal Remedies?

This is not one of my absolute favorites in the series but Leon is always good .
Colacci makes Guido come Alice. I love his reading and even if the story may not be as good he makes it better..

It's fine

I love this series, so overall I enjoyed it, but it was not as engaging as others I have read. The narrator did a great job.

Not as good as others

This is my 4th reading of the series and it didn’t feel as engaging as the others. It felt more like reading about something happening than actually experiencing the story. The whole Paula angle seemed absolutely unnecessary to the story. Took me longer than normal to listen to bc I kept cutting it off to listen to other things thing that were more engaging.

Fatal Remedies

another great Donna Leon book! Wonderful characters, a good plot and great descriptions of Venice.

Good read

It is nice to listen to an intelligent international mystery. The narration is the usual excellent recitation ( As opposed to books read by their authors) Recommended!

ANOTHER GREAT COMMISSARIO BRUNETTI STORY

What made the experience of listening to Fatal Remedies the most enjoyable?

It was a well-written, entertaining story told by a master, David Colacci.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The plot was very interesting with sub-plots interwoven to form a great tale.

Which scene was your favorite?

Brunetti speaking with his daughter about the fight he will, most likely, have with her mother.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Brunetti, enraged with his wife, saddened by the realization of how much he loves her and doesn't want to be without her.

Disappointing

Typically I love the Guido Brunetti mysteries and one of the things I enjoy is his family life. The author never takes cheap shots at his family so their suffering is a mere plot device. And one of the constants is his brilliant college professor wife, Paola. But when she learns of a local tourist agency selling sex tours to Thailand and is horrified by the prospect, as well anyone would be, what does she do? Does she write letters to the paper? picket outside the agency, with signs saying they support pedophilia? organize a campaign to protest these tours? No. She lobs a rock, through the window, like a 10 year old kid having a tantrum and her justification is the whimpering whine 'I want it to stop' So would we all. But adults know that throwing a rock through a window isn't going to 'stop' a thing. Then she tries to justify her position by insisting ALL women are ALWAYS in abject terror at the prospect of some day being victimized by a cruel, brutal, random man. Well, I never have been and I dont know any woman who regularly is prey to that level of quivering terror. And her little melt down was only tangentially related to the meat of the story, which was a murder but she still needed to feel guilty about it BUT she would have thrown the rock anyway. The character of Paola deserved one whole helluvalot better treatment from Dona Leone. If I were Paola Id be outraged to be portrayed in such an insulting, infantile, patronizing and offensive way. .

The descriptions and character development of the chars Gets.

I thought it was well written and enjoyable
, I especially liked the characters and vivid details.

I'm in love with Guido

If you could sum up Fatal Remedies in three words, what would they be?

Well-crafted story

What did you like best about this story?

I really enjoy this series and this book was an excellent example - Guido is so well-characterized. You understand his dilemmas and sympathize. Paola is such a firebrand and Guido attempts to remain true to his policeman ethic.

Have you listened to any of David Colacci’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

David Colacci is perfect as the voice of Guido Brunetti. I've been working my way through the series and he is so much better than Crossley.