The Waters of Eternal Youth
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4.3 • 30 Ratings
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
'There is no one better than Donna Leon at showing the ripple effects of a single traumatic event . . . Leon has recast the city in her own venerable image: full of surprises and hidden beauty.' Evening Standard
Fifteen years ago the teenage granddaughter of the grand Contessa Lando-Continui was rescued at the last moment from drowning in the canals. But young Manuela's life was never the same again. Now aged thirty, she lives trapped in an eternal youth.
The Contessa, certain that this was no accident, implores Brunetti to find the culprit she believes ruined Manuela's life.
But once Brunetti starts to investigate, he finds a murky past and a dark story at its heart . . .
'Brilliantly done, with a sense of place rarely matched in any fiction' The Times
'A sparkling summer read.' The Tablet
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Commissario Guido Brunetti looks into a 15-year-old mystery in bestseller Leon's poignant 25th outing for the Venetian police inspector (after 2015's Falling in Love). Did Manuela Lando-Continui, who was almost 16, fall into a canal, as the contemporary police investigation concluded, or was she pushed? She sustained permanent brain damage and has no recollection of the incident. The only witness claimed that he saw a man push her, but he was drunk and forgot his testimony the following day. Now Manuela's elderly contessa grandmother wants to know the truth before she dies. Leon deftly builds her plot against the struggles of contemporary Venetians unable to afford housing in their beloved city and under threat from hostile immigrants. She draws Manuela and the contessa with skill and nuance, and longtime readers will enjoy insights into the past of Commissario Claudia Griffoni, the inspector's colleague. Fans new and old should appreciate this escape into Brunetti's elegant, sophisticated, yet troubled Venice.
