Doctored Evidence A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

When the body of an wealthy elderly woman is found, brutally murdered in her Venetian flat, the police suspect her maid, who has disappeared. As the runaway maid's train is leaving Italy for Romania, she is approached by the border police, runs away, and is killed as she crosses the tracks in front of an oncoming train. She has a considerable sum of money on her and her papers are obviously fake. Case closed. But when the old woman's neighbor returns from a business trip in London, it becomes clear that the maid could not have committed the crime. Commissario Guido Brunetti decides - unofficially - to take the case on himself. As Brunetti learns more of the victim's bad character, it appears that the crime may not be motivated by greed after all.

“The detectives humane police work is disarming, and his ambles through the city are a delight.” —The New York Times Book Review

“An elegant puzzle, as a character study and as a story of an officers need to reclaim truth in all its complexities from those who want to find easy answers to lifes, and deaths, perplexing mysteries.” —The Washington Post Book World

“Brunetti once again charms his devotees, and fans of Leon will not be disappointed as she crafts yet another expert mystery.” — The Baltimore Sun

“Though the case seems solved, Brunetti tries to uncover the real killer amid stifling heat and intra-office jealousy that is poisonous for him, but vastly entertaining to the reader.... Deeply satisfying and often very funny.” —The Miami Herald

“The sophisticated but still moral Brunetti, with his love of food and his loving family, proves a worthy custodian of timeless values and verities.” —The Wall Street Journal

“A good old-fashioned mystery. . . . But there is something more to [the novel] than a murder and a search for whodunit- a subtle critique, through Brunettis eyes, of a society far along in the process of decay.” —Philadelphia Inquirer

Maria Grazia Battestini was a nasty old woman. No one is upset when she is murdered. Battestini's maid, a Romanian woman is missing and the prime suspect. The police found her at the central station trying to leave the country. In an attempt to flee, she is killed by a train. A large sum of money is found on her person, thus confirming the police's suspicions over the maid's guilt.

Commissario Brunetti has just returned from his vacation. His first day back on the job he encounters Battestini's neighbor, Signora Gismondi, who also had just returned from a vacation in London. Signora Gismondi had learned of her neighbor's death on her return. Signora Gismondi also knew the Romanian maid, and attests to having given the maid the money. Perhaps the murder was not motivated by Greed but by another sin altogether? Brunetti investigates.

Praise for Doctored Evidence:

[Brunettis] humane police work is disarming, and his ambles through the city are a delight.” —The New York Times Book Review

“Fans of Leon will not be disappointed as she crafts yet another expert mystery.”

—The Baltimore Sun

“A smart and stylish fast-paced case of intrigue and corruption, which Leon. . . brings to her pages with wit, affection, and authority.” —The San Francisco Chronicle

“Deeply satisfying and often very funny.” —The Miami Herald

“The sophisticated but still moral Brunetti, with his love of food and his loving family, proves a worthy custodian of timeless values and verities.” —The Wall Street Journal

“A clever plot, fun characters, and a colorful setting. Recommended.”—Deadly Pleasures

“A good old-fashioned mystery…. But there is something more to [the novel] than a murder and a search for whodunit- a subtle critique, through Brunettis eyes, of a society far along in the process of decay.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Offers many pleasures, including a clever puzzle. . . . Leon evokes the real Venice, not the place of romantic novels or glitzy travel guides but the gritty, inbred city of dishonest politicians and hamlet-like neighborhoods filled with gossip.” —Publishers Weekly

Donna Leon is the author of the international best-selling Commissario Guido Brunetti series. The winner of the CWA Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction, among other awards, Leon was born in New Jersey and has lived in Venice for thirty years.