Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Temptation of Forgiveness
    The Temptation of Forgiveness
    The Temptation of Forgiveness
    Audiobook9 hours

    The Temptation of Forgiveness

    Written by Donna Leon

    Narrated by David Colacci

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    In the 27th novel in Donna Leon's bestselling mystery series, a suspicious accident leads Commissario Guido Brunetti to uncover a longstanding scam with disturbing unintended consequences Surprised, if not dismayed, to discover from his superior, Vice-Questore Patta, that leaks are emanating from the Questura, Commissario Guido Brunetti is surprised more consequentially by the appearance of a friend of his wife's, fearful that her son is using drugs and hopeful Brunetti can somehow intervene. When Tullio Gasparini, the woman's husband, is found unconscious and with a serious brain injury at the foot of a Venice bridge at midnight, Brunetti is drawn to pursue a possible connection to the boy's behavior. But the truth, as Brunetti has experienced so often, is rarely straightforward. An examination of Gasparini's home office reveals a number of strange coupons in his elderly aunt's name from a local drugstore, which over time reveal a long-running scam. As the 27th novel unfolds in Donna Leon's exquisite chronicle of Venetian life in all its blissful and sordid aspects, Brunetti is ever more impressed by the intuition of his fellow Commissario Claudia Griffoni, and by the endless resourcefulness and craftiness of Signorina Elettra, Patta's secretary and gate-keeper, and reminded of the ever-lasting virtues of his own family. His intellectual pursuits lead him to read Sophocles' play Antigone, so revealing of the unintended consequences that can erupt from bad decisions-and tempt him to consider at least personal forgiveness for a crime from the heart gone bad.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateMar 20, 2018
    ISBN9781501983689

    More audiobooks from Donna Leon

    Related to The Temptation of Forgiveness

    Titles in the series (15)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    Crime Thriller For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Glove

      Mar 4, 2024

      The Glove
      8 min read

    • Article

      Pickpocket

      Jun 1, 2020

      Pickpocket
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Machine Stops

      Dec 28, 2018

      The Machine Stops
      6 min read

    • Article

      Memories Of A Miracle

      Dec 1, 2023

      Memories Of A Miracle
      8 min read

    • Article

      ‘Leading Men’: Featured Fiction by Christopher Castellani

      Feb 12, 2019

      Frank should have told him then and there that he loved him and would never leave him. Not how much he loved him, which was very much, but that he loved him at all. The post ‘Leading Men’: Featured Fiction by Christopher Castellani appeared first on

      4 min read

    • Article

      Fear Of Flying

      Feb 1, 2022

      Fear Of Flying
      10 min read

    • Article

      Let’s Play Dead

      Mar 3, 2020

      There was a man, let’s call him Henry VIII. There was his wife, let’s call her Anne B. Let’s give them a castle and make it nice. Let’s give her many boy babies but make them dead. Let’s give him a fussy way of being. Let’s make her smart and sneaky,

      17 min read

    • Article

      The Trouble Gene

      Jul 1, 2020

      One clear thing about trouble—it can set you back to zero, a personal cone of silence. And reading, writing, listening allow entry into that troubled solitude; you disappear into it regardless t of the time or place you really are in, be it bed, kitc

      12 min read

    • Article

      Cristina Rivera Garza

      Jun 15, 2018

      She would remember everything, out of the blue and in full detail. She would see the jade ring wrapped around her ring finger and, immediately, she would see the other jade ring. She would open her eyes wide and, without knowing why, would fall silen

      13 min read

    • Article

      Marco

      Mar 1, 2022

      THE ALLEY STANK . Marco could feel the damp soaking into his tunic as he pressed his back against the wall, trying to seem like part of the shadows. He cursed himself. How could he have been so stupid? He knew if he stayed out after dark they might f

      6 min read

    • Article

      Cherubs

      Jul 5, 2023

      Cherubs
      10 min read

    • Article

      Objects of Curiosity

      Sep 2, 2020

      Objects of Curiosity
      5 min read

    • Article

      Ghost Girl, Banana

      Aug 21, 2023

      By the time I was 25, there were only two things I remembered about Mumma. The first was that she smelled of watermelons, the second was that we were happy. We’d taken our father’s name of course, but a name is only half a story. The other half exist

      6 min read

    • Article

      Frank’s Fable

      Mar 18, 2021

      Frank’s Fable
      4 min read

    • Article

      PARIS, Interrupted

      Apr 8, 2020

      Kate struggled to shove her suitcase into the overhead rack. She was only going to Paris for two weeks. Why was her bag so heavy? The woman on the opposite side of the aisle looked over disapprovingly. Kate ignored her, stepping back off the seat. At

      3 min read

    • Article

      In Search Of . . .

      Mar 1, 2019

      In Search Of . . .
      7 min read

    • Article

      Italian ESCAPE

      Oct 5, 2022

      Italian ESCAPE
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Villa

      Jan 11, 2021

      Hannah could kill Emily. Perhaps killing is a bit strong. Instead, Hannah could lightly torment Emily. She could shoot paper pellets into the back of her head for hours, like she did to her at school. Or she could strap her to a chair and force her t

      6 min read

    • Article

      Waving Not Drowning

      Aug 8, 2022

      Waving Not Drowning
      6 min read

    • Article

      In Search Of ...

      Apr 1, 2019

      Fifteen-year-old Tay lives on Rannoch, a distant planet covered with water, where undersea pods or living chambers provide life support for up to three people—usually two adults and one child. Tay learns that her parents are expecting another child a

      8 min read

    • Article

      Five Poems

      Mar 1, 2022

      Five Poems
      5 min read

    • Article

      Quantum Radio

      Feb 22, 2023

      Quantum Radio
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Stars at Noon

      Mar 4, 2024

      “Nothing fancy,” I tell him. “The bulbs are very dim …” “Bulb. There's only one bulb.” I relieve my purse of its bulge in the bathroom and discover that the administration of this motel, meaning some sneaky relation of the Señora's, has also been loo

      1 min read

    • Article

      Islanders

      Oct 13, 2022

      Islanders
      8 min read

    • Article

      Clarence Dock

      Aug 6, 2020

      Clarence Dock
      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Temptation of Forgiveness

    4/5

    153 ratings12 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Although this book developed at a slow and languid pace, it intelligently explored the issues of corruption in the face of necessity, the consequences of bad decisions, justice, and the temptation of forgiveness. What is deeply attractive in the Inspector Brunetti series besides the fantastic characters, is their depiction of the realistic daily pace of life and lack of sensationalism.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely love this series. I wish Scribd had them all. It’s a lovely trip to venice which I love!
    • 5/5
      Thank you. I enjoyed the book very much. Thank you
    • 4/5
      A woman serving the architecture faculty at Paola's university consults Brunetti about her son's drug use. Soon afterwards her husband dies in a fall from a bridge, and it appears he had some help getting over it. At times Griffoni seems a more capable investigator than Brunetti. At the same time Patta tries to find a leak in the department. While I always enjoy my visits to Venice through these novels, this one doesn't seem to be quite as cohesive as some. Some plot lines seem to almost drop from the radar. Leon's endings never wrap up quite as neatly as ones by other mystery writers--and I'll leave that there as a teaser! David Colacci's narrations are always superb.
    • 4/5
      A mother worried about her son's drug use connects with the fall from a bridge of her husband.
    • 3/5
      It is very difficult to maintain the same quality throughout a longstanding series as this one(this is number 27...). And although that the storyline is still very good,the development of the characters is too detailed(looks,hand movement, breath taking,frowned eyebrows...).But this is unfortunately not exactly an added bonus. It does not lead to more understanding, more depth...
      That said,one of the main characters is the city of Venice and Venice fulfils its role to perfection!
    • 4/5
      Donna Leon demonstrates again and again that a mystery novel need not be fast-paced, involve multiple crimes or even be particularly suspenseful to make compelling reading. She accomplishes this feat again in “The Temptation of Forgiveness” (2018).Leon's secret lies with interesting characters whose daily lives are filled with enough drama and comedy to keep readers entertained even as the mystery plods along. I sped through this novel more quickly than I do most mysteries.This time the case before Commissario Guido Brunetti of the Venice police involves a man's death from a fall from a bridge in the middle of the night. It may have been an accident but seems suspicious, especially since the man's wife had visited Brunetti just a couple of days previously with worries that her teenage son might be involved with drugs. The commissario's first thought is that the father might have died in a confrontation with his son's drug dealer.Brunetti seems to have a one-track mind, my main complaint with the novel. Rather than compile evidence and thoroughly question witnesses, first the wife and son, he always seems to start with a theory, then look only for evidence to support it. When that fails, he tries another theory and gathers more evidence. Yet his methods actually work in the end.Meanwhile we are amused by his relationships with his wife and children and with the people he works with, especially Signorina Electra, the ever resourceful secretary who seems to be able discover with her computer any information Brunetti might desire. Among her secrets, known only to Brunetti, is that she has bugged the office of their boss.While not the best book in the long series, “The Temptation of Forgiveness” (I love Leon's titles) will not disappoint.
    • 3/5
      Guido Brunetti confronts illegal drug distribution and pharmaceutical fraud in this book. A mother, a professor at Paolo's university, comes to Commissario Brunetti believing that her son is taking drugs. However, without a lot of information Brunetti is forced to gather evidence in a round about way. Utilizing not just Senorina Electra and her suspect computer but also sources from the underworld, Guido determines that there is more than just illegal drugs at issue.It amazes me that such a Renaissance man as Guido Brunetti is, that he can still find a way to be empathic to many of the worst criminals.
    • 5/5
      Even the 27th book in the Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries is as fresh as the first. How Leon is able to come up with such interesting issues in a place as small as Venice amazes me.
    • 4/5
      Brunetti deals with corruption by a doctor and pharmacist (as well as all the other corruption in Venice) in this rather short entry into the series.
    • 5/5
      Yet another Brunnetti book with a solid twist at the end. And not every mystery is solved, just as in real life. I liked this even more than some of the others.
    • 4/5
      Once again Donna Leon has proven that police-based mystery story does not need graphic violence, car chases, detectives getting into life-threatening situations, profanity, or sex scenes to provide a well-written story. There is not the adrenalin rush so common in this genre. For those familiar with the Commissario Guido Brunnetti series, THE TEMPTATION OF FORGIVENESS offers the same group of characters, primarily Guido’s wife Paola; Vice-Questore Giuseppe Patta, Commissario Claudia Griffoni, and Signorina Elettra, Patta’s gatekeeper and amazing source of information. For those who have not read the previous books, you’ll still be able to appreciate the book as a stand-alone.Soon after Brunnetti arrived at work one morning, a woman was escorted into his office. He recognized her as a colleague of his wife’s, but didn't really know her. Eventually he learned that she was concerned about her fifteen-year-old son. During the past year, his grades and dropped and his attitude had changed considerably. She thought he might be drugs and want to know that was a criminal offense. Brunnetti tried to find out the source of the drugs, but the mother was rather evasive.That night, that he was called to the scene of a possible crime. A man was found bleeding and unconscious at the bottom staircase near the canal. He had no identification on him nor did there appear to be any witnesses. The police could not determine whether it was an accident or if he had been assaulted. Brunnetti immediately recognized the man as the husband of the woman who had been in his office. Following a long night in a slow-moving emergency room, after series of x-rays tests and scans, the doctor said the man had suffered severe brain damage and didn't know if he would ever regain consciousness or, if he did, would be able to communicate.Brunnetti wanted to both find source of drugs. In the process, he discovered a scam involving elderly, confused people, a pharmacist, and a doctor.As in all of the books in the series, Donna Leon provided a compelling picture of Venice: its people, its atmosphere, changes in the city, and the workings of the city government and the police department. Throughout the book, Brunnetti referred to Sophocles’s Antigone” with its examination of right and wrong, when should a law be broken, and at what cost?Tidbits:Five men who neither spoke Italian nor could explain the meaning of certain road signs were provided with a complicated wiring system so they could pass the test to get driver's licenses.There are many Italian accents that enable someone to know where the speaker learned to speak the language. The story explains several of them. That knowledge helps bring people together or divides them. Some people who have contact with the public, such as police officers, learn to adopt those accents to facilitate the conversations with people they interview.Because of her gender experiences, Griffoni is able to see situations, e.g., control by men of women, in ways that her male colleagues do not.Paolo explains the difference between life and novels: "That's why people like novels.... In most novels, things get explained to them by the narrator. They get told why people did what they did. We’re accustomed to that voice, telling us what to think."It's too easy. And in the end, it's so unlike life, so fake...."Life doesn't have a narrator – it's full of lies and half-truths – so we never know anything for sure, not really.”I’m not sure what the first chapter, getting immersed in a very heavy fog while taking a water taxi to work, is supposed to mean, unless it represents life: Suddenly, everything changes and you can’t see where you are. Then it clears up.Unfortunately, too many chapters should have been combined. They are a continuation of the same characters in the same place. Minus one star for that..