This is Leon's 25th Guido Brunetti mystery, and it is as beguiling as every other book in this popular series set in Venice. We begin with Guido and his wife Paola sitting through a magnficent dinner party hosted by Paola's aristocratic parents for their friend, the Contessa Lando-Continui, who is trying to woo several wealthy foreigners to contribute to her charitable foundation. Guido and Paola are there to provide "local color;" they are "real Venetians" after all. But the Countess also has another reason for including Brunetti. Elderly and increasingly frail, the Contessa wants answers to questions that have remained unanswered for too long.
Fifteen years ago, the Contessa's then teenage granddaughter, Manuela, fell into a canal and almost drowned. She survived, but suffered irreversible brain damage, and ever since has had the mental capacity of a small child. The man who dived into the canal and pulled her to safety was an alcoholic. He told the police that he saw a man push Manuela into the water. He was the only witness, but he was drunk at the time. And the next morning, when he work up, he could not remember what he had said the night before. Manuela of course was not able to tell the police what happened. And so the police concluded it was an accident (or perhaps a suicide attempt) and the case was closed.
The Countess however still suspects foul play was involved. She wants Brunetti to look into it quietly and see if he can find new evidence sufficient to reopen the investigation. Brunetti agrees, reluctantly, to placate an elderly woman. Until he meets Manuela.
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