'Crime writing of the highest order' GUARDIAN
'Donna Leon has been giving unto us for all of the thirty years since Death at La Fenice introduced us to Brunetti' Val McDermid

The gifted Venetian detective returns in his 31st case - this time, investigating the Janus-faced nature of yet another Italian institution. Brunetti will have to once again face the blurred line that runs between the criminal and the non-criminal, bending police rules, and his own character, to help an acquaintance in danger.

'Both tremendously enjoyable and deeply humane' JESSIE GREENGRASS, Costa-shortlisted author of The High House
'Leon's elegant, witty prose . . . is a joy' AMANDA CRAIG

« Avec son savoir-faire, Donna Leon assemble intrigues et personnages épatants… Grâce à un style efficace et sans pathos devenu sa marque de fabrique, Donna Leon nous tient en haleine jusqu’au dernier moment. »
Times Literary Supplement

'The series that has shadowed Brunetti for three decades is an epic achievement' The Times

Chosen as Star Pick in the Sunday Times Crime Club
Chosen as a 'Best New Crime Novel' in the Sunday Times
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When two young American women are badly injured in a boating accident, joy riding in Venice's Laguna with two young Italians, Commissario Guido Brunetti's curiosity is aroused by the behaviour of the young men, who abandoned the victims after taking them to the hospital.

As Brunetti and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, investigate, they discover that one of the young men works for a man rumoured to be involved in more sinister night-time activities in the Laguna. To get to the bottom of the mystery, Brunetti needs to enlist the help of both the Carabinieri and the Guardia Costiera. Determining how much trust he and Griffoni can put in these unfamiliar colleagues only adds to the difficulty of solving this peculiarly horrible crime.

Donna Leon's landmark thirtieth Brunetti novel is as powerful as any she has written, testing Brunetti to his limits, forcing him to listen very carefully for the truth.
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'Leon's books are a joy' Guardian

'She is a truly fine novelist, period, and should be acclaimed as such.' TLS

'There is no one better than Donna Leon at showing the ripple effects of a single traumatic event . . . Throughout this astonishingly consistent series Leon has recast the city in her own venerable image: full of surprises and hidden beauty.' Evening Standard

A New York Times Bestseller
An Indie Bestseller
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In The Waters of Eternal Youth, the twenty-fifth instalment in the bestselling Brunetti series, our Commissario finds himself drawn into a case that may not be a crime at all.

Brunetti is investigating a cold case by request of the grand Contessa Lando-Continui, a friend of Brunetti's mother-in-law. Fifteen years ago the Contessa's teenage granddaughter, Manuela, was found drowning in a canal. She was rescued from the canal at the last moment, but in many ways it was too late; she suffered severe brain damage and her life was never the same again. Once a passionate horse rider, Manuela, now aged thirty, cannot remember the accident, or her beloved horse, and lives trapped in an eternal youth.

The Contessa, unconvinced that this was an accident, implores Brunetti to find the culprit she believes was responsible for ruining Manuela's life. Out of a mixture of curiosity, pity and a willingness to fulfil the wishes of a loving grandmother, Brunetti reopens the case. But once he starts to investigate, Brunetti finds a murky past and a dark story at its heart.

The Waters of Eternal Youth is awash in the rhythms and concerns of contemporary Venetian life, from historical preservation, to housing, to new waves of African migrants, all circling the haunting story of a woman trapped in a perpetual childhood.

Par un beau jour de printemps à Venise, le commissaire Brunetti et son adjoint Vianello font libérer Ribetti, un ami de Vianello qui s’est fait bêtement coffrer lors d’une manifestation écologiste contre la pollution des eaux de la lagune. 
À sa sortie de prison, Ribetti est violemment pris à partie par son beau-père, propriétaire d’une des verreries de l’île de Murano. Hors de lui, le vieil homme profère des menaces de mort à l’encontre de son gendre. 
Pourtant, le cadavre qu’on retrouve quelques jours plus tard est celui du gardien de l’usine. L’homme avait auprès de lui une copie de L’Enfer de Dante… Il collectionnait les petits carnets sur lesquels il inscrivait des notes codées… Et il était obsédé par la pollution des eaux de la lagune qui, selon lui, avait causé le handicap mental de sa petite fille. Sa croisade l’aurait-elle amené à découvrir des secrets qu’aucun des grands verriers de Murano ne souhaitait voir exposés ? 
Si un homme est mort pour avoir dit la vérité, ne déploiera-t-on pas les mêmes forces pour faire taire Brunetti ?

« Donna Leon est une star. Partout où ses romans paraissent, elle fait un malheur. » 
  Brigitte Hernandez – Le Point

« Une Venise plus sombre et mystérieuse, mais terriblement attachante. Extravagante, comme son auteur. » 
  Isabelle Marchand – Le Pèlerin

« Pour peindre Venise la romantique en berceau du crime, il faut de l'imagination. Assurément, Donna Leon n'en manque pas. »  Philippe Lemaire – Le Parisien