A lorry crashes on one of the treacherous bends in the Italian Dolomites, spilling a terrible cargo . . .

A prominent international layer is found dead in the carriage of an intercity train at Saint Lucia . . .

Can the two tragedies possibly be connected?

Commissario Guido Brunetti digs deep into the secret lives of the once great and good for the answer. For in a seedy Venetian bar lies the clue to an evil crime network reaching far beyond the laguna. But it will take another violent death in Venice before the forces of justice can even begin to proceed . . .

Donna Leon has lived in Venice for many years and previously lived in Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Iran and China, where she worked as a teacher.