Suffer the Little Children: Donna Leon

When Commissario Brunetti is summoned to the hospital bedside of a senior paediatrician whose skull has been brutally fractured, he is confronted with more questions than answers. Three men have burst into the doctor`s apartment in the middle of the night, attacked him and took his 18-month-old son - but why? As he investigates, Brunetti finds infertility, desperation, and babies for sale. Meanwhile, Inspector Vianello uncovers a scam between pharmacists and doctors in the city. And certain information about one`s neighbours can lead to all kinds of corruption and all sorts of pain...

Donna Leon`s new novel is as subtle and gripping as ever, set in a beautifully realised Venice, seething with small-town malice.