The Value of Things

Set against the backdrop of the dour Venetian Lagoon, The Value of Things is a gripping crime novel—robust and full of twists. A debut written with the skill of a seasoned mystery writer and an indelible new female investigator.

In the depths of the Lagoon of Venice, a high-profile company’s president is discovered dead. Wrapped in a Persian carpet, anchored to the seabed, and rendered barely recognizable by the voracity of blue crabs, the corpse is identified as Leone Balloni. He had been missing for a couple of days; the last people to see him alive were the board of directors at the close of their annual hunting lodge party on Saturday night. The final trace: a furious message sent to his wife on Sunday evening.

For the witty and brutally honest Inspector Mirna Pagani and her scatterbrained partner Angeli, investigation is anything but straightforward. The list of suspects is long: a mysterious mole inside the company, a rival firm, a stepdaughter who is a radical animal-rights activist, the wife and her lover, disgruntled employees. The evidence, on the other hand, is scarce: a missing box of costly cigars, a vanished bag stuffed with cash, traces of a car, and a diary filled with strange notes.

Meanwhile, Mirna’s private life is in turmoil with a bitter divorce, a teenage son in crisis, and an exasperating mother forever scheming to find her a new partner. To solve the case, she must wade through the mud of the business world, confronting sordid characters, hidden ambitions, and simmering vendettas.

A noir with atmosphere as thick as the lagoon itself, The Value of Things delivers suspense, intrigue, and the unsettling realization that behind wealth we often find rot.