🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Donna Leon
Not much is known about Donna, other than what she has allowed to be published since she is a very private person and prefers to keep her private life to herself. Donna Leon has lived in Venice, Italy for just over thirty years, which has helped her with writing her novels. She has been known to describe Venice as a very peaceful, urban place of great beauty. Prior to writing her novels, she worked professionally as an English Literature lecturer at the University of Maryland University College – Europe (UMUC Europe). Prior to her occupation as a lecturer, she worked from the years 1981-1999 in the role of Professor at the Vicenza, Italy American military base, which is one of the inspirations for her second novel entitled Death in a Strange Country.
All Book Series by Donna Leon
Brunetti's Cookbook
Series opener · book 1 of 2 · published 2009 Co-authored · Roberta Pianaro
Brunetti's Venice
Latest in the series · book 2 of 2 · published 2019 Co-authored · Toni Sepeda
Handel's Bestiary: In Search of Animals in Handel's Operas
Series opener · book 1 of 6 · published 2010
Backstage: Stories of a Writing Life
Latest in the series · book 6 of 6 · published 2025
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Donna Leon?
Not much is known about Donna, other than what she has allowed to be published since she is a very private person and prefers to keep her private life to herself. Donna Leon has lived in Venice, Italy for just over thirty years, which has helped her with writing her novels. She has been known to describe Venice as a very peaceful, urban place of great beauty.
Which Donna Leon series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Guido Brunetti series, the earliest of Donna Leon's multi-book series: it opens with Death at La Fenice (1992) and runs to 33 books across 1992–2024, ending with A Refiner’s Fire (2024).
How many books has Donna Leon written?
Donna Leon has 42 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1992 and 2025. 35 of them belong to 2 named series — the largest being the Guido Brunetti series with 33 books — and 7 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Donna Leon's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Donna Leon's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Guido Brunetti (1992–2024, 33 books) and Guido Brunetti Companion (2009–2019, 2 books).
How are Donna Leon's books organised into series?
This guide splits Donna Leon's 42 books into 2 named series and 7 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Guido Brunetti (33 books, 1992–2024); Guido Brunetti Companion (2 books, 2009–2019).