A traditional mystery set in Italy. Dotsy Lamb, history professor and recently divorced empty-nester, and her friend Lettie are on a group tour of Italy when an obnoxious woman traveling with her two sisters is murdered in her Florence hotel room. Dotsy enlists the aid of the scatty but observant Lettie and hooks up with the attractive carabinieri captain in charge of the investigation. The killer may be a member of their tour group, a gypsy from a nearby camp, or any of four other people they"ve met since their arrival. There are motives galore. The murdered tourist has insulted practically everyone, her sisters have a monetary interest, and there may be a drug connection. This story takes the group from Milan to Venice, Florence, and Capri. The action takes Dotsy and her friends on a gondola ride around Venice and through many of the sights of Florence: the Accademia, the Uffizi, the Arno river, the Piazzale Michelangelo, the ,a gypsy camp, and the caserma of the carabinieri.