BY ITS COVER
Characters - Alphabetical
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| FIRST NAME | LAST NAME | DESCRIPTION |
| Elisabetta M. | Albani | One of the benefactors of Merula library. |
| Dottor | Alvino | The director of the casino. |
| Gaspar | Avila | A Portuguese photographer and designer. |
| Guido | Brunetti | A detective superintendent in the Italian State Police. |
| Luigi | Cadorna | An Italian general. |
| Gaius | Catullus | A Latin poet. |
| Marcus T. | Cicero | A Roman statesman lawyer, philosopher, writer. |
| James | Cook | A British explorer and naval officer. |
| Hernan | Cortes | Former governor of New Spain. |
| Flippo | D'Alessio | An athlete. |
| Roberto | Dura | An assailant. |
| Patrizia | Fabbiani | Director at the Bibliotheca Merula. |
| Donatella | Falier | Brunetti's mother-in-law. |
| Orazio | Falier | Brunetti's father-in-law. |
| Valerius | Flaccus | A 1st century Roman poet. |
| Aldo | Franchini | A regular visitor for three years at Merula library. |
| Enrico | Franchini | Aldo's brother. |
| Antonio | Gramsci | Former deputy of the Kingdom of Italy. |
| Claudia | Griffoni | Brunetti's colleague. |
| Andreas | Gryphius | A German poet and playwright. |
| Francesco | Guicciardini | An Italian historian and statesman. |
| Jean | Harlow | An American actress. |
| Emperor | Heliogabalus | A former Roman emperor. |
| Henry | James | An American British author. |
| Nicolo | Liburnio | An author. |
| Niccolo | Machiavelli | A 16th century Florentine philosopher. |
| Aldus | Manutius | An Italian painter and humanist. |
| Karl | Marx | A German philosopher. |
| Adele | Marzi | Roberto Dura's ex-companion. |
| Vladimir | Nabokov | A Russian-American novelist and poet. |
| Joseph | Nickerson | An assistant professor of European History. |
| Joseph | Nicolai | An automotive and motorcycle dealer. |
| Joseph | Nicollet | A French geographer and astronomer. |
| Giuseppe | Patta | Brunetti's direct supervisor. |
| Titus M. | Plautus | A Roman playwright. |
| Marco | Polo | A Veetian merchant, explorer and writer. |
| Sextus | Propertius | A Latin poet. |
| Gaius | Sallust | A Roman historian and politician. |
| Piero | Sartor | A guard at Merula library. |
| Lieutenant | Scarpa | Patta's assistant. |
| Cornelius | Tacitus | A historian and politician. |
| Albius | Tibullus | A Latin poet and writer. |
| Anthony | Trollope | An English novelist and civil servant. |
| Marcus T. | Varro | A Roman polymath and prolific author. |
| Lorenzo | Vianello | An inspector. |
| Alvise | Brunetti's colleague. | |
| Arrian | A Greek historian, military commander and philosopher. | |
| Augustine | Paola's special friend. | |
| Bocchese | A head of the scientific team. | |
| Bruno | Brunetti's acquaintance. | |
| Chiara | Paola's daughter. | |
| Elletra | Patta's secretary. | |
| Foa | A pilot. | |
| Galileo | An Italian astromer, physicist and engineer. | |
| Gianni | Contessa Elisabetta Morrosini-Albani's stepson. | |
| Gina | Sartor's wife. | |
| Gino | Giulio's friend. | |
| Giulio | Brunetti's old friend. | |
| Justinian | A former emperor of Byzantine Empire. | |
| Manuela | A librarian. | |
| Martini | An officer-in-charge of procurement. | |
| Paola | Brunetti's wife. | |
| Pucetti | Brunetti's colleague. | |
| Raffi | Paola's son. | |
| Riccardo | Sartor's acquaintance. | |
| Rizzardi | A pathologist. | |
| Rotili | Brunetti's acquaintance. | |
| Sella | Brunetti's acquaintance. | |
| Seneca | A Stoic philosopher of ancient Rome. | |
| Sophocles | An ancient Greek tragedian. | |
| Staffelli | One of Brunetti's team. |
