Gondola in Venice, originally uploaded by radiowood2000

Before leaving on my first trip to Venice, I bought a small stack of Donna Leon’s mystery novels placed in that unique medieval city of canals. I read them by the pool in Croatia, on the boat to and from Venice, and at night at the hotel there, as well as on the flight home.

All of Donna Leon’s Commissario Brunetti books have a different theme, sometimes two. The first, “Death at La Fenice”, besides introducing the series, was about the opera house of that name and the world of classical music. Later books have taken up art theft and the Mafia, illegal immigrants and blood diamonds, and moneylenders and Venetian property. “Wilful Behaviour” is about coming to terms (or not) with Facism and Italy’s World War II past.

It does its job as a mystery, and keeps you wondering what the connection is among all the various elements. Like the other books, Italy seems rife with corruption and networks of friends and contacts that are (apparently) unknown here in squeaky clean Sweden. And like the other books in the series, you get to travel around Venice, by foot or water bus. Having just been there, this was fun. Especially endearing was the put-down of the tourist watering hole Harry’s Bar (other books have made fun of the industry in mask and plastic gondola souvenirs).

Unlike the other books, this one actually starts with Brunetti’s wife Paola, although her presence is perhaps somewhat restricted this time around.

And once again one is amazed at Brunetti’s huge home-cooked lunches with the family and forced to ponder what the working hours are in Italy?