August in Venice and all things Brunetti
I am just back from a trip that started out wonderfully but ended with many delays and disruptions and I'm thinking that now that I'm finally home, I'll stay here for a while and only travel through fiction.
Every book in Donna Leon's Commisario Brunetti mystery series is a trip to Venice without any possibility of a missed connection or lost luggage.
The latest title is A Question of Belief. It is number 19 in the series but you can read it even if you haven't read the others (and once you've read one, you will want to read them all!).
Venetian policeman Commisario Guido Brunetti is a lovely man. Unlike many fictional detectives, he is happily married and devoted to his two children. His family life and the delicious meals prepared by his English Professor wife, Paola are very much in contrast to his work life where his boss is an idiot and he finds corruption everywhere. The books are more about the relationships between people and the reasons behind their actions than they are about police procedure and action. Of course, they are also about his love for his native city with descriptions of his walks across the city that are so vivid and detailed that you feel you could follow in his footsteps (more about that below).
In A Question of Belief it is August in Venice and it is searingly hot. Brunetti wishes he could join his family on their vacation in the cool mountains but first he has to investigate the murder of a clerk at the courthouse who has led a seemingly blameless life and there is also the problem of an astrologer who is milking his unsuspecting clients (including Brunnetti's stalwart colleague Vianello's aunt) for a lot of money.
If you'd like to literally follow in Brunetti's footsteps there is now a guide to all the locations mentioned in the books or if you'd just like to stay at home and recreate the meals, there is a cookbook.
3 thoughts on “August in Venice and all things Brunetti”
Hi Kathryn,
I just finished reading “Brunetti’s Venice” and used this book while I was there last month to find great restaurants.
It’s a perfect book for a librarian since I amazed my husband by coming up with little Venetian facts such as, Venetians don’t frequent Harry’s Bar, it is just a place for tourists. I knew where the Gondola repair yard was in the Dorsodouro area. I found out what a “tramezzino” and a “sombre” were and where they could be ordered. Tracked down a great restaurant that Brunetti had recommended and after speaking with the owner I found out that Johnny Depp had been eating there quite often a few months earlier. Best of all, I found out about the best Venetian aperitif, a “Spritz con Aperol” – wish I had one right now!
I hadn’t realized that there was a new Brunetti book our, Kathryn. Thanks for the reminder! I’ve just put my name in for it. I’ve read them all, and you are right, read one, you will want to read them all. I’ll put my name in for the others you recommend as well. Excellent review.
Just started About Face…and left if in the rain…so had to buy a second copy. Great opening line.