Switching back to mysteries, another series I’ve thoroughly enjoyed recently is Donna Leon‘s Commissario Guido Brunetti series. The books are set in Venice, where Brunetti lives with his wife and two children, and is a vice-Commissario of the Venice police.

First of all, Brunetti loves Venice, so we get lots of descriptions of the city, from someone who recognizes the many flaws of his home, but loves it anyway.

Second of all, Brunetti loves to eat, so we got lots of descriptions of meals and food.

Third, Italy is a very different place from the US, and corruption that would astonish Americans is par for the course. Bribes are the way to get things done, and who you know is often far more important than what you know and what your abilities are. As such, these stories are often quite different from American mysteries, in that we may learn who the criminal was, but it is rare that true justice is served.

This is not, however, as depressing as it sounds. Brunetti is a good father, a good husband, and a good man. He recognizes that he lives and works in an imperfect state, but does his job anyway. Additionally, Donna Leon writes with a light touch, and subjects that could become overwhelmingly depressing are lightened up to a small degree by Brunetti’s love for his city (and for his family).

And of course the mysteries are good. In the first book in the series, the murder occurs at La Fenice, the world famous opera house in Venice. (This setting became even more interesting after reading John Berendt‘s City of Falling Angels, which looks in some detail at the fire that burned down La Fenice and the reconstruction afterward.

But one of the best things in the stories is Brunetti’s relationship with Paola. Despite having teenage children, Guildo and his wife remain in love with each other. Not to say they don’t have their ups and downs, but it’s nice to read a mystery where the marriage is one of the strengths of the books, even while that relationship is not idealized. (Both Paola and Brunetti can be difficult and irritate each other, but it never lasts.) And I think that relationship makes the resolution (or lack there of) of the mysteries easier to take.

Commissario Guido Brunetti: Death at La Fenice (1992), Death in a Strange Country (1993), Dressed for Death (1994), Death and Judgment (1995), Acqua Alta (1996), Quietly in Their Sleep (1997), Friends in High Places (2000), Uniform Justice (2003), Doctored Evidence (2004), Blood from a Stone (2005), Through a Glass, Darkly (2006), Suffer the Little Children (2007)