It was a delightful surprise to read a Commissario Guido Brunetti novel with Guido being the principal character. His youthful past came into play as he was petitioned for help from a former neighbor. In order to resolve the problem,he was requested to do it without police involvement.
Give Unto Others was certainly inconsistent with her other books in the series.

Thank you to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for this eARC.

She's BAAACK! Yes this was a return to great writing and interesting story line. I don't know how Ms Leon manages to keep us going now 32 (33) books in but she does. This kept me guessing.

Having heard much praise for Donna Leon’s Commissario Brunetti series set in Venice, I jumped at the chance of reading and reviewing Give unto Others, the thirty-first in the series, through NetGalley, and am thankful to the author and the publisher for the review e-copy.

Commissario Guido Brunetti is approached by Elisabetta Foscarini, an acquaintance from the days of his youth, with a personal matter that she wishes him to look into, without making it official. She suspects that her son-in-law—an accountant—is mixed up in something illegal that may have put his own life and that of his wife’s in danger, and wants Brunetti to find out the truth. Brunetti, out of a sense of gratitude towards Elisabetta’s mother, who had been kind to his own mother during a phase of acute poverty a long time ago, agrees to get involved. He also enlists the help of a few people he trusts in the Questura and gets to work, examining the accountant’s career and the work he had done three years ago for Elisabetta’s husband, Bruno del Balzo, helping to set up a charity involving a hospital in Central America. Meanwhile, somebody vandalises the veterinary clinic owned by Elisabetta’s daughter and hurts her dog in the process, thereby reinforcing Elisabetta’s concerns. As Brunetti and his team unravel layer after layer of the case, things turn too complex for them to handle and Brunetti has to strike a balance between his sense of loyalty towards his mother’s benefactor and his professional ethics.

Donna Leon, true to her reputation, paints a vivid, intricate picture of Venice, weaving it seamlessly into the narrative. She describes movingly the effects of the Covid pandemic on the city, the distressing signs of which are strewn about everywhere. Since this series has been running for a long time, the major characters and their interrelationships are quite well established, which felt a bit difficult to grasp for me, a first time reader. However, the story is quite readable as a standalone since the plot is unconnected to the previous ones. Brunetti and his team—especially Signorina Elettra with her magical ability to ferret out hidden information—are a fine set of people to be acquainted with. The plot is as laidback as a holiday in Venice and it moves on at a gentle pace.

But, stripped of the appealing setting and the intriguing characters, there is not really much to say about the plot. Though amusing to read, Brunetti’s detailed interactions with his family members, and his philosophical musings about his past and the history of Venice do not act to further the plot. As a result, Give unto Others reads like a journal of Brunetti’s life for the period when he works on Elisabetta’s case, a far cry from the gripping crime thriller I had expected. I enjoyed reading it for the fine central characters and the enchanting locales, but would have liked quite a bit more in terms of actual story. I may try one of the earlier novels from this series before making up my mind about reading more...

Another excellent book in the long running police detective series. I really didn't see all the twists and turns in this plot until the end,
Leon's portrait of a Venice just recovering from Covid is full of fascinating insights into what remains the same in an ancient city like Venice and how much it has changed in this post-pandemic present. As always the descriptions are vivid and make me long to return to this fascinating city. Yes, yes I was one of the blasted tourists clogging its streets and admiring its history, beauty and architecture. Reading one of Leon's books is like revisiting as soon as I can...and of course before all the other tourists get there.