2021 continues to be my personal series of unfortunate events, so after some emergency surgery I was in dire need of some comfort read. I thought that this being the 25th installment and having previously enjoyed the rest of the series I was in for a win but that couldn't have been further from the truth. If any, this almost put me in my first reading slump in months.

After giving it some thought, I think my main issue with this book (and series) is that it has slowly turned into a social critique with the murder mystery playing an anecdotal part at best (in this case, a body doesn't make an appearance until the 60% mark). While the writing is beautiful and evocative as always, the plot drags endlessly (I know this is how cases work IRL but I'd like some fiction in my fiction, thank you very much), with lots of long-winded and meandering conversations that don't do anything either for the plot or the character's development. My other issue is that the mystery plot was SO obvious that I can't understand how Brunetti didn't make the connection sooner than he did when even my drug-addled brain guessed it correctly as soon as the body appeared.

Even though this is far from my favourite entries in the series, I guess I'll keep on reading Brunetti's adventures cause at this point I love the characters and Ms. Leon's way of depicting Venezia.

The waters of Venice, as much a part of the mystery as the crime for Brunetti. Yet again Donna Leon's descriptions of daily life are as much a part of the charm as the Commissario and his position in public and private lives

This is one of my mother's favorite series. She likes the international setting and the traditional mystery without too much violence. This series is a great introduction into either of those categories or someone new to mysteries in general.