Synopsis: When Dottoressa Donato calls the Questura to report that a dying patient at the hospice Fatebenefratelli wants to speak to the police, Commissario Guido Brunetti and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, waste no time in responding.
“They killed him. It was bad money. I told him no,” Benedetta Toso gasps the words about her recently-deceased husband, Vittorio Fadalto. Even though he is not sure she can hear him Brunetti softly promises he and Griffoni will look into what initially appears to be a private family tragedy. They discover that Fadalto worked in the field collecting samples of contamination for a company that measures the cleanliness of Venice’s water supply and that he had died in a mysterious motorcycle accident. Distracted briefly by Vice Questore Patta’s obsession with youth crime in Venice, Brunetti is bolstered once more by the remarkable research skills of Patta’s secretary, Signora Elettra Zorzi. Piecing together the tangled threads, in time Brunetti comes to realize the perilous meaning in the woman’s accusation and the threat it reveals to the health of the entire region.
Veneto is the eighth largest region in Italy. This region encompasses the provinces of Belluno, Padova, Rovigo, Treviso, Venezia, Verona and Vicenza. The capital of the Veneto is Venice, world-famous for its canals. It is built on an archipelago of 117 islands formed by 177 canals in a shallow lagoon. The islands on which the city is built are connected by 455 bridges. In the old centre, the canals serve the function of roads, and almost every form of transport is on water or on foot.
A police station in Italy is called a 'Questura', and there is one located in each of the 103 provincial capitals of Italy. There are five national forces:
Polizia di Stato: civilian police force primarily responsible for the maintainance of public order and security, under the control of the Department of Public Security
Guardia di Finanza: under the control of the Minister of Economy and Finance. It is responsible for all crimes involving finance, such as: bribery and corruption, money laundering, credit card fraud, cybercrime, and counterfeiting. It also shares responsibility for border controls, immigration and smuggling
Arma dei Carabinieri: controlled by the Ministry of Defence, they have both military and civil responsibilities. they operate the 'Specialist Mobile Unit Division', which is based in Treviso and is responsible for public order, emergency situations and military activity overseas, as well as dealing with the mafia and terrorism
Polizia Penitenziaria: of which we are not concerned about in this particular story.
Corpo Forestale dello Stato: responsible for protecting Italy's natural resources, the environment, countryside and ecosystems, forestry (and now part of the Carabinieri)
Commissario Guido Brunetti, is a police commissioner who serves under a rather pompous Patta, the Vice-Questore. Patta’s secretary, Signorina Elettra Zorzi and Sergente Vianello assist Brunetti with research he needs in order to solve the crimes that occur in and around Venice. Signorina Elettra is considered “well connected,” and is arguably the most helpful to Brunetti regarding research that is performed for his investigations; Sergente Vianello is his “right hand man,” who is pleasant and sharp-witted. In this episode, Brunetti is ably assisted by Neopolitan newcomer, Commissario Claudia Griffoni.
Donna Leon fills her novel with all aspects of every day life in Venice, Italy, while also exposing the unpleasant, rough side of crime and its components. In this instance, we are introduced to the darker side of the tourist trade - pickpockets. Many people are openly hostile to the Roma (or Gypsies as there were once referred to), accusing them of avoiding work in favour of theft and other crimes. This is one of the side issues Brunetti must deal with.
The two most concerning environmental issues in Venice are applicable to the waterways. Pollution from heavy industries on the nearby mainland and shipping, congestion from unregulated boat traffic, and damage caused to waterside apartments and other buildings by the waves impacting the building foundations. Though for the reader, the lamentations of excessive tourism to the crumbling La Serenissima and the oppressive heat, are not the crimes Brunetti is charged with solved.
I was drawn to this police procedural as it was set in Italy, particularly Venice, for which I have some affinity for. This was the last in a long line of Brunetti novels from Donna Leon - and the very first that I have read although I have two in the series sitting on my bookshelf, as yet unread. Whilst wonderfully descriptive, the pace was rather slow moving - something to do with the heat perhaps - though does finally pick up as the pieces are moved into place.
Not having read any in the series did not detract from my reading, though for the sake of character development and continuity, I would suggest following this series from the beginning. As I already have a couple, I may invest in the whole series myself.
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