Good Friday

Isn’t that redundant?

I’m  just about done reading Donna Leon’s mystery Doctored Evidence.

Normally I really enjoy the hell out of her books. They’re set in Venice, a place I’ve been only once but thoroughly enjoyed. It’s a crazy rabbit warren of awesome old world surprises, surrounded by water, there’s a LOT of great art and NO cars. I like everything about Venice.

Jen and I explored the place on our own and then, later, Cindy and Giovanni came up from Rome to join us. Having a native Italian showing us around, doing all the talking for us was a joy. We weren’t seen so much as capital-T-Tourists – nope, just folks from elsewhere in Italy enjoying themselves on holiday. Way cool!

I’m sure I’ve said this before, when I visit a new place, I wanna see it, experience it as a native would – the good and the bad. What would it be like to live here?

If Venice wasn’t so damn expensive and heinously jam packed with tourists, I’d go back in a heartbeat. Hell’s bells, I’d DEF move there.

Instead I enjoy Leon’s mysteries about folks who actually live there. Her character development is, generally, such that I feel like I totes know these people. I'm able to see and feel what they see and feel. Fab City, right?

Yes, yezzz BUT…for the first time ever I found myself, 3/4 though, impatient and flipping to the end.  It wasn't agitated, edge-of-my-seat, MUST KNOW NOW eagerness. Nope, it was more OK, OK ALREADY, WHO killed the old lady and WHY!? Ya know, bored now.


Wut up with this? Eh, POSSIBLY this may not be one of her more engaging stories. I love Commissario Brunetti, his college professor wife Paola and Signorina Elettra, (the brilliant, wildly resourceful and mega stylish secretary to Brunetti’s dim, status climbing boss Vice-Questore Patta). Truly I do. Maybe my meh-ness was because there just wasn’t enough fleshing out of the other, minor-ish characters?

Fer instance, WHY is Lieutenant Scarpa being such an all-fired dick from hell. WHY does he seem hellbent on hanging the murder on the old lady’s neighbor, Signora Gismondi? Is there some personal bullshit between him and her that's inspiring his extra-special assholic animus? Nope, not that I’ve read or could infer. I get that he dislikes Brunetti but could he be THIS much of a drastically unstable, creeptastic bullyboy for no other reason?

Dunno. Leon’s characters don’t rock Stephen King’s players’ over the top insane-in-the-brain behavior so Scarpa's behavior feels like he comes from a different tale – one where Scarpa’s the actual murderer and he’s trying to save his ass by framing Signora Gismondi. That’s not how the story ends though.

STOP READING NOW IF YOU PLAN TO READ THIS BOOK!

So, with just 90 pages to go, I flipped to the end. Turns out, the killer was someone Leon had NOT mentioned earlier. Dude was some rando who the dead broad was blackmailing. This ending totally pissed me off. I knew the murdered woman was an unsympathetic character but this denouement felt like it came outta nowhere, pulled from another galaxy.

What’s this all mean? I gotta hit the library today and pick up another Donna Leon mystery – get the taste of this one out of my bean. Yup, that’s the plan.