A crime-free mystery

Real crime was rare in Venice: the worst problem they had was a handful of bored adolescents using the cover of night to break into shops long closed by the pandemia to steal, or vandalize, merchandise in which they had little interest.

Donna Leon, Give Unto Others

Somehow Donna Leon has managed to write a successful series of mysteries set in Venice, a city in which serious crime is rare.

For much of Give Unto Others (2022), set at the close of the Covid pandemic, it appears as if there is no crime at all. An old woman, a neighbor he remembers from when he was a child, comes to Commissario Guido Brunetti to ask him to discover why her son-in-law acts so strangely. There appears to be nothing going on but a little adultery, but Brunetti, having nothing better to do, agrees to look into the matter. He feels guilty about using police resources to investigate a private matter, and even guiltier after he enlists the aid of several of his colleagues. who also apparently have nothing better to do.

Eventually Brunetti finds a charity in Belize that may not be on the up and up, and there's a vandalized veterinary office operated by the woman's daughter. An intriguing mystery does eventually develop, although still without a serious crime. No one is charged with anything.

I am a Donna Leon fan, yet I found this entry in the series a disappointment. What Venice needs is a good murder.