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45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Donna Leon at her best, 9 April 2008
If you want a simple whodunnit, then read no further. However, if you want to be engaged and challenged, and reminded of the deviousness of the human mind, the by-ways of evil, and the moral ambiguities of life, then Donna Leon has few peers, and this book shows why.
This book starts apparently inconsequentially at a funeral, and then with a priest consulting Comissario Brunetti, Leon's chief character. It serves as a way into Brunetti's thoughts and inner world; for while those are present in each of her Venetian novels, they are centre-stage here throughout.
The main event, the finding of a young child's body in a canal, doesn't come until well into the book, but since what Leon wants to do is show how the find affects Brunetti, as well as those around him, the atmosphere and the interiority of the narrative need space to develop. Without giving anything away, one can say that the girl haunts Brunetti: she is the girl of his dreams in a way that phrase normally never signifies.
The figure of Ispettore Vianello, Brunetti's assistant, is drawn more fully in this novel than in any of the preceding, and he becomes both a mirror to and a foil for Brunetti's broodings.
The usual lighter moments of the series: food, drink, and the wiles of Patta's secretary are all present, but are less prominent. Given the darkness of the book, they have to be. The city's role as a character, always a part of these books, is different, too: somehow, for Brunetti, this crime subtly alters his take on Venice.
By the end of the book, there both is and isn't resolution. The facts around the girl's death are clearer, and the priest's query gets an answer. And we end at another funeral that balances the beginning. But the moral ambiguities are, well, just more ambiguous. It's something that happens in several books in this series to some extent, but here it's not a plot device: it is the plot.
The book is hardly fun, but if you like Donna Leon's work, then this is a must. For me, at least, it's her best yet.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The difference between good and evil, 14 April 2008
Donna Leon's novels always leave the reader wondering about the fine line between good and evil. 'The Girl of his Dreams' is no exception. Two stories intertwine. A priest who officiated at the funeral of Brunetti's mother asks him for help, and a young girl's body is pulled from a canal. Leon's writing is understated to such an extent that you are completely unconscious of it as you read. Nothing strikes a false note. Venice comes to life through the five senses. People are by turns good and evil. Everything swirls in ever changing patterns. Brunetti works against the vested interests which influence the most trivial happening. Italy's ever present problem with poor migrants comes to the fore in this story amd questions are raised about the relative values of human lives and different moral values. There is never any gratuitous violence in Donna Leon's books and they are all the more powerful for it. Her characters are never two dimensional. If you like your crime novels with added depth then this book is for you.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Leon's Brunetti is at the top of his form!, 10 May 2008
Donna Leon's 17th Commissario Brunetti book continues, well, Donna Leon. There's nothing new about this 17th episode, other than the crimes they're investigating, but Leon's fans don't necessarily want anything new. They're happy with this series just being Donna Leon: well written stories, great characterizations, excellent plot, and, of course, her penchant for socially significant issues, the least of which is not the corruptive practices of some elements of the Italian establishment (to put it kindly). As she told me last November, "My books aren't published in Italian!" Which is probably why she continues to enjoy living in Venice. In her books she looks scathingly at various facets of official Italian life and not kindly. That said, the other elements are like dazzling gems. And she does love her Venice.
Brunetti is a sensitive, honest policeman who never continues to be amazed at the "human condition." Crime after crime doesn't deter him, although he often calls into question some of society's "thinking." He does so with the support of his learned wife Paolo (who teaches English literature at a local university). This personal relationship is also one of the strong points in Leon's works.
In "Girl of his Dreams," a young girl is found drowned in one of the canals; on her person are two items of value, jewelry that lead not only to the owners but to the pursuit of what looks like murder. Here Brunetti faces the political and social concerns involving "non-Italian" residents (in this case Gypsies) and the discrimination and social injustices they not only suffer, but sometimes lead into. It also addresses the double standards of justice for the poor and the rich and well-placed. Where will the leads take Brunett , his Inspector Vianello, and his inimitable secretary Signorina Elettra?
At the same time, following the burial of his mother, Brunetti is visited by the administering priest, who reports that an "outside" minister seems to be involved in a money-scam and seeks Brunetti's help. This is in typical Leon fashion in having more than one story line progressing at the same time. With this series, the author does not merely pursue crime or confront a viable socially significant issue, but she provides us with continued insight into her well developed characters (Brunetti's family, his co-workers, and at various times other local citizens).
"Girl of his Dreams" moves along at a fast pace (a strong point in Leon's prose), but she never permits the pace to interfere with her objectives. Some readers have objected to her because Leon rarely provides a "Polly Anna" ending; instead, she chooses probably what is more of a realistic culmination. Occasionally, the real culprit may appear to go unpunished (although the crimes are always solved), due to bureaucratic snafus, legal fine-points, or just the fact that some problems perhaps aren't to be solved in this world. Leon, no doubt, prefers the realistic to the idealistic. Regardless, she's worth a read. This latest is no exception.
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