The eleventh Commissario Brunetti novel, from 2001, is a doozy. The blurb on the back had me worried: "buried secrets dating back to the Second World War" raised the prospect of awkward flashbacks, a sure sign of mid-series flag. But no, not by any means. Leon gets through the entire complex back story without a single flashback. In fact the writing here is a fine as I have seen from her. I particularly loved the resonant delicacy of the last line.
Venice really came alive for me in this one and I actually learned stuff about what the Italians got up to in WW2 and the attitude of later generations.
Wilful Behaviour is a crummy title by any standard but the book reawakened my enthusiasm for the Brunetti series. Strongly recommended.
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