Dear Great Book Guru,  I have just returned from a fabulous trip to Venice with my family.  We all had a great time and while we were there many people mentioned a mystery writer whose novels are  set in Venice.  I would love to relive my Venetian experiences reading these books. Who is this author? Searcher for Venetian Mysteries

Dear Searcher,  I am a huge fan of Donna Leon and have read all her mysteries- all set in Venice. I just finished her latest (she writes one every year): EARTHLY REMAINS.  Brunetti is a highly educated police commissario with an erudite Henry James scholar wife and two teenage children.  He faces life’s problems with  a benevolent stoicism.  In this her 26^th novel in the series, Brunetti is spending two restorative weeks on one of Venice’s large islands. His days are filled with great food, philosophical conversations, and explorations of  the local  flora and fauna  Of course, there must be a crime, but as is always the case for Leon, it plays a minor role in this environmental , cultural, humanistic study of the world.  The victim is obsessed with the puzzling death of bees he has been cultivating over the years and his investigations lead him back to fifty years of mega industry’s polluting of the water and air around Venice and the world.  A wonderfully insightful book and highly recommended!