The Death of Faith (Brunetti 6)

Travel Guide

A novel which contains lines from ‘Così fan tutte’ as an epigraph  which read ‘It’s always better, in this world/ To be a little suspicious’ could not be more apt.

With five deaths unaccounted for, Brunetti is unconcerned at first  but then soon realises that they might have been coerced into leaving money to the home and then were quietly ‘disposed of’ later.

The catholic church is a theme here which runs through the investigation and gives us yet another view of Leon’s Venice. Many allegations are made about the group and the likely cause of death of the victims.

The way of life of these nuns is explored and their reasons for not wanting to talk to the police. The decline of faith in Italy is a major topic in Venice it would seem and in such a religious country as Italy this could prove fatal.

The topic of the church and the location of the nursing home is also very personal to Brunetti as his mother herself is in a nursing home and he knows of someone who has been sexually exploited by a priest. The Catholic Church certainly takes on a shadowy role here –

“Certainly if the Church was nursing an adder to its bosom, then it was in that bosom where information must be sought”

And then there are the other organisation which lurk in the shadows – Opus Dei who have a power and influence that reaches like tentacles over the city and grasping, chocking everything in their path. And when Brunetti tries to find out more about them and similar societies he finds pages have been removed with a razor blade. The librarian tells him

‘They destroy any article that contains information they disapprove of.’