By the Grand Canal

by William Rivière

By the Grand Canal is an exquisite novel redolent of Venice and the haze of WWI from William Rivière, the author of the award-winning Kate Caterina. In the aftermath of the First World War, Hugh Thurne, a British diplomat involved in the peace negotiations, finds solace in his rented palazzo in Venice rather than returning to his wife and the charade of his marriage in London. Although profoundly disturbed about the long-term prospects for peace, he has faith in the city's power to raise his spirits. Hugh eagerly looks forward to visits with his old friends Giacomo and Valentina Venier in their dilapidated palazzo on the Grand Canal; to dallying with a young opera singer, Emanuela; and to the arrival of Violet Mancroft, the widow of his best friend lost in the war. What he does not anticipate is the shadow lying over the Venier family's future. Nor has he reckoned with the vagaries of his own human heart. Evoking the beauty of Venice, this is a novel about premonition for the future and the war it portends, about death and memory, and also about an unexpected love between two old friends.

Genres: Historical Fiction, World War I, Fiction, Travel

288 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

Born in 1954.

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

By the Grand Canal is a quiet, thoughtful novel about a group of friends who gather again in Venice after having been separated by the First World War. Naturally, they have all, from oldest to youngest, experienced deprivation as a result of the conflict, but now they hope to regain some of their former security and happiness. It is not to be, not simply because of the changes the war has wrought, but because life goes on. Although the fighting has blessedly stopped, people still grow up and grow old, get sick, die, leave each other, and have wishes that do or do not come true. This novel has a loosely constructed plot that is more philosophy and musing than action, which is probably not to everyone's taste. But it does capture the sense of ennui that settles after any great catastrophe, and the two questions that are addressed here are "Why?" and "Why not?" Even the grandeur and beauty of Venice cannot change reality, and in some respects, By the Grand Canal is reminiscent of Mann's Death in Venice in tone and mood as well as setting.

[Charles Dingman · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me, this book required and repaid close attention. I probably left it unfinished and went on to something less demanding several times. Because I found the language gorgeous many times, I sometimes let myself lose the narrative or descriptive thread when my attention was not really sharply focused--just the music of the words was compelling. The stor7 also repays close attention. It reminds me of inevitable loss and the fading of past places, people, and experiences.

[Linnea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Set in post-WWI Venice, this book has some interesting insights into Italy's place in that war and the effects on Venice, in particular. But, while there are some lovely, small, descriptive passages, for the most part the writing is unsubstantial and the characters never really come to life as well as they should.

[Wendy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got about half way through this book but will not finish it. It has periods of the book that are interesting, but I am having a tough time keeping my interest and it's hard to keep track of the various characters.

[JodiP · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah! I love Riviere. His period detail is amazing, and the characters are folks you can really appreciate, as they are complex and so well-drawn. Unfortunately, he hasn’t written that much, so I’m savoring.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not so great, just interesting because I lived nearby. Also, it's another perspective of history during WWII

[Lu]

Just ok, Venetian families after WWI

[Marcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. It was kind hard to follow and didn't really end.

[Seema Rao · Rating 1 out of 5]

A dull book about uninteresting people living at the end of the war. Even Venice comes off as dull

[Denise Covey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the Venice setting of this story of a British diplomat living in Venice after the war.

[Sharon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hard to follow...no plot to speak of

[Lisa of Hopewell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a perfect fit for me. An Edwardian English diplomat, Hugh Thurne, struggles to find himself in a dead-end marriage and a not-so-great career as a diplomat just after World War I. While, technically, the Edwardian Era “ended” with the death of it’s namesake, Edward VII, in 1910, that generation carried on administering the war and its aftermath.

The story moves with the speed of its era–slowly, gracefully, with measured steps. Hugh’s thoughts, his musings, his “re-thinkings,” are centered on the three women of his life–his young Venetian mistress, his bored wife, and his recently deceased best friend’s widow. An Edwardian midlife crisis couched in the beauty and grace of its era.

I think this is the first book I’ve ever found and enjoyed that had almost no reviews on Amazon, yet was commercially published. (There were a few more on the British Amazon page). If you enjoy period pieces like Merchant Ivory films, you will enjoy this book.

By the Grand Canal by William Riviere
My rating
4 Stars