The Last Gondola

Urbino McIntyre Mystery #7

by Edward Sklepowich

The Last Gondola brings back Urbino Macintyre, American expatriate writer, and his good friend, the Contessa da Capo-Zendrini, in another classic mystery set in the Venice of the wealthy international set amid the artists, authors and patrons of their arts. It is a dark story beginning with the mysterious disappearance of objects from the Contessa's palatial apartment. The strangest part of the thefts is that most of the objects themselves are not of any significant monetary value, and those that are are only incidentally so. Urbino, the author of several biographies, traces clues to the cave-like home of a strange, reclusive art collector. Urbino's effort to pin the thefts on this rather sinister old man or a member of his odd household leads the amateur detective into a dangerous and frightening situation.

Genres: Mystery, Italy

384 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2003

About the author

EDWARD SKLEPOWICH has been an expatriate American for many years. He has been a Fullbright scholar of American literature in Egypt, Algeria, and Tunisia. He divides his time between Tunisia, where he is a university lecturer, Venice, New York, and a former Phoenician town on the Tunisian Mediterranean called Sousse. His deep feeling for Venice is one expression of his maternal Italian heritage.
Interview with Edward Sklepowich

Series:
* Urbino McIntyre Mystery

Reviews

[Antoinette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Last Gondola, A Mystery of Venice #7, features ex-pat Urbino Macintye and his friend the Contessa da Capo-Zenrini. Urbino, who writes biographies of people who lived in Venice, becomes interested in a fellow ex-pat Samuel Possle, now a recluse. Urbino is also investigating the theft of several items of clothing from the Contessa's home, and the death of a young man, a friend of his gondolier. Fascinating characters, tight plot with lots of red herrings. A delight.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Took much too long to get to a disappointing denouement. I did enjoy the characters for the most part, but I wished they weren't so introspective and cautious. If everyone had been a little more forthright, we could have settled all this in half the pages. (When I enjoy a book, I don't care how long it is, but when I'm mostly driven by the need to get to the solution of the puzzle, I can do without some of the atmosphere.) But it was set in Venice, which was described beautifully, so it gets at least one star for that.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another splendid installment in this intelligent, literary series where the magical Venice is a character in itself. The main characters of Urbino MacIntyre and the Contessa Barbara feel like friends to me. I hope the author continues the series beyond the 9th installment, as I don't want it to end!

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a mystery series set in Venice. Although I enjoy the series, this is one of the less successful books in the series.

[Judy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Somehow I don't find this series very satisfying, but I keep reading because I love Venice.