Banville...is a master of shadow and suggestion and whose protagonists are often elusive, wavering and easily corrupted ... Few writers since Henry James can create an atmosphere of doubt around events and character as effectively as this author does, and in Venetian Vespers the miasma thickens at every turn ... More entertaining than sobering; a stylish escapade.
The characters are all despicable in their own ways, and readers will lose no sleep over Dolman’s unravelling. That said, they will probably stay awake to finish the book.
