The Dogs Of Venice by Steven Rowley

Choosing this to read rn was 100% due to my recent coverage of it in the latest Tantalizing Tales column reminding me that it’s a manageably quick, grown-up read. Which is just what I need while my doctors puzzle out what’s been keeping me sick since mid-January, with only occasional bursts of energy that would allow me to resume my normal lifestyle for, at most, four days at a time before coming down with flu-like symptoms all over again (and as I’m currently suffering now.)

It certainly hasn’t been due to travel, as my doctors have inquired of me. All the far-flung climes that I’ve enjoyed since last spring have been visited entirely through books or televised sports. That desire for what seems exotic to me, and my need for something short — as well as a nostalgia for a city that I haven’t visited in several decades — nudged me to read this novella of picking up the pieces when everything you thought you wanted collapses around you.

I’m just going to crib myself for the next bit of description, if you don’t mind (I am a little sick after all; insert Karen from Mean Girls cough here.)

“Our protagonist Paul has spent months planning the perfect romantic holiday in Venice. He’s thus completely blindsided when his marriage of five years abruptly unravels, leaving him heartbroken and alone.

“Hoping that a change of scenery will help heal at least a little of his heartbreak, he decides to take the Venice trip by himself. Soon after arriving, he notices a small, scruffy dog trotting alongside a canal, with all the self-assurance that he himself lacks. When their paths cross again, Paul decides to follow the little dog, in hopes of gaining some insight into the creature’s confident self-sufficiency.

“As Paul journeys amidst the sights, sounds, food and people of Venice, he begins to discover connections that he never thought possible, whether to a dog, a city or — perhaps most importantly — to himself.”

Oh how I felt for Paul as he examined his relationship with his ex Darren, and contemplated his own shortcomings in the process. He knows he can come across as a little needy in a society of rugged individualism, but is it really so bad to want to find someone you can lean on, and provide support for in turn? The romantic in me felt his desires keenly, even if the cynic in me thought that his encounter with Nicola ended far more positively than he might have felt it did.

I very much admired how self-contained this book was… until Paul discovered the “secret” of the chapel. Even the cynic in me thought he was being a little overwrought at the revelation (tho that also might have been my pragmatic side, which is often impatient at the tourist’s idea of propriety.) I also thought that his sudden bout of “actually I’m over it!” at the end was either unearned or self-delusional, and would’ve appreciated a little more introspection and a lot less certainty. Coming out of long-term relationships is hard, and it takes a lot longer than one affirming Christmas in Venice to heal a soul, especially when your ex is still moving things out of your shared apartment.

But it was nice to see Paul at least start to pick up the pieces and move forward, and embrace changes he might never have done were he still with Darren. It’s important to know how to be okay with being alone, even and perhaps especially in public. Ofc, I’m always happy with any book that promotes animal welfare. Perhaps ironically given my stated reason for picking up this short novel, I rather wish it had been longer, so we could have seen more of Paul’s personal growth and the ups and downs along the way. I suppose that if I want that sort of thing, I should check out Steven Rowley’s other books. Which I will when I have time, when I have time!

The Dogs Of Venice by Steven Rowley was published October 14 2025 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons and is available from all good booksellers, including