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Review: The Dogs of Venice

The Dogs of Venice The Dogs of Venice by Steven Rowley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
🌅 Few writers can pack as much emotional weight into a slim volume as Steven Rowley, and The Dogs of Venice proves it. At barely more than a novella, this story captures the grief, confusion, and tentative hope that come with starting over after heartbreak.

Paul, still reeling from his husband’s sudden request for a divorce, travels alone to Venice on what should have been their Christmas trip together. What unfolds is not a romance in the traditional sense, but a meditation on loneliness, self-discovery, and the surprising ways connection shows up when you least expect it. Paul fixates on a stray dog wandering the Venetian streets, envying its independence and freedom, while also forging a brief but meaningful encounter with a kind waiter. These experiences force him to confront the gap between the life he thought he would have and the one he has left to rebuild.

Rowley excels at making Paul both frustratingly neurotic and deeply relatable. His constant second-guessing, overthinking, and yearning for signs felt at once maddening and familiar, the mark of a character written with care. That balance between irritation and empathy is where the book’s emotional power lies.

The writing is lovely, poetic in places and spare in others. Rowley captures Venice not as a glossy travelogue but as a labyrinth of alleys and canals that mirrors Paul’s own inner wandering. At the same time, the story feels a little unfinished. I’m still dying to know what happens to the dog back in NY. Did he end up adopting it? The brevity leaves questions about Paul’s past and family unresolved, and I often wish for more space to fully understand him and the people (and pup) who inspire his reflection. As a Guncle fan, I found this more of an emotional sketch than a fully developed story.

Its quiet power lies in reminding us that growth doesn’t always come with sweeping gestures; sometimes it’s found in watching a dog disappear around a corner, or in a fleeting kindness from a stranger. The Dogs of Venice is not Rowley at his most expansive, but it is him at his most distilled: tender, witty, and unafraid to show the messy ways people search for meaning after loss. I wish it provided more details, more closure, a more fully developed story. But, as a short, bittersweet story, it lingered longer than I expected.

Thank you, Penguin Group Putnam, and NetGalley, for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review of this story. I appreciate the opportunity to read and comment on Rowley’s works. #TheDogsofVenice #NetGalley

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 / 5 stars
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