Across the river and into Venice
You must be a heavy reader to include "The House of Hades" in your short list of novels set in Venice.
The fourth book in "The Heroes of Olympus" series saw Frank, Hazel, and Nico meeting Triptolemus in Venice. (In case you're unfamiliar with his background, Triptolemus is the son of Celeus, the King of Eleusis. Demeter is searching for Persephone, whom Hades takes to the Underworld, when Celeus offers the goddess of harvest his hospitality. It happens that Triptolemus is sick. Not only she restores his health, but she also plans to make him immortal. Unexpected happenings prompt her to teach him the art of agriculture instead.) It's not hard to imagine Triptolemus's loyalty to Demeter, so he turns hostile after finding out that Nico is the son of Hades.
Imagine a flock of catoblepones, mythical creatures from Ethiopia, appearing in the cobbled street facing Triptolemus's home. They have a head of a wild boar, a body of a buffalo, and scales to protect it. And their stares could turn anyone into stone. Medusa didn't send them, and it would be likely that Triptolemus brought them to this seaside community and turned them into his domesticated flock. If that wasn't distressing enough, then go to that chapter that described Leo's ordeal with the Kerkopes at Bologna's Two Towers. They were mischievous spirits who derailed the demigods' quest to reach Greece before the rise of Gaea.
Venice had a storied past, if not gilded existence. This was one of the wealthiest cities in the Mediterranean, if not the entire (European) continent. It wasn't hard to imagine its prominent place during the Renaissance. Think of "The Vampire Armand", where Anne Rice revealed the most gifted artists to be vampires. Immortality wasn't a curse, as it turned them into important figures in the medieval society. The author's fans may fancy the melodrama, which could be tiresome to those who were unfamiliar with her works. But Rice's description of the Venetian society could give a dizzy effect. If it was too much, then they haven't read "Death in Venice".
Thomas Mann's novel might have been a quixotic search for beauty (or whatever Gustav von Aschenbach was looking for). There's no need to take the details literally, even attempt to comprehend. A sightseeing will do, which can be a feast for the senses. And readers will end up wanting more. It has nothing to do with the middle-aged author, though.
It's a different case with cinema. Venice is the venue of one of the three biggest film festivals in Europe. The 73rd edition will be held from August 31 to September 10, which is a few months away. In case you're wondering, there are a number of films set in Venice that would make viewers wish for plane tickets. Armchair traveling wouldn't be enough, but enumerating these movies might be a consolation. Here they are:
Don't Look Now (1973). Venice is far from being a haunted place, but Daphne du Maurier knew its history too well. She also wanted to try to write a ghost story, and Nicolas Roeg was faithful to it. You might not want to ride on a gondola at night time.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). Indiana Jones found himself inside the Church of San Barnaba, where he looked for clues that would lead him to the Holy Grail. He ended up with more water than he would want.
Casino Royale (2006). The grand Venetian hotel was the site of Vesper Lynd's tragic death. She could be James Bond's true love, as the dramatic moments would suggest. It seemed so right.
