Caroline rings me from the “Panorama” supermarket in Marghera.

“You’ll never guess what I’ve just seen!”

I’m a bit lost at this and so my response is an underwhelming “No, I can’t.”

“Go on. What would be the most amazing thing you could see here?”

I’m still a bit stuck. My mind races through the possibilities. The complete print of “The Wicker Man”, thought lost for decades? A steak and kidney pie? A new Hawkwind album?

All of these go through my head. And then I suddenly think, “The book?”

“Yes. They’ve got about a dozen copies. How many shall I buy?”

I fight the urge to say “All of them.” It would, after all, be unfair to the good folk of Marghera. Just a couple, I suggest.

I put the phone down. I have work to do, but, quite obviously, none is going to be done now. I grab a very sleepy Mimi the cat and hold her in front of me. Haven’t you got a brilliant owner? Her legs scrabble through the air, so I put her down. I throw lots of balls for her in order to make up for all this unexpected activity.

I meet Caroline, laden with two heavy trolleys, at Piazzale Roma. It is chucking it down with rain, but I don’t care. All I want to do is get back home.

It looks beautiful. And more than that, it reads really well. The translation is excellent, and the “voice” feels like mine – or, more importantly, Nathan’s. Complimenti Marco Bisanti, we’ve never met, or even spoken, but you’ve done a wonderful job here.

Il Ponte dei Delitti is available from Thursday 21st September. Or right now from Panorama in Marghera. Ten copies remained at the time of writing.