I don’t normally gravitate to epistolary novels – those told exclusively through letters – but the author brings it off brilliantly here, somehow making the shifting points of view of commonly viewed events feel like the act of viewing – and arguing about art itself. High minded, yes, but the author then puts such arguments to work to solve a mystery of a murdered artist and a lost painting in sixteenth century Florence. It’s a blast, with plots, counter-plots, plot twists…the story never plods. Narrators span the spectrum from royalty to raggedy wretches. There is a witty, irreverent side to this, which is refreshing considering it takes place during the Renaissance, a time of politics and intrigues along with ruffles,royalty and formality. The author winks at the reader, and we smile.
I love a book that gives me a fresh, lively perspective on a subject I care a lot about. Donna Russo does that here, with this multi-p.o.v. portrait of the artist over the years – as a young-old-middle aged genius. Van Gogh! What is it about this guy that makes him so fascinating? It’s more than the brilliant, revolutionary artwork. It’s more than the partially severed ear, the madness that drove him. It’s his relentless work ethic, fearless creativity and stormy relationships – with his brother Theo and artist-sometimes friend, Paul Gaugin. Each of the sections is narrated by a woman in his life: his mother, a nurse, a prostitute, and his brother’s wife. It’s partially founded on Van Gogh’s eloquent correspondence with his brother.
Donna Russo's 'Vincent's Women' is the untold story of Vincent's loves: how they shaped his life, his art, and his death. It writes against the 'myths, ' exploring the possibility that none of them are true. It is the only novel to bring into question his sexuality, how he lost his ear, who he lost it for, and how he might have died, all through the eyes of a woman. We learn of Her; we learn all of it through Her.
The story is guided by Johanna van Gogh Bonger, Vincent's sister-in-law, as she decides to reveal the truth about…
I’m a big fan of mysteries, and one reason is that the “mystery” genre can take in so many different approaches. You got your gumshoe, your locked door mystery, your police-team investigation. Then there’s mysteries that don’t fit any category neatly. This is one, and it’s so fun. An assistant to a famous novelist is called to Italy after he dies…mysteriously, gruesomely. Once there, she does fall into a fever while trying to uncover various puzzles regarding the artist’s life, work and demise while also falling feverishly in love with a local hottie. Valerie Martin is a supremely skilled writer – how she spins such an alluring tale? A mystery. Somehow, through the fever, Italy itself becomes tantalizingly alive.
Thirty-something New Yorker Lucy Stark leads a quiet, solitary life working for a bestselling - but remarkably untalented writer. When he dies at a villa in Tuscany, Lucy flies to Italy to settle his affairs. What begins as a grim chore soon threatens her self-reliance and her very sense of reality. In Italian Fever, Valerie Martin evokes a modern woman's headlong tumble into a world where E.M. Forster's angels feared to tread. Smart and sophisticated, this novel takes us on a journey from which we return, like Lucy, utterly changed.
Chloe is a happy teenage science fair nerd. Grigore is a sullen teen who wants to generate dark magic spells with his computer. Why? To get girls, be popular. Huge mistake. Grigore is quickly possessed by a Demon, and poor Chloe is caught in the maelstrom. Both are hurled into the mysterious world between earth and eternity: a drowned New York City, a canal city of pirates, slavemasters and unholy monsters.
Chloe is soon running for her life. Meanwhile her best friend Maya is back home in their New York, doing what she can to save her friend while also passing algebra – and while the Demon possessing the dorky sorcerer is working to destroy mankind…slowly. Painfully.
An enthralling read packed with adventure, supernatural suspense and dorky humor.
