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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
I thought this book had flashes of brilliance, but on the whole, it was mostly just okay.
I loved the way that the author wove in bits of Dutch history without a lot of overly pedantic explanation. Unless a person's studied art history, the average person might not have a frame of reference for Tulip-mania or the extremely intricate guild system which essentially governed painting. I also really liked learning about how paintings can be restored/forged and authenticated. The science is fascinating to me as is the reason why someone might want to copy a painting.
What I didn't like - and ultimately what spoiled the book for me - was the lack of depth of the characters, and I think it happened because the author kept shifting narrators. Sara de Vos job was to experience tragedy and paint. Sad. Ellie Shipley's job is to not ask any questions of anybody and make extremely poor choices. And, the purpose of Richard Whatever-His-Name-Is seemed only to be the bad guy.
I loved the way that the author wove in bits of Dutch history without a lot of overly pedantic explanation. Unless a person's studied art history, the average person might not have a frame of reference for Tulip-mania or the extremely intricate guild system which essentially governed painting. I also really liked learning about how paintings can be restored/forged and authenticated. The science is fascinating to me as is the reason why someone might want to copy a painting.
What I didn't like - and ultimately what spoiled the book for me - was the lack of depth of the characters, and I think it happened because the author kept shifting narrators. Sara de Vos job was to experience tragedy and paint. Sad. Ellie Shipley's job is to not ask any questions of anybody and make extremely poor choices. And, the purpose of Richard Whatever-His-Name-Is seemed only to be the bad guy.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a reasonably fun read. The timeline jumps around but I did not find it confusing. There were some themes of atonement and regret that were well deserved on some characters' parts, and a bit overblown on others. I thought it was pretty empathetically written. I actually found this book because I wanted scenes from Amsterdam, but I found it was far more character-driven than location-driven. Most scenes could have taken place anywhere.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Last Painting of Sara De Vos starts out as a tale of art history and art forgery and ends up as a suspenseful and ultimately moving story. The narrative swiftly pulls the reader through the 300 pages, gaining momentum, with suspense driven by emotion rather than peril. There are moments of quietly powerful sadness. And ultimately, the ending is surprising and satisfying and hopeful.
Not a fan, but it was for my book group so I struggled through it. Learned a little bit about art, but didn't enjoy the time jumping, the characters and the duplicity
(3.8) I really enjoyed this book -- reminded me a bit of Girl With a Pearl Earring!
I was hovering around 4 stars for most of this book but found when I finished it that I had a smile on my face and couldn't stop thinking about it - must be the sign of a good book! Loved the meandering storyline between the three different periods of time and how they all linked together. As a fan of Tracy Chevalier books, I loved the historical Dutch chapters from the 1600s but also enjoyed the modern link in the 1950s and the 2000s. How wonderful it would be to know the history behind a lot of the art that we get to enjoy. I just loved how Dominic Smith created this tale. I would definitely recommend this book to my fellow reader friends. Thank you to The Reading Room for this copy.
A lovely book and a bit of an easy touch for an art lover - a story that winds through time, touching the artist of a painting, the painting's later modern day owner, and an art student who also restores old paintings. Very lovely writing and interestingly imperfect characters make this easy to read, but still full of depth. It had moments where it help my interest more than others, and I had some mixed feelings about some of the "ending," but overall I quite enjoyed.
Loved! Seventeenth century Dutch female painter. Three time periods. Mystery, suspense, romance.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes