The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell

4.03 AVERAGE

johenderson's profile picture

johenderson's review

3.5
mysterious slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
A book without much plot but an interesting read. 

hannahl0ttie's review against another edition

5.0
dark sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character

janks2020's review

4.0
challenging dark sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

kmacrae's review against another edition

5.0
dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

23mama's review against another edition

5.0
dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated
carole_the_librarian's profile picture

carole_the_librarian's review against another edition

4.0
Maggie O'Farrell is brilliant at taking obscure historical figures and writing fascinating stories about them and The Marriage Portrait is no exception. Her ability to create a setting that feels vibrant and alive with detail is my favorite thing about her writing. There were moments while reading this book that I felt the panic and confusion of young Lucrezia, I could see the paintings she made, and I swore I could taste the delicacies prepared for her to eat. O'Farrell has taken very few historical facts and turned them into a full fledged story of passion, deceit, and the struggle for power and survival in 1500s Italy. Highly recommended. I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

jessilbowman's review against another edition

DNF - beautifully written but too dense for my current brain to finish. I read 1/3 and skipped to the end.

cmags_reads's review against another edition

4.0
dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

cmariet's review against another edition

4.0
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

flametaylor92's review against another edition

5.0
adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: No