You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
This was an interesting read. Its about a young woman, Anne, who buys a painting in a second had store to give to her boyfriend. He stands her up, and she is left with this old stained painting. Turns out the painting is a long lost masterpiece. One of the voices in the story is that of the painting. I wasn't sure what to think with that one, but was quickly enraptured with the story the painting had to tell. Of its time in great halls and owned by great people.
The story becomes a mystery as people begin to learn of the paintings existence and try to find it. Anne's employer has questionable Jewish roots and you get a story of the stolen artwork of Nazi Germany.
The story is well told. I was deeply drawn into the story quickly and my interest held throughout the reading. It is a story for lovers of art, lovers of mystery and lovers of just a plain good story well told.
The story becomes a mystery as people begin to learn of the paintings existence and try to find it. Anne's employer has questionable Jewish roots and you get a story of the stolen artwork of Nazi Germany.
The story is well told. I was deeply drawn into the story quickly and my interest held throughout the reading. It is a story for lovers of art, lovers of mystery and lovers of just a plain good story well told.
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The author has the talents of a successful mainstream fiction writer, but attempts a story requiring the skills of a great craftswoman.
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Genocide, Murder
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Antisemitism
Moderate: Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Murder
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Good storyline but seemed to drag on and i found it difficult to finish.
Didn't entirely care for the chapters from the POV of the painting itself, but otherwise entertaining.
I just lost interest and didn't finish. My favorite chapters were those from the point of view of the painting. I found the character of the painting more interesting than the people characters.
The beginning a bit slow, I was soon hooked. Similar to the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I struggled to keep track of the multiple characters and plot lines in the first few chapters but loved how they ultimately came together. Super vocabulary and storytelling.
“That was the glorious thing about art: its value was entirely subjective.”
The Improbability of Love had a variety of different characters, but I didn't feel connected to any of them until the very end. They were all very bland and with so many characters it was hard to keep track of them. With each new name, I tried to make a mental note, knowing it would be relevant. However, many names were mentioned that were only mentioned once and then never again.
Annie was the only one I found relatable. Looking for a new meaning in life and believing in true love, her character seemed comparatively inspiring and motivating. However, she also got me very upset at a few points: Annie's back and forth with her feelings for Jesse was incredibly exhausting and annoying. She always seemed to agree on everything - she really wanted to be a chef, had a difficult but heartfelt attitude towards her mother and loved art. Of course, you can't always be 100 percent sure about everything, but constantly giving Jesse hope and then feeling guilty afterwards was just incredibly stressful to empathize with as a reader.
“Are you mad? We’re five floors up. You could die.”
“Something much worse could happen: we could forget to live.”
It was very interesting and refreshing to read from the perspective of an object. At first, I was a bit scared and worried that it would just be too tiring to follow and understand again, but Rothschild did it perfectly. I really liked the jumping of perspectives and Rothschild had a very nice way of writing that was easy to read.
“Food, she decided, was like performance rather than fine art: its power was in its transience and immediacy.”
It was a very tough read though. The book contains a lot of information about the world of art and culture. So, for a layperson like me, this was very hard to swallow. It was overwhelming at times, and the wealth of information and expertise drowned me. After a few pages in a trance, I quickly forgot what I had actually read. There were too many references that a layperson just can't comprehend and understand. Nonetheless, the book stirred up a love for art in me that I hadn't had too much of before. I've always been interested in paintings, but not to the extent that I'd long to own a masterpiece like The Improbability of Love myself.
“This is the great tragedy of love—even if you are lucky enough to stumble on it, it never lasts. Every young person believes that their case will be different; fools, damn fools.”
The Improbability of Love had a variety of different characters, but I didn't feel connected to any of them until the very end. They were all very bland and with so many characters it was hard to keep track of them. With each new name, I tried to make a mental note, knowing it would be relevant. However, many names were mentioned that were only mentioned once and then never again.
Annie was the only one I found relatable. Looking for a new meaning in life and believing in true love, her character seemed comparatively inspiring and motivating. However, she also got me very upset at a few points: Annie's back and forth with her feelings for Jesse was incredibly exhausting and annoying. She always seemed to agree on everything - she really wanted to be a chef, had a difficult but heartfelt attitude towards her mother and loved art. Of course, you can't always be 100 percent sure about everything, but constantly giving Jesse hope and then feeling guilty afterwards was just incredibly stressful to empathize with as a reader.
“Are you mad? We’re five floors up. You could die.”
“Something much worse could happen: we could forget to live.”
It was very interesting and refreshing to read from the perspective of an object. At first, I was a bit scared and worried that it would just be too tiring to follow and understand again, but Rothschild did it perfectly. I really liked the jumping of perspectives and Rothschild had a very nice way of writing that was easy to read.
“Food, she decided, was like performance rather than fine art: its power was in its transience and immediacy.”
It was a very tough read though. The book contains a lot of information about the world of art and culture. So, for a layperson like me, this was very hard to swallow. It was overwhelming at times, and the wealth of information and expertise drowned me. After a few pages in a trance, I quickly forgot what I had actually read. There were too many references that a layperson just can't comprehend and understand. Nonetheless, the book stirred up a love for art in me that I hadn't had too much of before. I've always been interested in paintings, but not to the extent that I'd long to own a masterpiece like The Improbability of Love myself.
“This is the great tragedy of love—even if you are lucky enough to stumble on it, it never lasts. Every young person believes that their case will be different; fools, damn fools.”
Oh my God, SO much fun. Rollicking pace, great characters (loved the sections told from the painting's perspective, that was clever). Interesting historical facts, full of art and food and fun. Loved it. Totally reminded me of Christopher Moore's Sacre Bleu with a little bit of Peter Mayle's Chasing Cezanne.