A review by fireflyhollow
A Fine Imitation by Amber Brock

4.0

A Fine Imitation follows the story of Vera, a high society socialite, during her senior year at Vassar College in 1913 and in New York City ten years later. The book alternates between the two timelines. Early on we know that some scandal happened while she attended Vassar after meeting another student named Bea who isn't as refined as Vera. We also know early on that Vera's marriage in 1923 isn't a happy one; her husband is rarely home and when he is home he doesn't give Vera the time of day. When an artist is commissioned to paint a mural in the pool room of the building where Vera lives (of which her husband designed and owns), Vera is tempted to fill the void left by her husband when the artist begins to show interest in her.

This story was a very quick and entertaining read. It's very easy to see how Vera would eventually look for love and affection elsewhere after being in an empty marriage for ten years. I personally found the 1923 timeline to be more interesting, but the two do end up merging to complete the story of how Vera ends up where she does. Although I never agreed with

Spoiler

Vera's affair with the artist, Emil, I was glad that she left her husband in the end. He never loved Vera and only used her as a cover to hide the fact that he's gay. Vera's mother was also intolerable especially when she told Vera that it was her husband's right to have an affair and that Vera just needed to learn how to deal with it.