Best of Five!
In 1957 New York, Ellie Shipley is a graduate student in art history who also does restorations. A contract for restoration work asks her to make a copy of a 17th century painting, “At the Edge of a Wood” by Sara de Vos, her only known work, for the owner. Soon, however, Ellie understands that she is creating a forgery, but she is too interested in the work to stop.
Marty de Groot, the painting’s owner, notices that his painting has been stolen. He determines he will find out who took it.
In 1631 Amsterdam, Sara de Vos and her husband are poverty stricken after the death of their young daughter. Because they have sold paintings without the permission of the guild, they have temporarily lost their membership. Sara has been painting flowers for a catalog and her husband has been working for a bookbinder. But secretly, Sara has been painting a symbolic memorial for her daughter, “At the Edge of a Wood.”
In 2000 Sydney, Ellie is now a respected academician and museum curator. She has discovered that both of the de Vos paintings, the original and the copy, are being sent to her museum for an exhibit on 17th century Dutch women painters. Now, after 40 years of strict integrity, she is afraid her past is catching up with her.
Although I found the story interesting, I was not at first that involved with this novel. Soon, however, I was totally captivated by all three stories. At first seemingly a crime novel, it goes much deeper. I really enjoyed it.
What? Me Read? 
I’m glad you enjoyed this – it sounds like the kind of book I would enjoy too.
I think it might be.
I liked this one very much. The art history angle trapped me from the start. I had trouble at first grasping all the threads–multiple storylines in multiple timelines, but the author made it work much more smoothly than I thought he would.
Yes, I thought it was interesting and engaging.
I also enjoyed this book. My review is here, if you’re interested. https://drchazan.blogspot.com/2016/04/landscapes-of-deception.html