Friday 19 February 2010

The Apothecary's House by Adrian Mathews

The Apothecary's House by Adrian Mathews


Genre: fiction - mystery, art,
Rating: OK **

Synopsis:
In modern day Amsterdam, an old lady lays claim to a rather strange painting she says was stolen from her family by the Nazi's during WWII. However, there is another claimant and it soon becomes obvious that the two know each other.
Art historian Ruth soon gets dragged into the old lady's life and after helping her with her claim, finds herself the target of someone who seems determined to get her off the case.
So what is the relevance of this painting? And who is threatening her?

Thoughts:
I started this book with high hopes and, while I must admit I found the art theft background quite interesting, I felt that the book was too long and drawn out.
The main characters were unsympathetic and unbelievable.
The dialogue was too stilted and over the top at times.
At no point did the novel grip me and make me want to stay up and read it.
The whole novel could have been so much shorter that it's 720 pages!
For me a tedious read.

Fiction 2010 # 15
Challenges: 100+ Books Reading Challenge 2010, Support your local Library reading challenge 2010, New Authors Challenge 2010, western europe challenge, 2010 global challenge,