- Hardcover: 448 pages
- Publisher: Macmillan; First edition (6 May 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1405046570
- ISBN-13: 978-1405046572
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.6 x 4.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,206,020 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Crimetime
'Solid, trenchant writing'
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Park & Holiday Homes magazine
‘Elegant and witty novel’
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A House Well Worth the Visit,
By Woodroffe (Angers, France) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Apothecary's House (Hardcover)
This is Adrian Mathews's best novel to date. His handling of plot and suspense as well as his drole and lingusitically inventive style have matured beautifully, making this a most exciting and entertaining story in an Amsterdam evoked as if by someone who lives there and knows it intimately, which, extraordinarily Mathews does not. As with Vienna Blood, it is clear that the writer has done meticulous research on a whole range of subjects. And here he uncovers not only fascinating details about the looting and accumulation of art treasures by the Nazis in World War II but also takes us into the eighteenth-century world of an artist who - I don't want to spoil the plot - is way ahead of his time. The discovery of his papers - invented, written and presented by the novelist - and the background intrigue they reveal are, for me the most remarkably gripping pages Mathews has ever written. The main plot that holds the whole edifice together is in a modern setting - for Mathews may be an accomplished historian but he also has a very fine eye for contemporary detail. Though I sometimes had trouble identifying with his female heroine, one has to admire the challenge Mathews gave himself in choosing a female protagonist for a change - and she is indeed a most original character. I was impatient to turn the pages of this long novel and found the climax both unexpected and satisfactory. What curbed my impatience to read fast, however, was the inventiveness of Mathews's descriptions and the expressions his narrator and his characters use; the sort one wants to file and use oneself one day. It is novel too that taught me something, made me think and made me laugh. All that and a veritable Ali-Baba's cave of language treasures too. A pity the title and dust jacket are not nearly as attractive as the contents of the book.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Good Read,
By
This review is from: The Apothecary's House (Paperback)
The wording on the front of this book makes you think that it's going to be along the lines of the Da Vinci Code: " A looted painting, a secret code, a deadly pursuit...", but this is not another paint by numbers art thriller.
Firstly, this is a long book, at 700 pages. Don't let that put you off, the language is flowing and easy to read, so it did not take me long to get through the whole thing. The entire book is set in one city and time is taken to get to know the characters,especially Ruth Braams, who works as an art researcher. Ruth grows and changes as a character throughout the story, which gives the book a real depth. I would have liked a little more adventure and some editing of some of the more long winded sections where nothing happens. All in all, a good read, but beware of the misleading cover.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good but odd !!!,
By
This review is from: The Apothecary's House (Hardcover)
I very much enjoyed this book but it almost seemed as though there were two writers at work here. A contemporary author and one from a 1930's "noir" style detective novel. The main character spoke with a "tough dame" style of lingo but only at certain times. How odd indeed ??? I did feel compelled to plough on regardless of the jumbled writing styles. A very interesting premise and also very descriptive in regards to Amsterdam canal houses. Somehow I get the feeling that men will enjoy this book more then women. Prove me wrong !!!
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