A mysterious and richly evocative novel, The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque tells the story of portraitist Piero Piambo, who is offered a commission unlike any other. The client is Mrs. Charbuque, a wealthy and elusive woman who asks Piambo to paint her portrait, though with one bizarre twist: he may question her at length on any topic, but he may not, under any circumstances, see her. So begins an astonishing journey into Mrs. Charbuque's world and the world of 1893 New York society in this hypnotically compelling literary thriller.
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From Publishers Weekly
Ford expertly created a surreal alternate landscape in his acclaimed fantasies The Physiognomy and Memoranda; here, in his fourth novel, sepia-colored old New York is the fever-dream world. Piero Piambo is the portraitist of choice among New York's nouveau riche in 1893, but his career fills him with self-loathing. When a blind man with uncannily white eyes offers him "a job like no other" painting the mysterious Mrs. Charbuque Piambo quickly accepts, as the hefty commission will allow him to abandon society portraiture. But the terms of the deal are very strange: Mrs. Charbuque insists that she will hide behind a screen; to divine what she looks like, Piambo may ask her questions, but not about her appearance. It soon becomes clear that she will not be interrogated; instead, like a possibly "unhinged" Scheherazade, she mesmerizes Piambo with her story of growing up convinced she possessed psychic powers conferred on her by twin snowflakes. Piambo's opium-addicted friend Shenz convinces him to investigate his mysterious model, leading them to interview a deranged "turdologist" who sheds light on her past. But then Piambo is assaulted by a man identifying himself as Mr. Charbuque, demanding to know why the artist is "seeing my wife." And there are other dangers about, as the city is under attack by a parasite that eats "the soft tissue of the eye" and causes its victims to weep blood. Add dangerously unstable characters speaking with delicious floridity, unexpected bursts of macabre humor and violence, and a gender-bending subplot that subtly picks up steam, and you have a standout literary thriller.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Adult/High School-A true literary thriller. In New York City at the turn of the 20th century, Piambo is a young artist earning his bread painting "corrective" portraits of plain society wives, beautifying them for the canvas and their husbands. He has a crisis of conscience when one woman, standing under her portrait, leans close and whispers, "I hope you die." As he restlessly wanders the streets that night, a blind man approaches, claiming to know him by his dishonest smell, and offers him the commission of a lifetime: paint a portrait of his employer and receive compensation so grand that he will never have to paint another wife. The catch? Piambo will not be permitted to see Mrs. Charbuque. She will sit behind a screen, and he may ask her questions; from the answers he is to divine her essence. If he captures her likeness, compensation will triple. From this irresistible premise, Ford devilishly spins his story in prose so controlled-yet so dark with underlying fever and inevitability-that it calls to mind Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. The philosophical and psychological aspects loom large, and Mrs. Charbuque is a near-masterpiece-part sphinx, part hydra, the stuff of the most potent myths. A subplot involving a possible plague adds some hardcore spookiness and, of course, points back to Mrs. Charbuque. This book is smart, spellbinding, and sure to knock any teen's favorite suspense/horror tale from top place to second.
Emily Lloyd, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Emily Lloyd, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
MUCH TO my unease, Mrs. Reed positioned herself, all evening, beneath or immediately to either side of her new portrait. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
MUCH TO my unease, Mrs. Reed positioned herself, all evening, beneath or immediately to either side of her new portrait. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
By Dave and Joe
TOP 50 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
The delightful Mrs. Charbuque captures not only the artist commissioned to paint her - unseen - but also we readers as well. The premise of the book struck me right away as incredibly clever. You already know that the book is about an artist challenged to paint a portrait of a woman who he is not allowed to see, he is allowed to talk to her and ask her questions about her life, and from her answers he is to find inspiration to do his painting. I admit I had a firm picture of her in my head by the time brush was put to canvas. The stories she tells in response to questions are just on the edge of bizarre but compelling enough for a picture of the 'woman' to rise from the words. Well done, Mr. Ford, thanks for a great read.
Format:Paperback
I bought "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque" not knowing quite what to expect, but was quickly captivated by both its premise and its style. I'm not frequently a reader of mystery novels, nor do I read historical fiction very often. I've delved into Dan Brown, Caleb Carr, and Mark Frost--and in all cases I've ultimately come away disappointed. When reading these books I'd felt either that the author thought I was stupid or that he thought his characters were stupid.
Here Ford treats both his readers and his creations with respect. His plot does not rely on amazing coincidence or amazing ineptitude to propel it along; nor does he treat his novel as an opportunity to impress the reader with his research on 19th century New York City or the art of portraiture. Instead, both provide a rich, but not overwrought, backdrop for a satisfying nugget of mystery.
If you're looking for the next great American novel, this is not it. However, if you are looking for a little guilt-free escapist fun that is more substantive than most of what populates the best-seller list, then "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque" is well worth your time.
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
The style of Mr. Ford's writing and the intriguing story he tells make this book an absolute pleasure to read. Although the ending was no on par with the rest of the book, I still gave this book five stars because it is so enjoyable to read.
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4.4 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ford is quite clever!
This book has a nifty idea, and well imagined setting, excellent characters (I especially liked the hero's girlfriend and his opium addicted painting pal - Ford portrays them as... Read more
Published on July 12 2003 by Arthur Enyedy
3.0 out of 5 stars
2/3 of a good book
This is almost an amazing book.
The concept is intriguing, and through most of it just the enigma of Mrs. Charbuque kept me reading. Read more
Published on Jun 6 2003 by Rachel E. Pollock
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful story, even better prose...
Ford's genre-defying work continues in this novel, a wonderful read that I'd recommend to practically anyone with an interest in reading something non-formulaic. Read more
Published on May 16 2003 by z
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intriguing
I thought it was an intriguing premise from the start. I, too, was trying to draw in my mind what Mrs. Charbuque would look like. It is very entertaining and worth the read.
Published on May 12 2003
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lushly written story of old NYand a painter's obsession
Jeffrey Ford's new novel is The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque, something of a departure from his previous novels, though it does share some of the same obsessions and tropes, and of... Read more
Published on April 27 2003 by Richard R. Horton
4.0 out of 5 stars
exceptionally well done
really well worth reading. sort of a cross between caleb carr and jonathan carroll. i breezed through it in 2 days, and only wished it were longer. Read more
Published on Mar 24 2003
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Novel Of The Ninteenth Century
A PORTRAIT OF MRS. CHARBUQUE isn't an historical novel
set in late 19th century Manhattan, so much as it's a
late 19th century novel, produced in the early 21st... Read more
set in late 19th century Manhattan, so much as it's a
late 19th century novel, produced in the early 21st... Read more
Published on Nov 30 2002 by Richard Bowes
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ignore Any Bad Reviews -- This is Ford's Best Novel Yet
I was up until almost 2 o'clock this morning with this book. Started it last night just before I went to bed, and couldn't put it down until I'd finished it. Read more
Published on Oct 19 2002 by Jerry Hewett
2.0 out of 5 stars
F l a w e d
I started this book in pleasant anticipation, influenced by numerous positive reviews. I was, alas, disappointed. Read more
Published on Oct 11 2002 by Arta Buneta
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
With great style and atmosphere, Ford takes you back to turn-of-century New York for a tale of a painter who must make a portrait of an unseen patron. Read more
Published on Oct 9 2002
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