From Publishers Weekly
Seattle Art Museum curator Chris Norgren falls prey to the lure of a newly discovered Rembrandt in this third in a spirited series (after A Glancing Light ). He also topples head-first out of a second-story window, but the nasty fall is happily blunted by a conveniently located car. Acquiring art isn't usually perilous, but anything is possible when the work is in the care of French dealer Rene Vachey, notorious for passing off thefts as publicity stunts. Vachey has offered the Rembrandt--if it really is a Rembrandt--as a gift to Chris's museum, with a veritable spider's web of strings attached. He will, however, permit only a cursory viewing and explicitly forbids scientific authentication. Chris, adrift in France, far from the arms of his girl, feels pretty sure that the painting is the genuine article. But after Vachey is murdered, his claim to have found the Rembrandt in a junk shop suddenly seems dubious; moreover, his employees have excellent motives to dislike him, several art experts have been burned by his outrageous exploits, and he even has that old crime fiction favorite, a deadbeat son recently dunned out of his dad's dough in a suspect will. Elkins wields all this with indecent ease, keeping the laugh count high and imparting copious amounts of art lore along the way. Mystery Guild main selection.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
A perceptive look at the world of museums, dealers, and collectors through the somewhat innocent eyes of Chris Norgren, curator of Renaissance art at the Seattle Art Museum (A Glancing Light, 1991, etc.). The museum has been offered the gift of a newly discovered Rembrandt by long-established French gallery owner Ren‚ Vachey, notorious over the years for outrageous put-downs of his peers. There's a deadline for acceptance, and no scientific testing for authenticity is permitted. A similar offer, of a L‚ger, has been made to the Mus‚e Barillot in Dijon--the victim some years back of one of Vachey's antic schemes. Is the offer legit or another trick to ridicule the establishment? To find out, Chris flies to France, meets Vachey and his dissolute son Christian, along with Edmond Froger, director of the Barillot; respected L‚ger expert Jean-Luc Charpentier; and a host of other art VIPs. In the midst of the festive hoopla, someone attacks Chris, a claimant for the Rembrandt surfaces, and Vachey is shot to death. Chris manages to make his decision about the painting, enjoy some Paris time with girlfriend Anne, and solve the murder too. An unpretentious, conversational style, convincing plot, laid- back hero, easy-to-take art-history, and a loving evocation of Paris--in a fresh, funny, thoroughly entertaining story. --
Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
