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Title: The Flanders Panel by Arturo Perez-Reverte ISBN: 0-553-37786-8 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 01 May, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.32 (92 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An intriguing literary game
Comment: The Flanders Panel is a fascinating mystery which is packed with riddles, puzzles and allusions. The plot rapidly swings into motion when the protagonist, Julia, who has been commissioned to restore a 15th Century painting, discovers a hidden inscription which poses the question, "who killed the knight?". The painting depicts a nobleman and a knight playing a game of chess. Through consultation and research, Julia identifies the people depicted in the painting, learns that the knight died under suspicious circumstances and figures out that the answer to the question lies in the chess game depicted in the painting. Julia enlists the help of several friends in her efforts to solve the riddle. One by one, those helpers die violent, all-too-co-incidental deaths.
This sinister novel is exceedingly well done. Large sections of the book are devoted to analysis of chess problems and interpretation of medieval Flemish art. To my utter astonishment, these sections are so vivid and so expertly crafted that they are the highlights of the book.
The characters in the book are, almost without exception, flatly-drawn with little or no depth. This is in such stark contrast to the descriptions of the chess games that I couldn't help but wonder if the author intended the contrast. One of the recurring motifs in the book is the confusion between reality and the reflected image in a mirror. Here, the players are flat while the chessboard becomes multi-dimensional.
I rated this book four stars rather than five because the characters were unengaging and unsympathetic. It was as if every person dealing with fine art in Madrid in the 1980s was self-absorbed and hedonistic. Also, the final chapter seems false and contrived. Otherwise, this is the ideal book to take along on a vacation. It is a highly entertaining book. I found it difficult to put down.
Rating: 5
Summary: An excellent, gripping mystery
Comment: Julia, an art restorer by trade, is given a new painting to work on--the painting of two men playing chess and a woman reading in the background, by a 15-th C. Flemish artist. She sends to a lab, and an X-Ray of the paint layers comes back with a surprise: under the paint, there is a hidden inscription, asking the viewer "who killed the knight." Since it's a mystery and each new twist is really quite a delight, I shall say no more of the plot. Except that Julia will soon have two mysteries on her hands: who killed the knight in 1470-something, and, in her time, who killed... but that would be a major spoiler...
As to the quality of the work, it is more difficult to read than an average paperback mystery, but it is also more rewarding. The book is full of curious literary and art history references; the plot is as twisted as it comes (but, surprisingly enough, it all fits together in the end); the characters are certainly memorable and well-written. In general, a very pleasurable read that won't leave you feeling empty.
Rating: 3
Summary: Fascinating Notion...utterly lacks emotion!
Comment: I've been eager to read more Perez-Reverte since The Club Dumas, and The Flanders Panel seemed right up my alley for "intellectual" intrigue.
I must say that the first half of the book is remarkable and, though the execution of everything falls a bit short, I do think the entire sweep of the story is commendable. However, my criticism lies in Julia's character who, after the mysteroius murders of two of her friends, she goes about attempting to piece together the mystery without a single hint of emotion toward the loss of her loved ones. Nothing at all. It's all back to business for her. Who acts like this???
Even in the end, (which I won't spoil), she turns her back on a 20+ year companion who's about to hurt himself in a very serious way. True, given the elements of the story, their 20 year relationship is in question, but I just felt that it was heartless of her to do.
Thumbs way way up for the premise.
Thumbs kinda teetering downwards on the characters.
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Title: The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte, Sonia Soto ISBN: 0679777547 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 17 March, 1998 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The Seville Communion by Arturo Perez-Reverte, Sonia Soto ISBN: 0156006391 Publisher: Harcourt Pub. Date: May, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The Fencing Master: A Novel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte ISBN: 0156006847 Publisher: Harvest Books Pub. Date: September, 2000 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Nautical Chart by Arturo Perez-Reverte, Margaret Sayers Peden ISBN: 0156013053 Publisher: Harvest Books Pub. Date: 03 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears ISBN: 0425167720 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: March, 1999 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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