Deceptions
A Helena Marsh Novel
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3.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A savvy art world thriller with a strong, independent heroine and the follow-up to The Appraisal, finalist for the 2018 Staunch Prize.
Former Budapest cop Attila Feher would really like to see art expert Helena Marsh again, so he arranges a contract for her to determine whether a painting is a copy of a famous Artemisia Gentileschi canvas or the real thing. A simple appraisal becomes a dangerous assignment when usual eastern European gangsters show up and people start dying and the seething corruption that underlies the lost promise of post-Soviet Hungary swirls to the surface. In a race to get to the truth and to outwit her adversaries, Helena and Attila must solve the mystery of the painting’s origins.
Richly atmospheric, set in Strasbourg, Budapest, and Paris, this witty, sophisticated novel will satisfy readers of political thrillers by Alan Furst and Philip Kerr. Deceptions is a thinking-person’s thriller, a romp to the last satisfying page.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Porter's exciting sequel to 2017's The Appraisal, art appraiser Helena Marsh attempts to trace the provenance of a painting believed to be the work of 17th-century artist Artemisia Gentileschi. Helena has her own fascinating provenance: she's the daughter of a forger, now dead, who taught her the tricks of his trade, and instilled in her a healthy disdain for authority. Helena's client, Gizella Vaszary, believes her husband is trying to pass an original off as a copy in order to undervalue it in their divorce settlement. Helena meets with Madam Vaszary's lawyer on a Rhine tour boat in Strasbourg, France. Before much information has been exchanged, the lawyer is shot and killed by an archer. Helena jumps from the boat onto the embankment and runs after the assassin. Soon the police are on her trail, which leads into the netherworld of shady eastern European gangsters, corrupt politicians, and collectors who will pay any price to get what they want. The forgery tips alone are worth the price of admission. Porter takes readers on an exhilarating ride.
