top of page
Rach Reads

Book Review: The Night Portrait by Laura Morelli

Book: 138/150

Rating: 4/5

The Night Portrait follows one of Leonardo da Vinci's most famous paintings, Portrait of a Lady with an Ermine. The story is told through two timelines and four points of view.


The story flips back and forth between Milan in 1492 and WWII. In Milan, 16 year old Cecilia becomes the mistress of the Duke of Milan, and fights for a place to belong in his life. At the same time, the Duke has invited Leonardo da Vinci to his palace, and he undertakes one of his most ambitious paintings to date by painting Cecilia.


Flash forward to WWII: Edith, a conservator, accidentally puts this famous painting in the hands of a Nazi leader at the time where the Nazis were stealing famous pieces of art across Europe. She then dedicates herself to recovering the painting, eventually teaming up with an American soldier Dominic, an avid drawer, who is a part of the Monuments Men team.


I don’t read a lot of historical fiction, and I’m not sure why because when I read it I tend to really enjoy it, and this one was no exception! I loved learning about art history: the inspirations behind Portrait of a Lady with an Ermine, and the work that the Monuments Men did trying to recover and save important pieces of art.


All of these characters are interesting to follow but this is definitely a plot driven book. The chapters are short and sweet and I found it really hard to put it down because it alternated through so many perspectives I wanted to keep up with what everyone was up to.


Thanks to Harper Collins Canada for an ARC of this book. It just published yesterday (9/8)!

58 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Commenti


bottom of page