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Ο άνθρωπος που έκλεψε την Τζοκόντα
His agreement to steal the Mona Lisa for J. Pierpont Morgan places Adam Worth in a struggle to outwit the French authorities, international art experts, and Morgan himself.
314 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
38 people want to read
About the author
Martin Page
8 books4 followersThere is more than one author with this name
French author: Martin Page
Botanist: Martin Page
MARTIN PAGE was one of the leading correspondents of the Daily Express when the Beaverbrook foreign service was among the most lavishly funded in Fleet Street. He was head of the Express bureaux in three world capitals — Paris, Moscow and Rome — and he reported wars from Algeria and Congo to Vietnam. Then his declining eyesight was diagnosed as untreatable and, faced with the prospect of the end of his travelling life, he started a new career as an author.
His novel, The Man Who Stole The Mona Lisa, was an instant success and hailed by The Times as one of the best two thrillers of its year. He also wrote The Good Doctors Guide, an assessment of the skills of various consultants that caused considerable controversy in Harley Street and beyond. But soon he became legally blind and moved with his wife and two small sons to live in Portugal.
This country provided the subject of his most important book, The First Global Village, in which he described the influence of Portugal over the centuries. This highly readable work was well-received in Britain and Portugal and this account by an English author of their country made it a bestseller with the Portuguese.
His books were published in 14 languages and included The Company Savage, which became a bestseller in Germany and Japan, and a second novel, The Pilate Plot. [Times obit.]
French author: Martin Page
Botanist: Martin Page
MARTIN PAGE was one of the leading correspondents of the Daily Express when the Beaverbrook foreign service was among the most lavishly funded in Fleet Street. He was head of the Express bureaux in three world capitals — Paris, Moscow and Rome — and he reported wars from Algeria and Congo to Vietnam. Then his declining eyesight was diagnosed as untreatable and, faced with the prospect of the end of his travelling life, he started a new career as an author.
His novel, The Man Who Stole The Mona Lisa, was an instant success and hailed by The Times as one of the best two thrillers of its year. He also wrote The Good Doctors Guide, an assessment of the skills of various consultants that caused considerable controversy in Harley Street and beyond. But soon he became legally blind and moved with his wife and two small sons to live in Portugal.
This country provided the subject of his most important book, The First Global Village, in which he described the influence of Portugal over the centuries. This highly readable work was well-received in Britain and Portugal and this account by an English author of their country made it a bestseller with the Portuguese.
His books were published in 14 languages and included The Company Savage, which became a bestseller in Germany and Japan, and a second novel, The Pilate Plot. [Times obit.]
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 25, 2020
Βασισμένο στην αληθινή ιστορία που συγκλόνισε τη παγκόσμια κοινή γνώμη των αρχών του 20ού αιώνα (1911), ενώ θα μπορούσε να αποτελέσει τον καταλληλότερο 'καμβά' για να 'απογειωθεί' λογοτεχνικά το συγκεκριμένο μυθιστόρημα, ο Page αντιμετωπίζει τον κεντρικό του ήρωα σαν ένα μοντέρνο 'Αρσέν Λουπέν' της δεκαετίας του '80 επιστρατεύοντας αρκετά επιτυχημένα το μαύρο χιούμορ, αλλά και την υπερβολική ανάλυση σε ανούσια γεγονότα, κάτι που αποπροσανατολίζει τους αναγνώστες και τούς κουράζει.
Η ιστορία (ειδικά στο 2ο μέρος) έχει αρκετές στιγμές αγωνίας, οι οποίες, όμως, εναλλάσσονται με στιγμές 'επίπεδης' αφήγησης για τη πορεία του ήρωα μέχρι τη στιγμή της κλοπής του πίνακα - τα σκαμπανεβάσματα στο ρυθμό της πλοκής προσομοιάζουν με εκείνα της διάθεσης των αναγνωστών που το διαβάζουν.
Ανεξάρτητα από τα παραπάνω, αρκετοί διάλογοι μεταξύ των ηρώων του βιβλίου έχουν ρυθμό και δύναμη, ωστόσο, το μυθιστόρημα, δύσκολα, διαβάζεται χωρίς διαλείμματα....διαρκείας.
Βαθμολογία: 3,5/5 ή 7/10.
Η ιστορία (ειδικά στο 2ο μέρος) έχει αρκετές στιγμές αγωνίας, οι οποίες, όμως, εναλλάσσονται με στιγμές 'επίπεδης' αφήγησης για τη πορεία του ήρωα μέχρι τη στιγμή της κλοπής του πίνακα - τα σκαμπανεβάσματα στο ρυθμό της πλοκής προσομοιάζουν με εκείνα της διάθεσης των αναγνωστών που το διαβάζουν.
Ανεξάρτητα από τα παραπάνω, αρκετοί διάλογοι μεταξύ των ηρώων του βιβλίου έχουν ρυθμό και δύναμη, ωστόσο, το μυθιστόρημα, δύσκολα, διαβάζεται χωρίς διαλείμματα....διαρκείας.
Βαθμολογία: 3,5/5 ή 7/10.
November 10, 2021
Αρκετά καλό
October 13, 2023
This novel reminded me of the tv series, The Murdoch Mysteries, only the protagonist is a crook instead of a policeman. Famous people weave their way through the book, with an especially prominent role for J. P. Morgan, and the real life thief, Vincenzo Peruggia. New and nascent inventions play a role, and the plot is ingenious and extremely complex. The only problem is that there is virtually no actual human interest. Whatever made James Bond an appealing character in a somewhat similar context is absent here.
A quibble: Morgan and Worth, the thief, talk of the Mona Lisa as a world-famous and widely celebrated piece of art. It actually only achieved that level of fame after it was stolen in real life.
It's well written in a sentence to sentence way, and there are a lot of clever ideas, but in my opinion it's really only a literary curiosity.
A quibble: Morgan and Worth, the thief, talk of the Mona Lisa as a world-famous and widely celebrated piece of art. It actually only achieved that level of fame after it was stolen in real life.
It's well written in a sentence to sentence way, and there are a lot of clever ideas, but in my opinion it's really only a literary curiosity.
September 22, 2025
Αφού για καιρό απέφευγα την αγορά του συγκεκριμένου βιβλίου λόγω των λίγων και μάλλον μέτριων κριτικών που έχει δεχτεί, τελικά το αγόρασα και δεν άργησα πολύ να το διαβάσω: Τόσο καιρό έκανα λάθος! Αποδείχτηκε ένα πολύ ευχάριστο και ψυχαγωγικό "αστυνομικό" μυθιστόρημα, που το γενικό του πλαίσιο βασίζεται στην αληθινή ιστορία της κλοπής του γνωστού πίνακα του Λεονάρντο Ντα Βίντσι από έναν Ιταλό τεχνίτη που εργαζόταν στο Λούβρο, με τον συγγραφέα όμως να βάζει και τη δική του, πλούσια φαντασία στο μίξερ, και να παραδίδει στους αναγνώστες ένα ευφάνταστο και καλογραμμένο μυθιστόρημα με υπέροχη ατμόσφαιρα, ωραίο μαύρο χιούμορ και ορισμένες πολύ δυνατές σκηνές. Και έτσι όπως ήταν γραμμένο, ένιωσα ότι είδα ένα πολύ ωραίο επεισόδιο μιας πολύ καλής ιστορικής σειράς με εγκλήματα. Πολύ μου άρεσε.
September 10, 2024
A fantasy mystery with some real facts. Page invents a master thief Adam Worth, who is hired by JP Morgan to steal the Mona Lisa. Lots of unbelievable adventures.
June 24, 2009
I got about 50 pages in, but the story just isn't very compelling and the main character seems to be a jerk. I'm giving it the boot.
August 14, 2015
Loved it!
August 22, 2016
I've had this book on my shelf for years. It was interesting and at times rather confusing. A convoluted tale about stealing the Mona Lisa which beggared belief constantly. I did finish it.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews