The Painter

by Will Davenport

In the tradition of possession and girl with a pearl earring, this suspenseful, erotic novel seamlessly weaves fact and fiction into a brilliant tapestry of love, art, deception, and danger--at the center of which lies a centuries-old secret…

The Painter

In an old manor house on the legendary river Hull, Amy Dale has discovered a journal that holds the account of a thrilling duel of seduction--and the key to a missing year in the life of a great artist. Over three hundred years ago, Rembrandt van Rijn challenged the poet Andrew Marvell for the affection of Amy’s ancestor Amelia Dahl. But the fierce competition between those two men for Amelia’s heart has repercussions for the new inhabitants of the manor.

Now, as Amy reads the pages of her namesake’s intimate diary and plans the restoration of the old house, she finds herself engaged in her own game of wit, seduction, and desire with a scarred and enigmatic laborer. As their attraction explodes in intensity, the secrets of the past escape from history into the present with consequences they could never expect...and may not survive.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical, Art, Mystery, British Literature, Book Club

336 pages, Paperback

First published April 7, 2003

About the author

Pseudonym used by James Long
(James William Davenport Long)

Reviews

[Daniel Villines · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Painter tells the story of the wife of a 17th century seafaring merchant living in a countryside estate outside of the industrial town of Hull, England. At the same time, it also tells the story of a modern-day descendant of the wife who finds herself in the same home in 2001. As a result, the story moves along two timelines.

In the 1662 timeline, the wife of the merchant sits for a portrait by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (or more commonly known in modern times as just Rembrandt). Rembrandt finds himself by happenstance visiting Hull during a period of financial hardship. In the modern 2001 timeline, the wife’s descendant, who is also an artist, struggles to find a solid footing in her life. She moves from place to place painting pictures as opportunities permit.

Embedded in both timelines are themes that center on the art of painting. Davenport sifts through the mind of Rembrandt so that we can see the workings of his thoughts, which produced such beautiful paintings. My online searches of Rembrandt’s paintings gave this novel an expanded feeling of presence. Within the modern timeframe, the 2001 artist expresses her intent with her paintings and communicates how her creative urges are possibly the only thing that is calm and constant in her life.

The main characters in this novel have an unpredictability to them that maintains an interest in their lives. While there is a mystery surrounding the acts of one of the main characters, that particularly mystery is not the focus of the book. Rather, The Painter is a mystery about growth and change, and illustrates how such mysteries have existed throughout time. Reading this novel to the end reveals who the characters become through their experiences.

For all of its great artistic and human content, The Painter is somewhat low-energy. The story has so many great themes and yet it never reaches the intensity necessary to make the pages disappear. In my mind, the story falls short of real greatness only because I wanted more of everything that it had to offer.

[Deb Omnivorous Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story alternates between the past - 1662 when Rembrandt accidentally ends up in an English village called Hull, having fallen asleep on the ship of a captain bound for there. Unable to speak the language, he is taken for and treated like, a stowaway and ends up agreeing to paint a picture of the captain back in Hull, to pay for his voyage. The picture he paints accurately reflects the quality of the passage he receives, but, while in Hull he enters into a competition with a poet, a friend of the captain's. Both the poet and the painter will create a work for the captain's wife which she will judge; the bet is on to see which art and artist is supreme and the prize, both competitors hope, will be the wife herself.

This was the theme that led me to pick up the book and which intrigued me. This theme was interesting, built out a few historical sources and hints, well written - even at times lyrical as the author talks from Rembrandt's point of view about colour, light and painting. The portrayal of Rembrandt was often disappointing although from what I had already read about him, I could well enough believe he was arrogant, self absorbed and generally insular, here he is portrayed as a idiotic buffoon, which I found rather sad at times. But, well, it is all interpretation and the author may do as they choose. Also present in this segment was 'Marvel' a person I was sure I had never heard of, though I did recognise the poem he wrote, when it finally emerged.

Those were the good bits.

The other side of this book however, was 2001, where some chick called Amy, who is an unemployed painter and a descendant of the captain of Hull, gets a job at a historical house restoration. This started out well enough, Amy for the first dozen pages was pretty good. Then she gets to the house, a 'romantic theme' with some dude called Don begins and I can't tell you how unreadable and tedious that EXTENSIVE part of the book was.

Amy shortly ceases to resemble a girl, or even a three dimensional character at all. Don is never anything but a stereotype and yet we have to slog through a remarkable amount of Unbelievable Amy and Dull Don in order for the story to progress. There is never any element of believability about the romance, no attraction, nothing to save the poor reader. The only two characters that give any mitigating lightness to 2001 are two side characters, Dennis and Parrish and their parts in the story, while believable, are exceptionally unsurprising. Now, the really horrible thing about the Unlikely-Amy and Dull-Don story is that you HAVE to read the diary they discover in order to make the 1662 story complete - It is unfair! I resorted to extensive skim reading to bypass the DonAmy bits, only stopping for the diary and history bits. This worked well enough.

Now at the end there are some unsurprising revelations and a couple of plot builders in 2001 and I actually did read that. Having skipped most of 2001 made no real difference as the conclusions were predictable, so that was fine.

I am left mesmerised by the fact that the author did not feel he had enough of a story to just write 1662 on it's own. Why did we need 400 pages? Was this a publishing company requirement - that it had to be over a certain page count? It ruins the perfectly good story in my opinion. The Rembrandt and the Captain's wife was a fine theme and not badly done. Why force us to put up with the dumb dithering of Unbelievably-Aimless Amy about Cutout-Dull-Don?

Frequently I put off reading because I just didn't couldn't bear the DonAmy travesty, (though Netflix thanks Davenport, even if I don't) since I really did want to get to the end of the 1662 story I put up with it. My humour was not improved when I found no real conclusion or ending to the 1662 segment, it just winds down. The 2001 has the aforementioned, unsurprising conclusion. So I ended the book feeling quite ripped off by this reading experience.

[Meri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love it!!!!!

[Roman Clodia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book of two halves which ultimately don't quite come together: the 'past' story is one of Rembrandt and his competition with Andrew Marvell over their seduction of the intriguingly written Amelia Dale in 1662. Poet and painter compete to see which can capture her best, in words or paint, with the woman herself as the ultimate prize. Rembrandt works admirably (though possibly because I know nothing about him?) but Marvell as depicted here seems out of kilter with the poem he writes (To his coy mistress). Also the poem itself doesn't quite seem to fit with the situation and the fact that Amelia hints they are already lovers, but I suppose it is Marvell's most famous poem.

The 'present' story I found far less convincing, even though the premise itself was an interesting one: Amy Dale, a descendant of Amelia, comes to the house where the past story was set and which is now being renovated. She traces the story of the competition through Amelia's diary and is herself involved in a fatal triangle between two men.

The problem is that I don't think Davenport's portrait of Amy or her relationship with Don is in the slightest bit realistic, and the plot device of two (or three?) journals is both clunky and unnecessary. I quite like the fact that Amy is both painter like Rembrandt and yet also object of rivalry like Amelia, but wasn't quite sure if that was what the author intended. There are far too many incidents with chainsaws in this story; and the idea of Don being able to simply recite the whole of Marvell's poem (all 46 lines of it!) off pat was too much. The end of the modern episode was also very rushed and anticlimatic - far too many loose ends left dangling. Which was a shame as the figure of Don is an intriguing one that unfortunately this book doesn't explore enough to do him justice.

So overall a book with more promise than it fulfills, but still an interesting page-turning read - 3.5 stars.

[Flor · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book isn't really what I expected, however I enjoyed it. Specially the part that involves Rembrandt, Marvell and Amelia Dahl.
The story that occurs in modern Britain is not that interesting :-( I think it is too predictable. :-(

[Oritje Sepmarama · Rating 3 out of 5]

The mix-writing plot (backward and forward) might not give as good impression as the story itself; about the hidden story of the Pompous Baroque Painter REMBRANDT. The missing 6 years of his life in the hand of a fiction writer.

[Avril Caryer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the beginning of this novel and the two time frames was managed well at first. Unfortunately the plot grew sillier and with so many ridiculous coincidences that I couldn't take it seriously. I also found that the character of Don was not properly realised and entirely unrealistic.

[Carol · Rating 2 out of 5]

A pretty inconsequential story of the rivalry between Rembrandt and Marvell for the favours of the incomparable beauty Amelia Dahl. The setting is Paull Holme Manor on the banks of the River Humber in 1662. Davenport writes some genuinely interesting details about creating exact colours and the importance of having the right light for portrait painting and provides real insight into the artist’s imagination and ambition.
But.....
In a parallel modern story, the predictably beautiful Amy Dale, free-spirited and jobbing restoration artist, finds herself working where else, but in her ancestral home of Paull Holme, where she attracts a great deal of male attention and provokes its attendant jealousy. She comes across the secret journal of her ancestor Amelia and the story becomes an investigation into the minutiae of Amelia’s life and two lost Rembrandts.
Too much coincidence, too many diverse strands and too many pages.

[Raymond · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unless you're a huge fan of Rembrandt van Rijn, I doubt you'd find this story entertaining. I'll admit I only bought it because it had a beautiful cover, but I didn't expect it to be suck a slog.
I'm not sure if it was overwritten, felt too much like a history book, or both but whatever it was caused me to do a lot of skimming because I did not have the energy for this book.
The plot is pretty boring. There was a romance arc between Amy and Don that was a little entertaining (which says a lot because I don't really like romance but in this case it was the only vaguely interesting thing going on for me). However they were both annoying, changing their minds on each other five times every chapter. Amy was unbelievably reckless with her safety and so was Dennis (especially for someone working with dangerous equipment, most people I've met who have dangerous jobs won't shut up about safety. Then there's Dennis who does deadly circus tricks without much of a reason).

[Muhme Rumpumpel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amy, a painter and art restorer, has lost her way a bit and is therefore happy to be is asked to work in a mansion that once housed Rembrandt. Not only does she find a love interest there in the secluded worker Don, who is rumoured to have killed someone, Amy also stumbles over an old diary which spells out Rembrandts last love, Amys ancestor Amelia, whom he tried to seduce while being a guest in the house of her husband...

***

The two stories did not really get together for me... I found Amy's story (in the present) quite interesting, and the strange love story with the super-surprising end was something I have never read told like this. Amelia's story (in the past) dragged on a bit - I did not find it all too interesting. To combine these two stories felt rather like a "trendy thing to do" rather than a real integration of two stories to become one big story.

[Aleksandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ovde imamo preplitanje dva toka priče, jedan savremeni i jedan čiji je akter slavni holandski slikar. Poglavlja o Rembrantu su uzbudljiva (ocena 4), a savremeni tok priče u kojoj zaboravih ime glavnoj junakinji nije ni za dvojku. Dotična gospođa je završila istoriju umetnosti, a ne povezuje da su Buonaroti i Mikelanđelo ista osoba (?)

[Dainora Jaloveckas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed it

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked it at the start and was quite intrigued but got increasingly irritated as the book progressed, particularly by Amy.

[Michele Zito]

Cannot finish. not interesting enough for me.

[Evelyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was quite possibly the worst ever case of 'woman written by a man' I've yet read in my long life.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

'This fine novel will appeal to fans of Girl with a Pearl Earring and Tulip Fever.' Or at least so says the back of the book.

Actually, with its parallel tales of a developing relationship in the present uncovering and reflecting relationships in the past it reminded me more of Possession or Headlong. However it is a much lighter and less obviously erudite read than the first of those : in style it is closer to the second - not quite as farcical, but certainly with funny as well as tragic moments. So what it has in common with the two given is the period in which it is set and ... umm ... that's it methinks.

I enjoyed reading it, and devoured it quickly - partly to see if my idea of the whereabouts of the missing painting were correct (they were). I think more could have been done with Marvell and the Captain, but that the latter was a bit of an enigma I suppose was one of the points of the tale.


Bookdarted bit:
She considered evasion, but in that confessional car, with this concerned man next to her, there was no room for a glib reply.
Glad I'm not the only one who thinks cars are good places for serious conversations and personal revelation ...

[Sandie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Davenport manages to seamlessly spin two stories, past and present, into wonderful whole cloth containint elements of love, betrayal, suspense, mystery, art history and murder.

In the present we are introduced to artist Amy Dale, who is hired to participate in the restoration of a 17th century manor house that once belonged to a distant relative. Her task is complicated by two factors. One, the discovery of a 300 year old journal written by her ancestor Amelia Dahl that throws new light on the history of the manor. Secondly, she becomes the focus of an antagonistic competition between Dennis, an amiable older man and Don, the scarred and brooding laborer to whom Amy finds herself emotionally and sexually attracted.

The past presents a richly imaginative tale that concentrates on the missing year in the life of one of history's most unique, creative and talented artists, Rembrandt Van Rijn.....and his obsession with Amelia Dahl.

The two stories are mirror images and Davenport's writing erupts from the page and draws you into both stories.

[Night · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was told from two fronts during two time periods.

The past was about the missing chapter in the life of Rembrandt van Rijn, during which he was in a poem vs. painting contest with Andrew Marvell. The prize was Amelia Dahl, the lady of the Manor and a wife.
>> So, they are competing for a married woman? Ok, it may be possible, but I just can't come to terms with it. Anyway, the writing and historical details are intriguing enough.

The present was about Amy Dale, descendant of the Dahls, who got a restoration job at the Manor also involved in a love-triangle with 2 men. They found Amelia's journals (two versions of them) and began searching for the possible undiscovered Rembrendt's painting. All led to mystery and murder.

I like the past. Fiction and facts well matched and plausible. While the present is just..umm well, it just has to be there so the writer can switch between two time lines, I guess.

[Christine Verstraete · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm kind of torn about this book. I really loved the historic parts about Rembrandt and his life. I love reading about that time period and the author does him justice. (Though an even better, fuller, more biographical account is Rembrandt by Gladys Schmitt). I'd give this 3 stars though the writing is excellent.

The problem, as I see it, is the descendant and main character Amy is somewhat unlikable - she's driven by odd impulses, immature thinking in her attraction to men, and while this and the strange worker she is attracted to become a main part of the story, I felt it took away from the real story. The story of Rembrandt and the modern day search for a possible painting by him - they tying of past to present, is more integral, and much more interesting, than this ill-fated love match. I found the love match and her constant questioning, wondering, judging, rather tiresome.

[Sarah Harper]

Uneven but good when it talks about Rembrandt.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two artists, two parallel stories, two love affairs. Amy Dale lives in modern England. A restoration job lands in her lap and takes her to Hull, to the 17th century mansion that may have belonged to her ancestors. Here she makes some intriguing discoveries, while falling hard for a moody coworker with disfiguring scars. Four hundred years earlier, Rembrandt van Rijn unexpectedly spent some time in the same mansion, where he was pressed into painting a portrait of the lady of the house, with whom he falls deeply in love.

Told from the vantage points of the two protagonists, The Painter spins out a tale full of intrigue and history. It's a fascinating story, filled with secrets and mysteries, and based upon the question surrounding Rembrandt's "missing" year.

[Lorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, crap. Such an interesting start..then sad trombone. Man I loved the set up, the dueling stories, times lines etc.. restoration of an ancient British home that Rembrant may or may not have been at..but.. The main modern character has her clothes off on the second day with a guy, who's maimed and probably dangerous~ WHILE SHE'S PAINTING HIS PORTRAIT. So was this supposed to be a twist on the artist/subject thing? Big sigh. Ah well.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am still reading this but I really love it. I find that the writer easily goes from the modern day sentiment to the historical reality and grasps the personal vision Rembrandt had as he observed his world and his relationship to others.
It is one of those books that you read five or six chapters without putting it down.

Will Davenport has entered into the mind and soul of Rembrandt. The descriptions give you the hues of how the artist perceived everything around him.

[Dilly Dalley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't manage to finish this book. I'm thinking that I'll borrow it from the library again one day to give it another go. It was a pretty busy time when I read it and I probably didn't get far enough into the book to work out if I really disliked it enough to not finish it. The book has a reasonably complicated structure, moving between the modern world and the 17th Century. I found it hard to care about the characters in both periods....again, I didn't give it much of a go.

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had almost everything I could hope for in a book: historical fiction, parallel narrative, a bit of romance, a bit of historical mystery, an historical figure perhaps where he shouldn't be, and possible modern consequences. However, this book did not have likable characters. I did not care what happened to any of them. The main character had potential, but she seemed more concerned with her next man than her art or life. Oh well, maybe next time.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of an art piece itself, with quietly powerful description, a compelling cast, and a neat art mystery all together. I do, however, take issue with the extreme abruptness of the ending - I think the authorial decision of the final outcome works, but I wish he'd given it the same depth of treatment as the rest of the book.

[Brandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although it should be considered an easy read, I didn't find that to be the case. The overall story piqued my interest. There were some real laugh out loud moments. I understood the purpose of the story, the message, but I still walk away unsatisfied. I have yet to pinpoint what it was exactly, it just wasn't that good.

[Alison Oakley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, it completely took me in, I loved the way it made me examine how we see ourselves and how others see us. Is it this or the way we see others that matters?
That aside it is a funny, well written novel, I'm not sure as to whether the book is historically accurate or not but I'd like to think it was.

[Ellie Holmes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a big fan of James Long and Will Davenport but this particular book didn't hold me in the way his other books have done. This is possibly because he had set the bar so high before.

I didn't take to any of the main characters whether in the past or the present and so consequently whilst I wanted to see how the story would end, I wasn't gripped by it as I have been by his other works.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

An okay read - had to press myself to persevere as I really wanted to find out what would unfold in the last few chapters.

Jo

Historical Romance Review