Kat Lind, an American expatriate living in London with her entrepreneur husband and their young son, attends an opening at a prestigious Mayfair art gallery and is astonished to find her own face on the walls. The portraits are evidence of a long-ago love affair with the artist, Daniel Blake. Unbeknownst to her, he has continued to paint her ever since. Kat is seduced by her reflection on canvas and when Daniel appears in London, she finds herself drawn back into the sins and solace of a past that suddenly no longer seems so far away.

When the portraits catch the attention of the public, threatening to reveal not only her identity, but all that lies beyond the edges of the canvases, Kat comes face to face with the true price of their beauty and with all that she now could lose.

Moving between the glamour of the London art world and the sensuous days of a love affair in a dusty Paris studio, life and art bleed together as Daniel and Kat’s lives spin out of control, leading to a conclusion that is anything but inevitable.

4 STARS

When I think about this book, I think of colors. His milky blue eyes, bright white towels, glossy red cherries, a jade-green comb, etc. I loved the author’s descriptions of everything, especially the Parisian streets. I felt like I was there with Kat, experiencing Paris for the first time.

While the story moves between past and present, at first I was confused, but quickly became used to it. I grew to love the way the story unfolded. The past explaining who Kat is today. This was such a rich character study of Kat in a snapshot of her life when past meets present.

I can’t explain the feeling I had reading this book. I felt calm for most of the book even though I did not agree with many of Kat’s decisions and actions. I read this book slower than I normally read. I wanted to take it all in and feel everything the book had to offer. I wanted to absorb it. This to me is a sign of beautiful writing.

I am impressed by Mary Waters-Sayers’s talent, and look forward to reading more of her books. It was a lovely read and definitely a piece of art in its own right.