Book Review for “The Muse” by Jessie Burton.
Summary: “On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn’t know she had, she remains a mystery – no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery. The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. Into this fragile paradise come artist and revolutionary Isaac Robles and his half-sister Teresa, who immediately insinuate themselves into the Schloss family, with explosive and devastating consequences . . .”
Age: Adult; Genres: Literary, Fiction; Settings: Era/s: Historical/Modern – Dual Timelines; Location/s: England – London; Spain – Arazuelo (a poor village near the city of Malaga, on the southern coast); Other Categories: Novel, Women, Art, Artists, Literary, Biographical, Mystery/Crime, Tragedy.
When I read Burton’s “The Miniaturist” I opened the first page and was confronted with one of the best opening lines I’d ever read. This is why I’m a bit surprised that it has taken me this long to get to this novel, which was published not long afterwards. More importantly, why did I not get any of her other books. Okay, to be fair, although I knew I admired Burton’s writing, I also heard some not-so-positive things about this book – mind you, only after I bought this copy. Maybe that’s why I shied away from this book. But I don’t think I should have done, because when I started reading this one, I was taken back to her debut novel, and started enjoying myself right away. That said, I have to say that I do prefer that one to this, and below you’ll find out why.
First of all, this is one of those “dreaded” dual timeline stories that so many people have been eschewing lately. Admittedly, there were times while I was reading this that I wondered if these two timelines were really necessary. However, in the end I understood why Burton decided to use them, even if I felt like there was somewhat of a disconnect between Odelle in the modern sections and all of the characters in the more historical Spanish sections. What I mean by that is, Odelle seems to fall into the world of art by accident, where her real passion isn’t in the visual arts, but rather in creative writing. It just seems to me that if Odelle was a budding artist (or sculptor), rather than a budding author, her whole motivation to work at the gallery would have felt more personal, and less than strictly financial. I mean, I get how they connect, it just felt a touch odd, but maybe that’s just me.
That said, I thought that the Spanish parts were particularly powerful and evocative. This is probably because it is set before and at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, which is a war I know far less about than either of the two world wars that seemed to have parenthesized this one. What I do know is that while it was going on, the early rumblings of Hitler were already evident, and knowing that the Schloss family were probably Jewish, and came from Vienna, is very significant to this story. Now, because Schloss was a real person, as was Isaac Robles, this does make this a biographical fiction novel. That said, I understand that Burton has taken some very generous poetic license with these real people that would have bothered me much more if I was more knowledgeable of the world of mid-20th century art and artists. Purists with more knowledge of this subject will probably get pretty pissed off at Burton for twisting the stories of these people, and I wouldn’t blame them. But this didn’t really lessen my enjoyment, mostly because I really liked how Burton built up this intricate plot so carefully, and turned it into a mystery of sorts, with decades of deception at its core.
Overall, I really did enjoy this book, and I hope the dual timeline aspect and the bending of some historical facts don’t put off too many readers. I found the main protagonists from both timelines to be well crafted and sympathetic, and the complex story that included touches of romance, worked their way out without getting sappy. Mind you, there was one tiny bit regarding one relationship that bordered on being almost too graphically described for me, but that was a fleeting scene. So yes, I will recommend this book, but with the caveat that I did like her first one a bit better. I’ll therefore give this book four stars out of five.
This book is available (via the following affiliate links) from Amazon, Blackwell’s (prices include international shipping), Waterstones, WHSmith, Kobo US (eBooks and audiobooks), Booksamillion.com, Barnes & Noble, iTunes (iBooks and audiobooks), new or used from Alibris, Awesome Books (not an affiliate link) or Better World Books (promoting libraries and world literary), as well as from Bookshop.org and UK.Bookshop (to support independent bookshops, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic).
This novel qualifies for the following reading challenges: Historical Fiction Reading Challenge (#2), Cloak & Dagger (#2).
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