[A] beguiling new novel about the mysteries of creativity from master storyteller Anthony Quinn… Every sentence he produces is a joy

A gripping mystery… Sweeping across centuries in its three interlinked sections, it summons the past effortlessly, as a vehicle for a plot that is both intricate and immaculately constructed… Quinn’s most ambitious book to date and decidedly his best

Quinn is an accomplished writer at ease with the idioms of the past… He is also a subtle creator of character… opens up timeless themes of family, success and love

Quinn is an intelligent analyst of the uncertainties of love and art

These women’s lives are gently and perceptively explored

Gripping historical fiction

[A] stylish literary triptych… Quinn is a fine writer with an instinctive understanding of the pitfalls of the bohemian life

A deft, century-hopping novel… delight[s] in the granular details of an era, as well as a thorough knowledge of its broad sweep

There is a delicious mystery at the heart of this novel

One of my favourite writers… a breathtakingly ambitious novel that nails the small personal triumphs and tragedies of each woman’s life

So versatile – Quinn seems to reinvent himself with every book

A witty and affecting saga… It delights in exploring tiny, unexpected quirks of character and broad brushstrokes of greater emotion alike, and never fails to entertain

Quinn displays an impressive range of expression: the mannered, epistolary style of the early chapters gives way to touches of Victorian gothic, and then to crisp contemporary prose

Truly magnificent… each part is separate and distinct, involving and compassionate, yet all are mysteriously connected… Period details sparkle in this elegant prose… This is Quinn’s masterpiece

Quinn’s books are unbeatable treats… His latest, a hall of mirrors across three centuries revolving around a single painting, is both about art and irresistibly artful

Poignant, involving, beautiful and thoroughly entertaining… Quinn’s best and most ambitious novel yet dances through three centuries, entwines the worlds of theatre and art in a thoroughly seductive embrace, and brings all his considerable gifts into play… This is a novel packed with pleasures

Pleasurable… The novel is a triptych, each part standing alone and quickly establishing its particular note and colour by means of language, carefully chosen detail and a sprinkling of familiar names

Quinn has an artist’s eye and can mine drama from even the plainest parlour or afternoon in the park