Bloomfield Of Thoughts

Title: The Paris Secret
Author: Karen Swan
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 1447280695
No. of Pages: 480
Price: 399 INR

About the Book

Somewhere along the cobbled streets of Paris, an apartment lies thick with dust and secrets: full of priceless artworks hidden away for decades. 

High-flying fine art agent Flora from London, more comfortable with the tension of a million-pound auction than a cosy candlelit dinner for two, is called in to assess these suddenly discovered treasures. As an expert in her field, she must trace the history of each painting and discover who has concealed them for so long. 

Thrown in amongst the glamorous Vermeil family as they move between Paris and Antibes, Flora begins to discover that things aren't all that they seem, while back at home her own family is recoiling from a seismic shock. The terse and brooding Xavier Vermeil seems intent on forcing Flora out of his family's affairs - but just what is he hiding?

Review

The book opens up in Paris where two men try to break-in an old abandoned building and discover something which leaves them awestruck. The scene further shifts to fine art agent Flora Sykes, where she lives wither family that includes her father an ace Auctioneer, her mother and her elder brother. Flora is then called to investigate the abandoned Paris apartment which apparently is full of artworks from the Nazi period. The Renoirs, the Faucheux and many more artworks that the world lost track about. She then meets the owners of this abandoned property, a very big name in the social circle all over Paris “The Vermeil’s”. As she discovers some secrets associated with the paintings from the time of World War II, during her course of discovering and uncovering the secrets with each passing day she somehow crosses her paths with Xavier and Natasha Vermeil. With very less time to reconnect with the paintings history and pressure from her boss Angus, to take the painting in the highly awaited Art Auction.

Flora in the middle of her own family problems hiding the secret of her brother’s trail and being delved into finding out the history of the Vermeil’s and their association with the painting’s shuffling between 4 cities and getting to know roots of the work that she loves doing. Being attracted to the people she should not be and getting herself involved into the ‘Paris Secret’ and being  trying to heal from the betrayal from her friend. Not knowing if she is making her future or destroying it.

This book is a must read for every person who loves Mystery with hints of romance in it. The book has everything one can ask for, social life of young high class kid’s and the bond that they share with their family, the romance and mystery happening in the most beautiful city in the world ‘PARIS’.

Karen Swan has done a stellar job in writing this book that has so much about art and her research is fantastic. This book actually made me know art even more. The book has giving me a chance to know art history and I guess I am in love with artwork from the times of WWII now. I wouldn’t have made any effort to have knowledge of the artwork if I hadn’t read this book. I am glad that I got a chance to review this book and fall in love art just the way Flora does.

Thank You to the publisher for the review copy. All views expressed here are my own.

About the Author

Karen Swan began her career in fashion journalism before giving it all up to raise her three children and a puppy and to pursue her ambition of becoming a writer. She lives in the forest in Sussex, writing her books in a treehouse overlooking the Downs. Her books include Christmas at Tiffany's, Summer at Tiffany's, the Perfect Present, Christmas in the Snow and Christmas on Primrose Hill.