Review of The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci

[nel wiley]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci" by Belle Ami.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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Truly a unique and fascinating book, by Belle Ami, is a spellbinding combination of a historical romance, mystery, and time travel fantasy. Angela Renatus is an art historian, who is doing an internship at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. It is her dream internship, but it takes a downward turn when the museum director, Dr. Alberto Scordato turns out to be a lecherous man with nefarious intentions. A discussion with the staff reveals that this is a pattern for him. Her dream internship becomes a nightmare. Her luck begins to change when an art recovery detective, Alex Caine, contacts her about a missing DaVinci painting, a wedding portrait of Davinci’s friends, Fioretta and Giuliano. He needs an expert in the Italian Renaissance. A friend, Michael Hoffman, recommended Angela. Angela is very hesitant to leave her internship, but the behavior of Dr. Scordato makes staying intolerable. She takes the job.

From there, the book spins an amazing tale that travels through time and across continents. Alex and Angela go to Florence, Italy, to the Uffizi Museum. The Medici family art collection is kept there. The convoluted search for the missing wedding portrait of Fioretta and Giuliano begins. A search that takes them to Rome and a vineyard in Montefioralle, Italy and takes them across more than five centuries. Unfortunately, Dr. Scordato is also searching for the missing DaVinci painting and is harboring a grudge against Angela and Alex. Dr. Scordato’s connections with the art underworld are revealed. He will stop at nothing to retrieve the painting and to exact revenge on Alex and Angela.

‘The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci’ is an interesting combination of genres, reading it was a very pleasant adventure. It was, however, difficult to keep track of which century, which people and what place was being discussed. There are many jumps, which can cause a little confusion. I frequently had to re-read sections to orient myself. For this reason, I am rating it a four out of five. I found the editing to be well done.

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The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci
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