Here we go again, I’ve read another story about the art world, and I think this one is my favorite that I’ve read recently! I thought this was a fast-paced story, and I enjoyed that it wasn’t really a thriller, but more of an experience and a mystery.
Emma Caan has a job as a duplicator of art. It’s all legit, not an illegal forgery, but rather, a replica of an original that the owner asks for. Museums and art collectors pay for these well-done duplicates to show off on walls while the original stays safe in a vault somewhere. But then she’s offered a new job at an art gallery with a side-hustle to continue to create these replicas for only one customer.
Emma jumps at the chance, but soon discovers that behind the curtain of this fantastic-looking job are some darker truths.
Wow, I thought this was a wild ride! The story is told through present-day and flashbacks. The present-day story is an interview with Emma and the FBI, and the flashbacks are her telling her story of what happened. I really enjoyed this story-telling choice. It provided interesting foreshadowing of what we were about to learn in the story while not giving all the details until we get to that part in the flashback.
A lot of the story takes place in Hong Kong, and I really enjoyed the descriptions. The author brought a city I’ve been to a few times to life on the pages. Really, her lush writing brought everything to life!
Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The story was quick-paced with action seeming to happen on every page! I would highly recommend this one!
Where to Find This Book:
From the author of The Boys’ Club, a gripping novel set in the high-stakes world of art forgery that moves across the globe, from the trendy art galleries of Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood to the high-flying international art fairs of Hong Kong.
Can you spot the difference?
Emma Caan is a fake.
She’s a forger, an artist who specializes in nineteenth-century paintings. But she isn’t a criminal; her copies are commissioned by museums and ultra-wealthy collectors protecting their investments. Emma’s more than mastered a Gauguin brushstroke and a van Gogh wheat field, but her work is sometimes a painful reminder of the artistic dreams she once chased for herself, when she was younger and before her family and her world fell apart.
When oligarch art collector Leonard Sobetsky unexpectedly appears with an invitation, Emma sees a way out—a new job, a new path for herself, and access to the kind of money she needs to support her unstable and recently widowed mother.
But every invitation incurs an obligation . . . and Emma isn’t prepared for what’s to come. As she’s pulled further into Leonard’s opulent scene, she will discover what’s lurking beneath the glitz and glamour. When she does, the past she’s worked hard to overcome will collide with the present, making her wonder how much of her carefully curated life is just as fake as her forgeries . . .
Just the Facts:
Fake by Erica Katz
Genre: Mystery/Suspense
Publisher: Harper
Pub Date: February 22, 2022
I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.
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