REVIEW for 

Onlinebookclub.org

https://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-doctorshoot.html

BRIEF SUMMARY:

The book The Girl Who Knew DaVinci is a the first of a three series set of thriller novels by American author publishing as Belle Ami.

The Girl Who Knew DaVinci takes the reader on a wild and breathtaking ride through time as the novel’s central characters attempt to make sense of their own visions, feelings and relationships.

The plot is driven by the search for a fabulous painting, possibly done by Leonardo DaVinci, and likely worth millions at auction for the lucky finder.

The author creates an original psychological landscape to challenge the reader. As the novel unfolds the central characters, who are featured by DaVinci in the fabulous lost painting, strive to honour and fulfil their passionate love for each other, all in the face of destructive circumstance and the evil intent of others.

The novel is set mainly in Italy and is loaded with sumptuous settings of architecture, art, and food throughout what is a lavish journey of imagery for the reader.

Early in the novel the author steps forward and demands that the reader suspend belief and attachment to reality. Once that is achieved the reader is then escorted through a series of cyclic time capsules as the various aspirations and relationships of the characters unfold, and of course as the search for the painting heads toward its inexorable climax.

The art and setting references are well researched and provide many uplifting and enjoyable experiences for lovers of Italy and of high Renaissance art.

POSITIVE ASPECTS:

The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci is fast paced and the author skillfully provides plenty of hooks to keep the reader involved and turning the pages. The plot is solid and logical.

What at first seems a disparate and distant set of arenas quickly becomes unified into a single theatre for the characters to interact and to pursue their struggles for redemption and/or fulfillment. The reader gets to know the characters from both objective and subjective viewpoints.

The novel takes us on a well-researched and luxurious journey through Renaissance Italy then and now with the finest of Italian culture on display. The book is a feast for lovers of fine art, good food, and intricately woven suspense.

The novel is filled with entertaining easter eggs for fans of Renaissance thrillers, with some tongue-in-cheek allusions to biblical and other icons thrown in for good measure. If you can embrace the tenor of the plot, then a very rewarding read is on offer.

 

NEGATIVE ASPECTS

The author relies heavily upon stereotypes to structure the main characters: The female lead is an intelligent but naive orphan female needing a knight in shining armour; The male lead is a millionaire playboy with a gun and all the toys, excessive libido, and sleazy disrespectful small-talk (which the needy and inexperienced female laps up); The bad guys have confused and indistinct motives and the main baddie is a cardboard cut-out of a bad guy seen so many times before.

I felt that an author capable of delivering such a skilled narrative plot, should be capable of delivering more complex characters; a little more original and challenging to elevate the engagement of the reader.

The minor evil characters intended to drive the suspense are unoriginal stereotype mafia/nazi etc etc evil killers without depth or originality.

There are several oral profanities from the minor characters in the third section of the story, however I felt they were justifiable in terms of establishing the cultural perspective of individuals only briefly seen in the novel.

The final third of the novel stalls totally in relation to character development. As the plot heads toward its denouement the central characters languish in a sexual morass where the only distinguishing developments are the decadent and suppliant descent of the lead female into helpless dependence, and the libido driven dominance of the lascivious hero. The repetitious lovemaking between the main hero characters is described and overstated beyond anything necessary to the story and I found this indulgence repetitious, boring, and a frustrating waste of reading time.

 

RATING:

3 out of 5

I give this rating because I think that whilst the author displays high level plotting and descriptive capacity, and has produced a lively and descriptive story, the characters are unoriginal, and are mostly fitted into scenes without any complexity of motivation other than greed or lust. As a result the novel, whilst entertaining and gripping as a story, leaves the reader with one dimensional characters.

 

RECOMMENDATION:

Definitely worth as read as a fun indulgence for racy plot lovers.

Bit heavy on the sex, so only for mature readers.

ERRORS

First error: noted on p2 (may have been intentional but not obvious why):

 ‘Then I rolled it in lamb’s wool and fit it in a thick cardboard tube….’

Ami, Belle. The Girl Who Knew DaVinci (Out of Time Thriller Series Book 1) (p. 2). Tema Merback. Kindle Edition.

Second error; I did not like oblivious of in the following text as I was taught one may be oblivious of a concept, but oblivious to a physical presence. This may merely be me splitting hairs.

‘She was oblivious of him and showed no sign that her private sojourn had been intruded upon.’

Ami, Belle. The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci (Out of Time Thriller Series Book 1) (p. 11). Tema Merback. Kindle Edition.

Third error: the word YEAR is missing.

‘For a twenty-seven-old academic, she appeared to be completely oblivious of her power.’

Ami, Belle. The Girl Who Knew Da Vinci (Out of Time Thriller Series Book 1) (p. 161). Tema Merback. Kindle Edition.