Publishers Weekly Reviews With Violets!

   

Just received my first ever Publishers Weekly review! It’s on my historical With Violets. They consider it a debut novel since it’s my first book published as Elizabeth Robards. Here’s what they have to say:

With Violets

Elizabeth Robards. Avon, $13.95 paper (320p)

ISBN 978-0-06-157912-7

In her debut novel, Robards takes up

the story of impressionist painter Berthe

Morisot, who was a friend and lover of fellow

artist Edouard Manet, and imagines a

love affair between them against the backdrop

of a disapproving time. After they

first meet in the Louvre, Manet invites

Morisot to his studio, where he paints the

first of what would be countless portraits.

Morisot basks in the great man’s attention,

but she must learn to tread carefully

around Manet’s wife. Together, the painters

test the limits of propriety, engaging in a

risky affair that is compromised bit by bit

over time, leading to unexpected ends. Robards

constructs a convincing plot for these

real-life characters, her sense of emotion is

keen and the setting serviceably rendered,

but readers looking for insight into the art

should look elsewhere. (Nov.)

Hmm... Sort of conjures the feeling, "Thanks, I think..." But since my editor was pleased, and I wasn't aiming to "teach" art history, I suppose it's a good review.  Although, if the reviewer would've paid attention, he/she might have learned something … such as how the Salon de Paris operated... how the Impressionists formed... how they got their name... there was even an actual review of the first exhibit... I wasn't trying to hit people over the head with a history lesson, but subtle details were definitely there.

What do you think? Where’s the fine line between teaching and entertaining? Or are writers of fiction obligated to teach?

Comments

[Linda Sheehan]

What a gorgeous cover!! I look forward to reading your book and wish you success with it. I love reading about the artists, their muses, etc. Linda/CT

[D. Armstrong]

I loved your book!