★ 06/07/2021
The real-life theft of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa from the Louvre on Aug. 21, 1911, by workman Vincenzo Peruggia provides the backdrop for this outstanding caper from Nero Award winner Santlofer (Anatomy of Fear). In 2019, Luke Perrone, a nontenured university professor of art history and Vincenzo’s descendant, searches the Laurentian library in Florence, Italy, for his great-grandfather’s journal in the hope of determining whether the stolen Mona Lisa was replaced by a forgery before its recovery in 1913, and thus ensuring his academic position. John Washington Smith, an ambitious analyst from Interpol’s Art Theft Division, and the mysterious Alexandra Greene join Luke in his effort, and the trio are soon contending with nefarious scholars, forgers, stalkers, a Franciscan monk, and a Russian hit man as the bodies pile up. Details of Florence, Paris, and New York City enhance the twisty plot, as does the insider view of the underground world of art collectors driven by deception, ego, and greed. Santlofer, himself an artist, should win more awards with this one. Agent: Jane von Mehren, Aevitas Creative Management. (Aug.)
Ballerini's smooth voice and lyrical use of linguistics transport the listener to Italy and France as he portrays the suspenseful search to uncover the secrets behind the world-famous smile.… Listeners will find themselves drawn into the intrigue in an attempt to solve this startling whodunit thriller.” —Booklist
“Edoardo Ballerini's fast-paced narration amplifies the suspense in this fictionalized mystery about the very real controversy surrounding the authenticity of Leonardo da Vinci's MONA LISA.… Ballerini provides authentic voices and accents for the various Italians who aid Luke's research and switches to tough-guy New Yorker for Luke and the Interpol agent who is following him. Ballerini clearly distinguishes a cast of characters that include a dangerous hit man working for a collector of stolen art and a mysterious American woman who seduces Luke.” –AudioFile Magazine
"Oh, what a web Jonathan Santlofer weaves in this un-put-downable book! THE LAST MONA LISA brings together past and present, seasons it with intriguing characters, and brushes it with plot twists that you don't see coming to create an unstoppable what-happens-next momentum. Santlofer has outdone himself this time." - Michael Connelly, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller series
"A deliciously tense read that mixes a present day hunt for the truth with a real-life historical heist to page-turning effect!" - Ruth Ware, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One By One
"It's hard to imagine another writer who could pull off a feat like The Last Mona Lisa, with its combination of thrills, history, and insider knowledge of the art world. A singular achievement by a terrific writer. Really stunning." - Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author
"Astonishingly, Jonathan Santlofer is a brilliant writer of fiction and nonfiction—and a superb visual artist as well. All his skills come together in The Last Mona Lisa, and the result is wholly satisfying." - Lawrence Block, bestselling author of more than 50 novels, including Eight Million Ways to Die and A Walk Among the Tombstones
"From its seductive first pages, The Last Mona Lisa carries us along on an utterly irresistible time-jumping, continent-leaping tale of intrigue and family secrets, obsession and the ineffable power of art itself. I could not put it down." - Megan Abbott, bestselling and award-winning author of Give Me Your Hand and The Turnout
"This is a terrific read - compelling, intelligent, fascinating and deeply satisfying. It was a book I did not want to end." - Peter James, #1 bestselling crime thriller author
"Fabulous—instantly immersive, intriguing and suspenseful, and expert and authentic too ... only a writer who is also an artist—or an artist who is also a writer—could have pulled it off. This feels like the thriller Santlofer was born to write." - Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Jack Reacher series
"A riveting novel, weaving the real-life 1911 theft of Leonardo's masterpiece into a nail-biting contemporary drama where billionaire collectors, art historians, book collectors and Interpol engage in so many double and triple crosses you're left wondering until the last page whom to trust and whom to fear. The Last Mona Lisa is like a master class in how to create a deep understanding of art history while making a seamless thriller." - Sara Paretsky, New York Times bestselling author of the V.I, Warshawski series
"THE LAST MONA LISA is a pacy, seductive international thriller of the first order. With its seamless blend of action, intriguing maze of family secrets, and the gripping, emotional journal entries of a long-dead art thief, this is a transporting novel, made all the more captivating because of the true story at its heart. Don't miss it!" - Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45
"A sleek and cunning book." - The Brooklyn Rail
"Suspenseful, lush with Florence's glorious art and architecture, sexy, and emotionally complex, Santlofer's multifaceted tale of how a passion for art can turn criminal contrasts the genuine with the fake and asks if beauty and love can truly be transcendent." - Booklist, STARRED Review
"Details of Florence, Paris, and New York City enhance the twisty plot, as does the insider view of the underground world of art collectors driven by deception, ego, and greed." - Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review
"Santlofer crafts a layered and absorbing art mystery, complete with exciting action scenes and beautiful descriptions of the city of Florence and its art as well as Paris and Nice....a must for fans of Dan Brown." - Kirkus Reviews
