The Crimson Portrait - Hardcover
It is in spring in 1915. On a sprawling country estate not far from London, a young woman mourns her husband, fallen on a distant battlefield. The isolated and eerie stillness in which she grieves will soon be shattered as her home is transformed into a bustling military hospital. Unsettled by the intrusion of the soldiers, the increasingly frustrated widow finds unexpected solace in the company of a wounded officer whose mutilated face, concealed by bandages, she cannot see. Their affair takes a fateful turn when she seizes upon the opportunity to remake her lover in the image of her lost husband. Inspired by the little-known but extraordinary collaboration between artists and surgeons in the treatment and rehabilitation of wounded men in the First World War, "The Crimson Portrait" illuminates the abiding mysteries of identity and desire. It is a disturbing, dazzling novel - as stylish, suspenseful and darkly erotic as Jody Shields' acclaimed bestselling debut, "The Fig Eater".
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Book Description:
The magnificent new historical novel by the author of the bestselling The Fig Eater - a haunting love story that makes unforgettably real the ravages of war.
From the Back Cover:
Spring 1915. On a sprawling country estate not far from London a young woman mourns her husband, fallen on a distant battlefield... The eerie stillness in which she grieves is shattered as her home is transformed into a bustling military hospital. Unsettled by the intrusion of the suffering soldiers, the increasingly fragile widow finds unexpected solace in the company of a wounded officer whose mutilated face, concealed by bandages, she cannot see. But then their affair takes an unexpected turn. Fate presents her with an opportunity: to remake her lover – with the unwitting help of a visionary surgeon and a woman artist – in the image of her lost husband... Inspired by the extraordinary collaboration between surgeons and artists in the treatment of the wounded during the First World War, The Crimson Portrait is a compelling read – as stylish and darkly erotic as Jody Shields’ acclaimed début, The Fig Eater. ‘As full of emotional detail as The English Patient’ Los Angeles Times ‘Dark and atmospheric...wonderfully descriptive and poetic’ USA Today ‘Compelling...exquisitely written...without a false line’ Washington Post
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- PublisherDoubleday
- Publication date2007
- ISBN 10 0385603169
- ISBN 13 9780385603164
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages304
- Rating
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