The Glassmaker

by Tracy Chevalier

'Ingenious' THE TIMES, Book of the Year

'Sparkling'OBSERVER

'A triumph… beyond admiration' PHILIP PULLMAN

'Spellbinding…. Chevalier at her fabulous best' ELIF SHAFAK

'As finely wrought as a dazzling Murano bead… one of the reigning queens of historical fiction' INDEPENDENT

‘A spectacular feat, crafted by a maestra at the top of her game’ SPECTATOR

FROM THE GLOBALLY ACCLAIMED AUTHOR OF GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING

Venice, 1486. Across the lagoon lies Murano. Time flows differently here – like the glass the island’s maestros spend their lives learning to handle.

Women are not meant to work with glass, but Orsola Rosso flouts convention to save her family from ruin. She works in secret, knowing her creations must be perfect to be accepted by men. But perfection may take a lifetime.

Skipping like a stone through the centuries, we follow Orsola as she hones her craft through war and plague, tragedy and triumph, love and loss.

The beads she creates will adorn the necks of empresses and courtesans from Paris to Vienna – but will she ever earn the respect of those closest to her?

Tracy Chevalier is a master of her own craft, and The Glassmaker is vivid, inventive, spellbinding: a virtuoso portrait of a woman, a family and a city that are as everlasting as their glass.

• ISBN13: 9780008153861
• Publish Date: 12 September 2024 (first published 31 July 2024)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: The Borough Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 400
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Glassmaker is an enthralling and lushly written historical novel by Tracy Chevalier. Released 18th June 2024 by Penguin Random House on their Viking imprint, it's 416 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, paperback, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

This is an engaging and meticulously written historical novel which starts in early Renaissance Venice and follows the secret craft of the glassmakers of Murano. It's the story of one gifted young female artist specifically, honing her craft in secret, set against the wider backdrop of the massive political and cultural upheavals of the period.

The prose is beautifully descriptive and polished. It's a classically written, well edited, smoothly engineered machine and although it's not at all derivative, will appeal to readers of classic historical authors like Umberto Eco, Jude Morgen, and Sue Monk Kidd. 

Four strong stars. It would be an excellent choice for public library acquisition, home library, or book club study. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.