Terri M. LeBlanc
Written on Jun 5, 2010
Robert Oliver, who seems to be the main character, says almost nothing throughout the entire novel. The other character that is the focus of the novel, Beatrice, only makes an appearance in a handful of chapters and short letters scattered among the 550 or so pages. It's difficult to connect with characters who are driving the plot when they won't speak and make rare appearances.
In the end, the reveal of the mystery of why Oliver attacked the painting was excellent, however, I don't feel Kostova set the plot up to make the reveal as powerful as it could have been.