An American museum curator in Berlin must find a fake painting-and a real killer-in this mystery from the Edgar Award-winning author of Switcheroo.
Chris Norgren, museum curator and Renaissance art expert, heads to Berlin to assist in mounting a sensational exhibit: The Plundered Past-twenty priceless Old Masters looted by the Nazis, thought for decades to be lost forever, and only recently rediscovered.
But things quickly get out of hand when Chris's patrician, fastidious boss, after sensing a forgery in the lot, turns up dead the very next day-on the steps of a dismal Frankfurt brothel, of all places. Now, Chris faces a daunting task: finding a counterfeit artwork among the masterpieces-and an all-too-real killer whose sights are now set on him.
A Deceptive Clarity is the first in the Chris Norgren Mysteries by the multiple award-winning creator of the Gideon Oliver "Skeleton Detective" novels-a celebrated master who "thoroughly understands the art of the murder mystery" (The Philadelphia Inquirer).
I really enjoyed this early offering from Aaron Elkins. Murder mysteries set in the rarefied and usually placid art/music/literature world appeal to me especially. This one was no exception and I found myself moved to begin the second book in the series immediately after finishing the first. I engaged with Dr. Norgren immediately and the plotting and writing kept me interested. The addition of Nazi 'liberated' priceless artwork and the meticulous background information and research were a nice bonus. I found a number of hitherto unknown-to-me artists to follow up on.
