HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

The Pearl Thief by Fiona McIntosh
Loading...

The Pearl Thief (edition 2018)

by Fiona McIntosh (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations
1025265,934 (3.86)None
Severine Kassel is asked by the Louvre in 1963 to aid the British Museum with curating its antique jewellery, her specialty. Her London colleagues find her distant and mysterious; her cool beauty the topic of conversations around its quiet halls. No one could imagine that she is a desperately damaged woman, hiding her trauma behind her chic, French image. It is only when some dramatic Byzantine pearls are loaned to the Museum that Severine's poise is dashed and the tightly controlled life she's built around herself is shattered. Her shocking revelation of their provenance sets off a frenzied hunt for Nazi Ruda Mayek. Mossad's interest is triggered and one of its most skilled agents comes out of retirement to join the hunt, while the one person who can help her - the solicitor handling the Pearls - is bound by client confidentiality. As Severine follows Mayek's trail, there is still one lifelong secret for her to reveal - and one for her to discover. From the snowy woodlands outside Prague to the Tuilieries of Paris and the heather-covered moors of Yorkshire comes a confronting and heart-stopping novel that explores whether love and hope can ever overpower atrocity in a time of war and hate.… (more)
Member:earthsinger
Title:The Pearl Thief
Authors:Fiona McIntosh (Author)
Info:Ebury Digital (2018), 512 pages
Collections:Kindle To Read
Rating:
Tags:None

Work Information

The Pearl Thief by Fiona McIntosh

None
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

Showing 5 of 5
First time reading this author. I have seen much of their work around.
It was about what I expected. Easy to read, but interesting enough to keep things going. Did find some story devices frustrating in the way they held up the story progress. Often becoming impatient at the pauses between the story of Katrina's (Katarina's?) past.
Honestly, did not care for the epilogue, would have been better if the book ended without it. Felt more impactful at the end of the chapter since all ends were tied up and there was no real need for the post-amble. ( )
  Wendell_Lear | Mar 26, 2023 |
Story of Jewish Czech family and the impact of the Nazi eradication of Jews and theft of valuable property. How one young woman was able to trace the thief through the provenance of a unique pearl piece that was from the Ottoman Empire but had been in her family for centuries. Many stories of the holocaust have been written but this was done quite differently. ( )
  ElizabethCromb | Jun 11, 2021 |
Nazi hunting thriller with soppy happy ending. ( )
  siri51 | Jul 13, 2020 |
This is the first book I have read by this author, and I was not disappointed. The story was harrowing at times, but the descriptive passages, historical research and attention to detail bought the novel to life. We are all aware of the atrocities inflicted upon Jews during World War Two, and reading this harrowing tale centered on the life of Katerina is heart-rending. How she was able to carry on with her life and rise above her past made for a very interesting story, and this was a hard book to put down as the story unfolded. I loved her portrayal of her main male characters and especially Edward. ( )
  Carole46 | May 6, 2020 |
Sweeping across Prague, Paris, London and York during World War II and then into the Sixties, "The Pearl Thief" was an entertaining read. Although not my favourite Fiona McIntosh book, I did admire the attention to detail. She had certainly done her research and brought these places alive, especially the moors of Yorkshire and the forests of Czechoslovakia. At times this novel was harrowing, heart-breaking and poignant.

Ruda Mayek was a truly evil villain who had no soul or knew no boundaries. What he did to Katerina and her family, when she was a young teenager, made me sick to the stomach. The author didn't pul any punches and I was shedding tears along with Katerina.

Unfortunately, there was a love triangle, but I did like both Daniel and Edward despite them being poles apart. However, I must admit, I was disappointed with Katerina's choice. I thought she and the other man were better suited.

Although I found "The Pearl Thief "slow in places and predictable, it was a touching read highlighting the power, the generosity and the ugliness of the human spirit. ( )
  HeatherLINC | Jul 31, 2019 |
Showing 5 of 5
no reviews | add a review
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
First words
Quotations
Last words
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

Severine Kassel is asked by the Louvre in 1963 to aid the British Museum with curating its antique jewellery, her specialty. Her London colleagues find her distant and mysterious; her cool beauty the topic of conversations around its quiet halls. No one could imagine that she is a desperately damaged woman, hiding her trauma behind her chic, French image. It is only when some dramatic Byzantine pearls are loaned to the Museum that Severine's poise is dashed and the tightly controlled life she's built around herself is shattered. Her shocking revelation of their provenance sets off a frenzied hunt for Nazi Ruda Mayek. Mossad's interest is triggered and one of its most skilled agents comes out of retirement to join the hunt, while the one person who can help her - the solicitor handling the Pearls - is bound by client confidentiality. As Severine follows Mayek's trail, there is still one lifelong secret for her to reveal - and one for her to discover. From the snowy woodlands outside Prague to the Tuilieries of Paris and the heather-covered moors of Yorkshire comes a confronting and heart-stopping novel that explores whether love and hope can ever overpower atrocity in a time of war and hate.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.86)
0.5
1 1
1.5
2 2
2.5 1
3 3
3.5 2
4 6
4.5 2
5 8

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 204,381,775 books! | Top bar: Always visible