The Modigliani Scandal

Ken Follett, in his preface to The Modigliani Scandal says something along the lines of: “I set out to write a deep and meaningful novel about the human condition, but everyone who read it thought it was a fast-moving caper story.” That might well be the reason why I put the book down at page 83 with no desire to ever pick it up again. The characters are written as real people, with real emotions and real problems (which makes the caper plot feel serious when it should be frothy), but they’re bounced around by the mechanics of the plot (which makes them feel like pawns rather than people and reduces your investment in their happiness. The two halves of the story never come close to gelling.

Jeffrey Archer, whose own early show more novel--Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less--is a minor masterpiece of this kind of plotting, would have pulled off this story by subordinating the social commentary to the caper. Less genre-centric writers would have ditched the caper plot and made the story a (less complicated) trip through the grinding unfairness of the art world. Follett tries to do both, and The Modigliani Scandal crashes, unsatisfyingly, to the ground somewhere between the two stools. show less

Being a fan of Ken Follett's The Pillars of The Earth series and with Modigliani being one of favourite artists I just had to read this. It's short for a Follett book, only 279 pages and personally I'd have liked a little more of Modigliani in the story. It's all about the art world, art critics, art galleries, artists and forgeries. Quite the whodunit and when all is revealed I nodded gently and smiled to myself - aha. There's lots of skulduggery, lots of money involved, beautiful women, handsome men, fast cars and an undiscovered masterpiece at the centre of it all.

This is my first Ken Follett book and I knew going in it was not considered one of his best. It is however a fun satire on the pompous and self-important art world.

Follett introduces MANY characters, that can get hard to keep track of. There’s Julian who’s preparing to open a new art gallery, bankrolled by his father-in-law’s money. Dee, an art student on the hunt for a long lost Modigliani painting that could be the basis of her doctoral thesis. Peter is an up-and-coming London artist, frustrated by galleries that won’t give him the attention he thinks he deserves. There’s also Samantha, a successful but dissatisfied actress and her pill-pushing boyfriend Tom. Lipsey is the private investigator. Also, Lord Cardwell, who show more needs to sell his vast art collection to finance his lifestyle. And a bunch more, including crooks, journalists, critics and more gallery owners.

This is not a story with rich character development. It’s much more a lighthearted attempt at exposing a world where lots of money gets moved around, where most people know a whole lot less than they are supposed to, and where very little of consequence is at stake. In short, the art world.

It’s a quick read, ideal for beach or airplane ride. You’ll probably enjoy it while you read and then promptly forget all about it. show less

This is my first Ken Follett book and I knew going in it was not considered one of his best. It is however a fun satire on the pompous and self-important art world.

Follett introduces MANY characters, that can get hard to keep track of. There’s Julian who’s preparing to open a new art gallery, bankrolled by his father-in-law’s money. Dee, an art student on the hunt for a long lost Modigliani painting that could be the basis of her doctoral thesis. Peter is an up-and-coming London artist, frustrated by galleries that won’t give him the attention he thinks he deserves. There’s also Samantha, a successful but dissatisfied actress and her pill-pushing boyfriend Tom. Lipsey is the private investigator. Also, Lord Cardwell, who show more needs to sell his vast art collection to finance his lifestyle. And a bunch more, including crooks, journalists, critics and more gallery owners.

This is not a story with rich character development. It’s much more a lighthearted attempt at exposing a world where lots of money gets moved around, where most people know a whole lot less than they are supposed to, and where very little of consequence is at stake. In short, the art world.

It’s a quick read, ideal for beach or airplane ride. You’ll probably enjoy it while you read and then promptly forget all about it. show less

A pleasant but not outstanding Ken Follett. It's about forgery and obsolete art trade. Young artists show the gallerists that they can fake old masters or in whose style can invent images by selling them such fake art. On the other hand, a young woman tries to find an unknown Modigliani. This story is quick, but it does not always grab you like that.

Follett makes the mystery of the painting secondary to the machinations of all these shallow and unlikable characters who dance around each other in predictable and uninteresting ways. His commentary on the art world is very heavy-handed, and the sex and drugs, as well as the way the women are written, really date the book. This gave me a definite Jacqueline Susann feeling, but with all the fun and tawdriness taken out.

[full review here: http://spacebeer.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-modigliani-scandal-by-ken-follett.html ]

Una bella storia ricca di personaggi e situazioni apparentemente slegate tra loro ma che, combinandosi, alla fine daranno vita a una vicenda abbastanza plausibile e piacevole da leggere e seguire.
Di certo non il migliore dei libri di Follett ma, comunque, sempre una lettura molto piacevole e avvincente.
Effettive quattro stelle e mezzo.