The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis
by Nick Bantock
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Nick Bantock's illustrated novel, The Venetian's Wife, is part love story, part mystery, and part ghostly tale--and an altogether bewitching brew of sensuality and lost treasures. Thoroughly bored with her job at the local museum, Sarah heads to the gallery to take another look at that new drawing, the one she can't stop thinking about, the one of the Hindu god Shiva, who dances...That's when it all begins. The next day, an e-mail message brings her a job offer: to find the few remaining show more pieces of a 15th-century adventurer's renowned collection of Indian sculptures. Her employer, curiously, wishes to communicate only by computer. She has no idea who he is or why he wants her. But other mysteries soon preoccupy her, such as the meaning of an enigmatic illuminated manuscript--and the sensual transformation that seems to be overtaking her. Through her quirkily decorated diary and the artful e-mail exchanges between Sara and her mentor, Nick Bantock has conjured up a richly illustrated tale of a relentless quest, an amorous legacy, and the resonating power of art--a lush, romantic adventure of the soul that tantalizes the reader to the last line. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I loved the first two Griffin & Sabine books with all my heart, and despite reading that Nick Bantock never really managed to re-create G&S's artistic and literary intrigue and fun in subsequent stories, when I stumbled upon Venetian's Wife in a used books store, I couldn't resist.
Yes, the story initially captivates - a mysterious man is searching for a collection of centuries lost Hindu sculptures and enlists the help of a young museum assistant who has closed herself off from the world. But, instead of taking time to develop characters, tension, and a thought-provoking story-line, before we know it, we're at the happily ever after ending. Huh???
Even the graphic design and collage-style artwork, which was so enjoyable, unique, and show more memorable in G&S, leaves one wishing there had been a bit more thought and attention to detail.
It's as if Venetian's Wife was a "must deliver" publishing contract promise that was hurried out the gate instead of taking the time to fully explore the subject matter and develop another trilogy (or at least a longer book).
For those reasons, I give it only 2 stars. "It was ok" pretty much sums up how I felt - which then resulted in real heartbreak on my end because I wanted so much more magic than what was ultimately delivered. show less
Yes, the story initially captivates - a mysterious man is searching for a collection of centuries lost Hindu sculptures and enlists the help of a young museum assistant who has closed herself off from the world. But, instead of taking time to develop characters, tension, and a thought-provoking story-line, before we know it, we're at the happily ever after ending. Huh???
Even the graphic design and collage-style artwork, which was so enjoyable, unique, and show more memorable in G&S, leaves one wishing there had been a bit more thought and attention to detail.
It's as if Venetian's Wife was a "must deliver" publishing contract promise that was hurried out the gate instead of taking the time to fully explore the subject matter and develop another trilogy (or at least a longer book).
For those reasons, I give it only 2 stars. "It was ok" pretty much sums up how I felt - which then resulted in real heartbreak on my end because I wanted so much more magic than what was ultimately delivered. show less
In the same vein as the Griffin and Sabine books, this is a beautifully illustrated epistolary novel involving a young American woman and a Venetian ghost. I enjoyed it very much but my belief will only suspend itself so far - if a ghost has no substance, granted it can communicate through emails and other modern technology but how can it see? And the story and ease of Sara's mission are far too glib; I would have liked more struggle and villainous enemies to be overcome. All the same, it is well written and produced and my fingers are itching to make some of those sumptuously rich collages.
3.5 stars
Sara works at a museum and isn’t looking for a new job when she is contacted by email, out of the blue, but someone she doesn’t know. This man is offering her a mysterious well-paid job, and their contact is to only be via email. It turns out he would like her to help him find and acquire 4 original sculptures from the 15th century. Meanwhile, she does miss seeing the man at work she has a crush on.
This is something very different, with illustrations peppered on most (if not all) pages; it was part in diary form and part email. This surprised me. I was a bit doubtful about it and could not remember why I added it to my tbr. I’m not that much into art, and it has an odd subtitle. It was good, though. It moved quickly, so show more was not very long and did not take long to read. show less
Sara works at a museum and isn’t looking for a new job when she is contacted by email, out of the blue, but someone she doesn’t know. This man is offering her a mysterious well-paid job, and their contact is to only be via email. It turns out he would like her to help him find and acquire 4 original sculptures from the 15th century. Meanwhile, she does miss seeing the man at work she has a crush on.
This is something very different, with illustrations peppered on most (if not all) pages; it was part in diary form and part email. This surprised me. I was a bit doubtful about it and could not remember why I added it to my tbr. I’m not that much into art, and it has an odd subtitle. It was good, though. It moved quickly, so show more was not very long and did not take long to read. show less
The Venetian's Wife revisits classic Nick Bantock territory--a creative loner facing an intellectual and emotional challenge with elements of mystery and magic. Perhaps because the story revolves around computer correspondence, there are fewer of the rich illustrations found in the Griffin & Sabine books. However, in compensation, the story involves forty-two antique Indian sculptures, an ancient illustrated memoir, a New Orleans artist, and various postcards and maps and is peppered with the usual array of wonderful Bantock stampings and collages.
I loved Sara's computer diary which seemed to reflect the relative ease of quickly typing in an unedited conversation with oneself--something I am more inclined to do at a computer than when show more journaling with a pen. I also appreciated how the email correspondence between the main character, Sara, and her mysterious employer Nicholas Conti, became less formal and more revealing as the story developed. The deeper character development was an unexpected bonus, adding to an intriguing storyline and entrancing illustrations. show less
I loved Sara's computer diary which seemed to reflect the relative ease of quickly typing in an unedited conversation with oneself--something I am more inclined to do at a computer than when show more journaling with a pen. I also appreciated how the email correspondence between the main character, Sara, and her mysterious employer Nicholas Conti, became less formal and more revealing as the story developed. The deeper character development was an unexpected bonus, adding to an intriguing storyline and entrancing illustrations. show less
The Venetian’s Wife grabbed me from the beginning. A young woman working at a boring museum job is contacted via email one day by a complete stranger, though a very wealthy one, who asks her if she’ll work for him. Her mission: to find four missing sculptures out of a collection of 42 depictions of Hindu gods. I found myself feeling envious of all the luxury travel coupled with the thrill of the chase which just seemed too perfect. The design of the book is appealing, with beautiful drawings and collages throughout. The kind of book to inspire new generations of artists and creative minds.
The subtitle of this oversized, lavishly illustrated volume confirms that we are once again in the kind of quasi-mythical kingdom that provided the setting for writer and illustrator Bantok's bestselling Griffin and Sabine series. I did like the epistolatory style of the book: all emails, journal entries, and letters.
San Francisco art conservator Sara Wolfe, who is fascinated by a drawing of the Indian god Shiva hanging on the walls of the museum where she works, receives an e-mail message from one N. Conti, who somehow is aware of her obsession and offers her a job traveling around the world assembling back his 40 pieace sculture set of Indian deities.
The narrative proceeds via these e-mail messages and through the protagonists' show more entries into their computer journals. Her employer, curiously, wishes to communicate only by computer. She has no idea who he is or why he wants her. But other mysteries soon preoccupy her, such as the meaning of an enigmatic illuminated manuscript -- and the sensual transformation that seems to be overtaking her.
In this story, however, Sara and Conti are not fated to be lovers. The latter, in fact, is the ghost of a real-life figure, wealthy Renaissance merchant and indefatigable traveler Niccolo Dei Conti, who died in 1469 and needs Sara's help in order to be reunited with his wife, Yasoda, in the afterlife.
And Sara, with Conti's help, discovers her own destined mate, a colleague called Marco (surely Bantok's humorous reference to another fabled traveler). The mysteries around which the plot hinge on Conti's identity and his ultimate purpose in reassembling his collection are suspensefully maintained, augmented by Bantok's intensely colorful and often sensual illustrations.
I was very disappointed by the lacklustre ending I got. It's left to the reader to assume that Sara or Marco or both are descendants of Conti in some way but it's vague. I love the idea of a love so intense and profound that even death cannot overcome it and I'm willing to accept that Conti had to wait for a certain person with the right combination of factors to appear to unlock the key before he could be reunited with his beloved Yashoda, but Bantock could have given us a far better ending than the one he did, considering the superb buildup.
Book Details:
Title The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis
Author Nick Bantock
Reviewed By Purplycookie show less
San Francisco art conservator Sara Wolfe, who is fascinated by a drawing of the Indian god Shiva hanging on the walls of the museum where she works, receives an e-mail message from one N. Conti, who somehow is aware of her obsession and offers her a job traveling around the world assembling back his 40 pieace sculture set of Indian deities.
The narrative proceeds via these e-mail messages and through the protagonists' show more entries into their computer journals. Her employer, curiously, wishes to communicate only by computer. She has no idea who he is or why he wants her. But other mysteries soon preoccupy her, such as the meaning of an enigmatic illuminated manuscript -- and the sensual transformation that seems to be overtaking her.
In this story, however, Sara and Conti are not fated to be lovers. The latter, in fact, is the ghost of a real-life figure, wealthy Renaissance merchant and indefatigable traveler Niccolo Dei Conti, who died in 1469 and needs Sara's help in order to be reunited with his wife, Yasoda, in the afterlife.
And Sara, with Conti's help, discovers her own destined mate, a colleague called Marco (surely Bantok's humorous reference to another fabled traveler). The mysteries around which the plot hinge on Conti's identity and his ultimate purpose in reassembling his collection are suspensefully maintained, augmented by Bantok's intensely colorful and often sensual illustrations.
I was very disappointed by the lacklustre ending I got. It's left to the reader to assume that Sara or Marco or both are descendants of Conti in some way but it's vague. I love the idea of a love so intense and profound that even death cannot overcome it and I'm willing to accept that Conti had to wait for a certain person with the right combination of factors to appear to unlock the key before he could be reunited with his beloved Yashoda, but Bantock could have given us a far better ending than the one he did, considering the superb buildup.
Book Details:
Title The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis
Author Nick Bantock
Reviewed By Purplycookie show less
Easy read and beautiful illustrations but there were times that I found myself too distracted by the artistry of the book to actually want to read the page I was on. The story seems secondary to the illustrations.
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Author Information
Nick Bantock was born in Stourbridge, England on the 14th of July 1949. He went to school in the suburbs of North East London, and from there moved on to an art college in the market town of Maidstone, Kent. At the age of 23, he quit his job in a gambling house and began working as a freelance illustrator. In 16 years he produced approximately 300 show more book covers, including novels by Philip Roth and John Updike. During the winter of 1988 he moved to Vancouver Canada, and two years later started work on his own books. He is most well known for his Griffin and Sabine Trilogy, an artful representation of a long distance romance. His other works include The Artful Dodger: Images and Reflections (2000) - a visual autobiography, and retrospective, Urgent 2nd Class: Creating Curious Collage, Dubious Documents, and Other Art from Ephemera (2004) and Windflower (2006) - with Edoardo Ponti. (Bowker Author Biography) Nick Bantock is the author of numerous illustrated novels, most recently "The Artful Dodger" and the tenth anniversary, limited edition of "Griffin & Sabine". Born in England, he now lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. (Publisher Provided) show less
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- Canonical title
- The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis
- Original title
- The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis
- Alternate titles
- The Venetian's Wife
- Original publication date
- 1996
- People/Characters
- Sara Wolfe; Niccolo Conti; Peter Carroll; Marco
- Important places
- San Francisco, California, USA; Venice, Veneto, Italy
- Dedication
- To Cecily and Gerald Godfrey
who sowed
the first
seed - First words
- The year is 1469.
- Quotations
- To the rhythm of our blood
To the rhythm of our blood
Drumming, drumming,
to the rhythm of our blood.
Rain beating on my back,
water running round your thigh
to the rhythm
to the rhythm of our blood.
C... (show all)limbing, falling,
through the drumming of the rain
to the echoes of our blood. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Then to a rattle of thunder, and enveloped in lightning's brilliance, Yasoda, celestial handmaiden to Parvati, rejoined me after over five hundred years of forced separation.
- Original language
- American English
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- 24,136
- Reviews
- 21
- Rating
- (3.95)
- Languages
- English, French, German, Portuguese
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 8
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 4