I got this hardcover from the bulk-purchase sale at a local Goodwill thrift shop. It has a “lost art works” theme, centering on the (fictional) painting “The Improbability of Love” by (real-world) painter Jean-Antoine Watteau (circa 1700). Here, protagonist Annie stumbles upon a small, heavily-discolored painting while looking for a gift for an upcoming dinner-date. When she’s stood up for the date she decides to show the picture to experts to see if there’s any history behind it - and from there things rapidly get out of control.

The narrative switches between the present-time auction in which the painting is expected to break records, the leading-up-to-this events from Annie’s purchase of the painting to her being framed for stealing it - and committing arson to keep it, and, in a surprising twist, segments narrated by… the painting itself! (It’s a bit of a snob, and while it’s grateful to have been rediscovered and set on a path of being properly cleaned and admired, it finds poor Annie a less-than-suitable interim owner.)

This all could be very grim or could be very whimsical, and while I think the author was going for a mix of those elements, overall it didn’t draw me in. I skimmed many sections, pausing to find out what happened to the painting and to Annie, whose fate seemed in serious jeopardy almost to the very end - but (spoiler!) things work out. [They work out very quickly, in fact, with an epilogue providing tidbits about what happened to all the characters - and, yes, to the painting itself.]

I left this book in the Little Free Library, after wading through slushy snowdrifts {wry grin}; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in MA here.]

Released for:

** 2025 Valentine challenge **

Just picked it up today at a Little Free Library. Looks interesting!