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mharrgtn's review against another edition
3.25
I thought it was informative and interesting. I didn’t know much about the theft and found the history of Gardner, the museum and details about the theft interesting. The pursuit by the author for the stolen pieces just fell flat.
duparker's review against another edition
3.0
Great lead off chapter which really captures the reader and makes for a quick read with a lot of intrigue and characters to the story. I liked that the case is still unsolved and that the author makes the reader want to keep going, even though they probably know the ending already. The art history narratives were great as well. Very tangible and interesting.
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
2.0
The Gardner Heist is one of the most famous art thefts of all time, especially since it remains unsolved and none of the stolen objects have ever surfaced. The bare bones of the theft go as follows: in 1990, two men dressed as police officers talk their way into the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in the early morning hours. They tie up the guards and make off with 13 works of art, including Vermeer's The Concert and a Rembrandt seascape. Their haul also included random items like the finial from the top of a Napoleonic flag.
The FBI investigated and leads abounded, implicating everyone from local Boston criminals, to the mob, to Whitey Bulger, to the IRA. Whether or not any of the suspects had any role in the crime remains unknown. Ulrich Boser takes the angle of interviewing and following around an art detective working for insurance companies, Harold Smith. Smith has had some notable finds, but he's older and ill and dies soon after Boser begins his research, and this is where The Gardner Heist goes off track. The history of the museum, its founder and of the crime itself were well covered, but once Boser began conducting his own investigation, the focus of the book changed from the heist and the missing artwork to the adventures of Boser as he hangs out with grifters, retired policemen and criminals who have gone straight but who might know someone who knows something. Boser writes about every fruitless lead and wild goose chase he is sent on and long before he starts recounting his dreams and his imaginary conversations, I was reading the book solely to finish it.
As far as solid information goes, there's a solid magazine article in here, underneath all the filler and fantasy. I would have rather just read an article.
The FBI investigated and leads abounded, implicating everyone from local Boston criminals, to the mob, to Whitey Bulger, to the IRA. Whether or not any of the suspects had any role in the crime remains unknown. Ulrich Boser takes the angle of interviewing and following around an art detective working for insurance companies, Harold Smith. Smith has had some notable finds, but he's older and ill and dies soon after Boser begins his research, and this is where The Gardner Heist goes off track. The history of the museum, its founder and of the crime itself were well covered, but once Boser began conducting his own investigation, the focus of the book changed from the heist and the missing artwork to the adventures of Boser as he hangs out with grifters, retired policemen and criminals who have gone straight but who might know someone who knows something. Boser writes about every fruitless lead and wild goose chase he is sent on and long before he starts recounting his dreams and his imaginary conversations, I was reading the book solely to finish it.
As far as solid information goes, there's a solid magazine article in here, underneath all the filler and fantasy. I would have rather just read an article.
aoosterwyk's review against another edition
3.0
Very interesting, but too long. It's somehow dissatisfying to read a mystery that is not solved.
maureenlessreen's review against another edition
Was way more boring than I thought it would be
aprilalwayswithabook's review against another edition
3.0
Mostly interesting, extremely meandering, got a bit boring when trying to fill a whole book and you still don't know whodunnit.
thrilledtobehere's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I listened to the Last Scene podcast season dedicated to the Gardner Heist and I’ve been fascinated by the story ever since! I picked up this book because I wanted to learn more about the heist and I wasn’t disappointed. The author does a really good job of taking the reader along on his journey of following leads and dead ends. It reads kinda like a really informative diary.