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amotisse's review
4.0
Two Australian authors publish books based on the same crime around the same time.
Having read Cairo by Chris Womersley I was curious to compare angles.
Interpretations of the same theme are often interesting.
I loved how this story unfolds, how slowly the characters come together in strange twists of fate.
There is a mix of youth, young love, family, choices, right and wrong, tragedy, death, desperation, vanity, loss, stupidity, and life in it's many forms.
There is strength and fragility and a sense of optimism despite bad choices.
Fun, well paced and entertaining.
Having read Cairo by Chris Womersley I was curious to compare angles.
Interpretations of the same theme are often interesting.
I loved how this story unfolds, how slowly the characters come together in strange twists of fate.
There is a mix of youth, young love, family, choices, right and wrong, tragedy, death, desperation, vanity, loss, stupidity, and life in it's many forms.
There is strength and fragility and a sense of optimism despite bad choices.
Fun, well paced and entertaining.
witchettysophie's review
4.0
A fiction derived from real events of a stolen painting in Melbourne Victoria in 80s.
Got me interested how the two lots of groups fit together the art world and high schoolers. Was happy with the overall story it was interesting and I liked the way it was written around a history that is unknown.
The only thing that annoyed me was the use of lots of and and ands ands.
I enjoyed the story though and loved how it all looped together. Great character development and kept me engaged.
Got me interested how the two lots of groups fit together the art world and high schoolers. Was happy with the overall story it was interesting and I liked the way it was written around a history that is unknown.
The only thing that annoyed me was the use of lots of and and ands ands.
I enjoyed the story though and loved how it all looped together. Great character development and kept me engaged.
secretmagic's review
3.0
I don't think I actually read the blurb for this book before buying it. One of my book buddies was reading it and gushed so much, and it fit my biggest reading goal for this year - more Aussie books - so I just went for it. I didn't realise it was based around a real theft in Melbourne, that the book was set in the past or that there would be four POVs to visit. Or that I would not want to put this book down.
Fantastic read.
Fantastic read.
pepe_pepe's review against another edition
3.0
A decent read, but not overly memorable.
This story was written with four POVs (Guy - the guy, Rafi - the girl, Luke - the artist and Penny - the ex) which I don't think I've ever come across. This many perspectives can be good and bad; getting in the heads of more characters may make reading the book more interesting but it can also mean that you don't quite connect with the characters. In this case, I got a bit of both. The characters were interesting but I didn't quite connect with one of them, Guy. I also liked and strongly disliked some of the main characters, i.e. I liked Guy, Rafi and Uncle Moritz but despised Guy's parents, Rafi's mother, Luke and at times Penny. So the contrast of emotions I felt there were a bit off-putting.
As well, I felt character development was lacking and only some of the characters were really affected by the events in the book. When I got to the end, I felt like not much had happened. The novel was set in 1980s Melbourne which I have never read about and included some 80s references.
One of the major plotlines was the missing Picasso painting from the National Gallery in Melbourne; Weeping Woman. I liked how this was steeped in actual history and that using what she knew, the author created a story to fill in the blanks.
Overall, an original and interesting read that with more direction, could have been better.
This story was written with four POVs (Guy - the guy, Rafi - the girl, Luke - the artist and Penny - the ex) which I don't think I've ever come across. This many perspectives can be good and bad; getting in the heads of more characters may make reading the book more interesting but it can also mean that you don't quite connect with the characters. In this case, I got a bit of both. The characters were interesting but I didn't quite connect with one of them, Guy. I also liked and strongly disliked some of the main characters, i.e. I liked Guy, Rafi and Uncle Moritz but despised Guy's parents, Rafi's mother, Luke and at times Penny. So the contrast of emotions I felt there were a bit off-putting.
As well, I felt character development was lacking and only some of the characters were really affected by the events in the book. When I got to the end, I felt like not much had happened. The novel was set in 1980s Melbourne which I have never read about and included some 80s references.
One of the major plotlines was the missing Picasso painting from the National Gallery in Melbourne; Weeping Woman. I liked how this was steeped in actual history and that using what she knew, the author created a story to fill in the blanks.
Overall, an original and interesting read that with more direction, could have been better.
miffyf's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars
I loved Beatle Meets Destiny, but The Guy, The Girl, The Artist and His Ex didn't resonate the same way with me.
More of a farce than a really humorous book, I felt that the story was walking a fine line between young adult and new adult - and kept sliding off.
There are some really tense OMG moments, and the romance between the teens is well-handled. But the adults gave me the pip, and I felt they intruded on the 'real' story. Scheming, immoral and unsympathetic for the most part.
The plot was tricky, with many threads to be collected together at the end, and perhaps this contributed to the lack of cohesion.
My advice is to not take my word for it - read it yourself and see what you think.
I loved Beatle Meets Destiny, but The Guy, The Girl, The Artist and His Ex didn't resonate the same way with me.
More of a farce than a really humorous book, I felt that the story was walking a fine line between young adult and new adult - and kept sliding off.
There are some really tense OMG moments, and the romance between the teens is well-handled. But the adults gave me the pip, and I felt they intruded on the 'real' story. Scheming, immoral and unsympathetic for the most part.
The plot was tricky, with many threads to be collected together at the end, and perhaps this contributed to the lack of cohesion.
My advice is to not take my word for it - read it yourself and see what you think.
hairymaclairey's review against another edition
3.0
I picked this book up after reading The Shining. It’s an easy and quick read that I found difficult to put down. The plot is spread over a few days which makes it easy to follow.
I definitely enjoyed it and learnt a bit about Melbourne, Picasso and La Llorona.
I definitely enjoyed it and learnt a bit about Melbourne, Picasso and La Llorona.
stellamay0418's review against another edition
3.0
This book might not have been as good as it suggested but it did bring my attention to the greatest (and possibly only) art heist Australia has ever seen. Please research about the heist of the Weeping Woman from the Australian National Gallery in the 80s, whether you read the book or not.
julie_reads15's review against another edition
3.0
'The Guy, The Girl, The Artist And His Ex' by Gabrielle Williams is a fictionalised account of people involved in the theft of Picasso's 'Weeping Woman' from the NGV.
I loved how the author took a historical event and made it her own.
The whole first part of the novel was backstory which made it tiresome to read.
The characters' lives weaved together naturally, but I wish they had a stronger connection with each other and more scenes together.
Guy was a fairly likeable character but there were times where I thought he was a cardboard cut-out character.
Rafi was a likeable character because she was easy to sympathise with and always aimed to do the right thing.
Luke was an unlikeable character because he mistreated his ex girlfriend, didn't care about his son and forged artworks for a living.
Penny was an unlikeable character because even though Luke continuously mistreated her, she still loved him.
I loved how the author took a historical event and made it her own.
The whole first part of the novel was backstory which made it tiresome to read.
The characters' lives weaved together naturally, but I wish they had a stronger connection with each other and more scenes together.
Guy was a fairly likeable character but there were times where I thought he was a cardboard cut-out character.
Rafi was a likeable character because she was easy to sympathise with and always aimed to do the right thing.
Luke was an unlikeable character because he mistreated his ex girlfriend, didn't care about his son and forged artworks for a living.
Penny was an unlikeable character because even though Luke continuously mistreated her, she still loved him.
amotisse's review against another edition
4.0
Two Australian authors publish books based on the same crime around the same time.
Having read Cairo by Chris Womersley I was curious to compare angles.
Interpretations of the same theme are often interesting.
I loved how this story unfolds, how slowly the characters come together in strange twists of fate.
There is a mix of youth, young love, family, choices, right and wrong, tragedy, death, desperation, vanity, loss, stupidity, and life in it's many forms.
There is strength and fragility and a sense of optimism despite bad choices.
Fun, well paced and entertaining.
Having read Cairo by Chris Womersley I was curious to compare angles.
Interpretations of the same theme are often interesting.
I loved how this story unfolds, how slowly the characters come together in strange twists of fate.
There is a mix of youth, young love, family, choices, right and wrong, tragedy, death, desperation, vanity, loss, stupidity, and life in it's many forms.
There is strength and fragility and a sense of optimism despite bad choices.
Fun, well paced and entertaining.