A review by overbooked_va
The Talented Miss Farwell by Emily Gray Tedrowe

mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

If Leslie Knope was embezzling Pawnee to finance an intense addiction to collecting art, you’d have The Talented Miss Farwell. With a diabolical “heroine” who you find yourself rooting for, forgetting she is truly villainous, The Talented Miss Farwell obviously owes a great deal to Highsmith but also Catch Me If You Can. The glimpses into the high stakes world of art collectors are illuminating. And while the book is ostensibly a thriller, it’s also a treatise on greed, capitalism, class, and creativity. Becky Farwell is a shark in the water, only showing emotion when  she’s close to being caught or when she’s captured by a new potential acquisition. Art only moves her in regards to how it helps her attain more power, notoriety, and wealth.  She’s despicable but fascinating, a sociopath next door.