This book was captivating and beautifully written. I felt like I was there in Paris along side the characters. This book will appeal to fans of historical fiction and romance, and anyone who wants to be swept away by a great story.

The Age of Light is a beautifully written intimate portrayal of a woman’s journey to find herself in the glamorous 1920’s Paris art scene. This story feels modern and relevant as it’s heroine fights for her place as a respected artist in a man’s world. This book is both compelling and heartbreaking and I couldn’t put it down.
Thank you Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The first thing that really pulled me in about The Age of Light is the cover. It’s gorgeous. For me, it really nailed all the glamour and lackadaisical excess of being somebody in the 1930’s. It screams Great Gatsby and evokes thoughts of a golden, dreamlike time.

Lee Miller, who I actually had no idea was a real person until after I finished the book (oops), is a former model and feminist of her times. She isn’t content just being the most beautiful woman in the room. She doesn’t want to just be in front of the camera, she wants to be behind it.

Lee is the perfect heroine. The girl who you want to hate because she is talented and beautiful, but it’s hard because she’s so gosh darn ambitious and relatable. Granted, I have no idea if this is how she was in real. But in Scharer’s imagined world for her, she’s a gem.

When she meets Man Ray, a surrealist photographer, and realizes who he is , she works her magic. First securing a spot as his assistant, later as his lover. And even as he seems to respect her and treat her as a partner, we see that equality has a long way to go in 1930’s Paris.

The book dazzles. Scharer paints such a gorgeous picture of their lives and surroundings that I felt transported to Paris myself. This was what really appealed to me about the book. The settings, the attention to detail that the author went to as she brought the reader truly into the story.

I would have liked to see more. More of what Lee had done in the time between her brief but life-changing affair with Man Ray and old age. But that wasn’t this book. And maybe, when fictionalizing true people, it’s easier to focus on one bright moment in time.

I would definitely recommend this book to those who love biographies and historical fiction. Special thanks to Netgalley and Little Brown and Company for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my review.

I had to put this one in the dnf pile. I couldn't connect with the characters and was having a hard time staying in the story.

Lots of buzz surrounds The Age of Light, a fictionalization of the life of model and photographer Lee Miller which focuses squarely on her time in Paris with Man Ray in the 1920s. For such outsize historical figures living in one of the most written about eras in history, there was a lot to live up to with The Age of Light and whether or not it delivers depends a lot on what you're looking for. As a lighter beach read type novel with a heavy dose of kink, it's entertaining and the story moves pretty quickly. But what the book really left me wanting was a deeper look at Lee Miller's life. The frame story, which hypothesizes on Lee's life at the end of her career, doesn't get much resolution, a few pages at most. And the interspersed fragments of Lee's time as a WWII photographer did not do a modicum of justice to the subject matter they covered. The clear focus here is on the Man Ray years, for better or worse. It was very interesting to read about different photographs and be able to look them up to see the real art work being written about. There is also a lot of prestigious bit characters, from Gertrude Stein to Hemingway to to Jean Cocteau. You could google nearly any character mentioned and find an illustrious artistic career. It was engaging to imagine with Scharer how all these personalities coexisted in the same scene. But, overall it wasn't enough and the book fell a bit flat for me. I wanted more.

Setting: Paris' artistic era. The author, Whitney Scharer, used detailed descriptions to paint pictures in the reader's mind and tell her story. While it was an enjoyable read, there were times when it seemed to bog down and I would find myself having to go back and reread parts that I had not connected with. It is not a book that will linger in my mind for long.

The Age of Light is the story of Lee Miller. A Vogue model turned photographer. Lee went to Paris to work with Man Ray and learn the art of photography. It's the 20s in Paris, so imagine the vice and decadent lifestyles. Lee and Ray had a love affair. But, he was obsessed with her beauty. She didn't want to be viewed as a beautiful toy for any man. Their relationship suffered and eventually ended once her talent in photography eclipsed his. The student becomes the teacher. Miller went on to take stunning photos of WWII. This is a fascinating story about a remarkable woman. Definitely recommend if you have any interest in the subject. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

We discussed this book and recommended it as a favorite in Episode 157 of What Should I Read Next: https://modernmrsdarcy.com/157-episode/

As a big fan of stories about the artists and writers in Paris the first part of the 20th century, and a former English major specializing in 20th century American lit, I was a fan of Whitney’ Scharer’s “The Age of Light” as soon as I read the description.

I’d recommend this book to my own book club, to fans of stories set in the early 20th century, to Francopiles, and to any reader who likes a good woman-coming-into-her-own tale. And if you like Paula McClain’s fiction, chances are you’ll be hooked by Scharer’s tale as well.

The story is based on Vogue model-turned photographer Lee Miller and her passionate relationship with Man Ray, who becomes both her mentor and lover. I’d never heard of Miller before this book, and was totally engaged by this fictional telling of her time in Paris during the 1930s, where she parties with the local crowd, learns photography and develops interesting new exposure techniques, acts in a Jean Cocteau film, and later serves as a war correspondent who photographs and writes about Europe during WWII.

Told in a flashback, the descriptions are beautiful and the narrative is lively, engaging and sultry all at once. The publisher sums up the character Lee Miller really well: she’s “a brilliant and pioneering artist-[who comes] out of the shadows of a man's legacy and into the light.”

It’s also worth noting, that, while it fits into the narrative, there is some reference to child sexual abuse by a family friend/uncle, as well as seemingly inappropriate photography sessions by Miller’s father when she is young.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Feb 5, 2019

As an amateur photographer and someone who loves photography as art, I was thrilled to get an advance copy of this book about Lee Miller and Man Ray. It took me back to the days when photography was as much about developing a picture as taking it. The book shines when the descriptions turn to the art of photography, especially when Lee is framing a shot or Man is teaching her how to develop for maximum effect or they come up with a new technique. When she is determining how to take a shot, I could totally envision it. What I didn’t enjoy it was when it lingered for pages on the romance and sex.

I liked that the book alternates between Lee in Paris with Man Ray and her time as a war correspondent in London and France during WWII.

I am not a fan of romance novels and I tend to get irritated at books that purport to be historical fiction when they’re really more romance novels. So parts of this book definitely irritated me and I skimmed over those sections.

In the end, I had trouble relating to Lee. The author needed to do a better job of explaining her. For those who enjoy Paula McLain, this book will probably be enjoyable as the writing styles are definitely similar. In case you can’t tell, I’m not a big an of McLain.

My thanks to netgalley and Little, Brown for an advance copy of this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free review copy of this book.

The Age of Light is about American model and photographer Lee Miller, and her romance with famous surrealist Man Ray in late 1920's Paris. It is based on the true story, and is formatted as flashbacks. The story starts with a middle-aged Lee being asked to write about her time in Paris, and the rest of the book jumps between that romance and Lee's time as a photojournalist during WWII.

It actually took me a few chapters to realize that this was a true story! I knew of Man Ray, but not Lee Miller, and once I looked into her story I was amazed. She led a truly fascinating life. If nothing else, I'm grateful to this book for introducing me to this piece of history. I loved the setting of the art scene in 1920's Paris, which is full of parties, glamour and famous names. I enjoyed the conversations about art and inspiration, as well as the technical photography information. The characters were honestly not super likeable, which was interesting and perhaps more genuine. I did find the timeline of the book a little jarring and disconnected. The war parts were important, but I think maybe the two storylines could have been woven together better.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It definitely made me want to find out more about Lee Miller and that time in history. I would recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction, especially historical romance!

This debut novel details the coming of age story of Lee Miller, a former Vogue model who moves to Paris. Lee wants to get away from modeling and into a profession behind the camera. Her goal is to meet and learn from the famous surrealist Man Ray.

Lee eventually attains her goal of working for Man Ray and evolves into a photojournalist who finally photographed WWII. In the process of her creative growth, she experienced an intense love affair with Ray. This novel illustrates the bohemian life of the Paris in the twenties and thirties. The sexual promiscuity in the community. And how men, supposedly brilliant men, exploited talented women to further their careers.

This novel serves to illustrate that even a strong feminist such as Lee Miller could not escape the claustrophobia of men admiring her beauty, not her talent.

I received an advanced copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley.

'Or Lee could tell the real story: the one where she loved a man and he loved her, but in the end they took everything from each other- who can say who was more destroyed.'

Man Ray was an American visual artist who spent much of his career in Paris, France and was a part of the Dada and Surrealist movement but this is about his love affair with Lee Miller. Lee Miller was an American who began as a fashion model in the 1920’s, her passion was photography leading her to become a serious photojournalist in her own right for Vogue during World War II. Certainly photographing horrific carnage, Nazi horrors is a far cry from her days of posing nude, her wild nights of partying and lovemaking while she was working in Paris as Man Ray’s assistant and lover. Being a man’s muse wasn’t ever going to be enough for Lee, whose beauty betrayed a talent that could rival the men she worked for. Man was seventeen years Lee Miller’s senior, photographed her obsessively, hungered to understand her beyond her flawless, ‘ideal’ beauty. Her beauty was overwhelming, blinding, a thing most people cannot look past. One must imagine she was a fascinating woman, Man Ray photographed some of the most famous people of our time and yet couldn’t get enough of Lee. Their love blazed for years, and in that time both betrayed each other in love, and in career (Man failing to credit her in famous work).

Their love seems to move in phases, sometimes he seems like her father, sometimes like her child, at other times an erotic lover hungry for all sorts of playful exploration involving pushing at the edge of each other’s boundaries. Speaking of fathers, ruminating about the relationship between Lee Miller and her own father Theodore, one can understand where the rumors of possible sexual abuse by him was born. It’s no secret she was sexually abused (raped) when she was only 7 years old while in the care of a family friend, contracting gonorrhea, a downright horrific disease for a child to suffer but that nude photos followed that event, that her own father snapped of her “as art”, can’t help but leave one feeling disturbed. There relationship was strange, he seemed at times more a lover than a father, which comes into play in the novel when Man finally meets him. Her beauty and body didn’t belong to her in the early years, it’s hard to understand how free and open she was about nudity and sexuality after such a traumatic violation. Maybe being raised as her father’s model made her body become an instrument for her? We are the sum total of our experiences, whether we like it or not, we can let the horrible trauma we suffer be our ruin or we can decide to own our destiny. She had some serious grit! This wasn’t a woman who was going to cower in the presence of any Master.

Man Ray’s own sexuality was a curious thing for the times, rumors swirled about him, naturally he used his love of Miller as a shield. Certainly that didn’t endear him to her, nor the ways he tried to control and manage her. She was a young woman, not quite resigned to a life of staying in and playing at the ‘happy couple’ he wanted to be, she hungered for experiences that would fuel her artist’s mind. There is a line in the novel, “Their gaze made her into someone she didn’t want to be”, and Man was guilty of molding her into some ideal too. There was always a distance within her, she loves him and questions that love, sometimes you can feel a hesitation in giving all of herself to him. She has made this happen, she was the master of her own ship, famously telling him she was to be his student, mind you he wasn’t taking any students.She wasn’t a woman who waited for things to happen, she pursued her desires whether it was for flesh or photographs. Such ambition and commitment is difficult for any of us, but for a woman in the 1930’s, wildly admirable. She needed open love, needed to fall into bed with whom she pleased, separating love from sex when it came to different people. Not such an anomaly really, plenty of people are into open love, and her youth and beauty certainly provided her a smorgasbord of opportunity and temptation, is just doesn’t bode well in a relationship with a man who wants promises. Man was possessive and jealous, he began to need her and desperation is never attractive to the young. She has her warning early in the relationship upon meeting another of his muses, a former lover Kiki (sultry performer and dancer) who causes a jealous scene. Man tells her his former relationship was simmering in jealousies.

As with any love, the cracks begin to appear. Lee’s fresh ideas are in contrast to Man’s own lack thereof, then comes their perfecting a technique called solarization, based on her discovery, but it is the bell jar photo series that is at the heart of their relationship’s decline. Masters can’t let their students eclipse them completely, right? It’s his studio, his name… Throughout the novel he wants to possess and consume her, crack her skull open, know all her secrets and dissect her because he never seems to reach the center. Man becomes a vulnerable mess, a beggar, desperate that she never leaves him. He loves her, they have fierce passion for each other, but sometimes love that starts as a fire can fizzle out, and all that’s left is ash, smoke.

The story flows between the past and the future where Lee Miller is working as a photojournalist for Vogue, where some of her most famous, shocking work was produced, during the Second World War. The woman she became seems nothing like the beautiful muse of the past, but she was always there inside, waiting to break free. Then she reinvented herself into a wife, Lady Penrose. The attic becomes the keeper of her past. What a hell of a story! I am going to read her son’s (Antony Penrose) memoir about his ‘unconventional’ mother, The Lives of Lee Miller.

This book has quite a bit of sexuality, of course it does, this is Paris in the 1930’s following a Bohemian set. It’s all sex, art, and libération! Much of Man Ray and Lee Miller’s relationship was about their sexual need for each other as much as their creative life together, it is said Man couldn’t get enough of her. This really is a brilliant book!

Publication Date: February 5, 2019

Little, Brown and Company

It is hard to believe that this is a debut author; the raw writing talent is impressive. On the surface it is historical fiction, based on the life of photographer Lee Miller and her relationship with artist Man Ray. Yet it is much much more, painting a portrait of Lee herself. Raw, dark, sensual, tortured, brilliant, perceptive, lost, self-absorbed, weak, strong, creative - these words all describe this complex woman. Lee lives her youth in a magical time and place; Paris in the twenties and thirties was a bastion of creativity, of exploration of art, a time of experimentation, rebellion, and savage selfishness. Scharer also sparingly uses Miller's years as a war photographer to juxtapose the trauma of the Holocaust for all the witnesses. At times I wanted to shake Lee until her teeth rattled, hug her close to chase away the demons, take a shower to wash away the decadence of her life, or stand in awe at the art she created. Scharer is a prodigious new talent, a bit reminiscent of Donna Tartt (occasionally too wordy but always the master storyteller). I wonder what others will think of this book as it leaves one with many questions and so much on which to turn over and over in one's head? There is no perfectly wrapped bow to end Lee Miller's story, making this debut novel one helluva book to ponder and argue and endlessly discuss. It. Is. Brilliant.

First and foremost, I want to say thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This galley pique my interest as I love historical fiction, WWII, and a good love story, as well as a great setting- Paris, France.

Written in both a reflective past and present tense, Scharer introduces us to Lee Miller, a model turned photographer who studied under the great surrealist, Man Ray. Upon her introduction, Lee is serving a dinner for to some professional guests while downing a bottle of wine- and when the guests request she retell the story of her time spent with Man Ray, it's as if the reader is transported back to Paris in 1929.

Lee had just moved to Paris from Poughkeepsie, and happened to meet a handful of photographers while at a bar. They end up introducing her to Man, and from there, their attraction to each other can't be denied. Lee tells man that she would like to work for him, not as a model but as an assistant. Though he was hesitant, soon Man can see that Lee has a special talent behind the lens- even though she still manages to be in front of his camera a time or two. As the two become close, they give in to their attraction and form a handsome couple that many envy.

Lee enjoys the status of being with a man like Man. She is learning a lot from him, and blossoming as a photographer. He allows her to live luxuriously, they attend gatherings and parties, and they have a steamy relationship in the bedroom. However, as the "honeymoon" stage wanes, Lee starts to realize that Man is getting possessive, jealous, and increasingly needy as she receives more and more attention for her beauty and art. Soon, Lee is faced with advancing her own career at the cost of her relationship, or sacrificing success to keep the man she loves.

Scharer's debut novel is a beautifully intimate reflection of love, art, and loss. Set mostly in the 1930's, there is a historical nod to the creative masterminds of the decade (Picasso, Hemingway, etc.), but also a touch on what it meant to be a war correspondent photographer during WWII (ie. Margaret Bourke-White). Though the love story is the central focus, art and it's many outlets (photography, painting, and film) are heavily woven throughout the plot line. It's absolutely lovely, like walking through a gallery yourself, with a touch of Vogue-meets-Gatsby glamour. 

I absolutely enjoyed this read. It was refreshingly modern despite the historical context, and the character development is excellent. It's a very mature read, and the relationship between Man and Lee could definitely fall into a toxic-bordering on -abuse category, so please consider that before reading. Otherwise, I would certainly recommend The Age of Light for those who love a romance, historical fiction, or artistic read.

This review will be shared on my blog at www.thelexingtonbookie.com in January, 2019.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It made me want to learn more about Lee Miller's life and I plan to read her son's biography about her. This book isn't completely true to her life but I do think that's to be expected when writing a fictional novel. It kept me interested and I enjoyed the several jumps in time to Lee's work as a photojournalist during WWII. I didn't really find the two main characters very likeable, however that didn't deter my reading and as I stated before, wanting to learn more of the real life inspiration of this book. Very good character development. Whitney Scharer did a great job at letting us get inside Lee's mind, even if at times I wasn't on board with what she was thinking.

The Age of Light by Whitney Scharer is an exquisite historical fiction novel about the real-life Vogue model turned renowned photographer Lee Miller. The writing will draw you in immediately and you won't want to put this one down.

The story follows Lee when she's arrived in Paris from New York—she's tired of being photographed and is ready to become a photographer. A chance encounter leads her to the famous Surrealist Man Ray where she convinces him to take her on as his assistant and teach her everything he knows. The two work closely together and eventually their personal and professional lives become intimately entwined. Lee’s journey takes the reader from the cabarets of bohemian Paris to the battlefields of war-torn Europe during WWII.

As you can see, Lee lived quite a life. Instead of telling her story in a traditional style, the chapters mainly alternate between Lee's life in Paris and as a war correspondent in WWII. However, the main part of the story is about her growing into her talents in Paris and her complicated love story with Man Ray. The writing is so vivid and detailed and really paints an image of Lee in all forms—somewhat retired on her farm in Sussex, her start in Paris and seeing the horrors of war up-close. Yes, the story is based on a real person but the author Whitney Scharer really brings her to life.

At the heart of the story is Lee wanting to craft her own legacy and not live in the shadows of a man. While photography and art bring Lee and Man Ray together, it also carries plenty of complications. He's possessive and obsessive and while he does support her, he doesn't want to be outshined.

Lee overcomes the odds in so many ways. When people write her off as just a model, she proves she's capable of taking photos that will contribute quite a bit to the surrealism movement of photography. While the book takes place primarily in the '30s and '40s, Lee is quite a modern woman and ahead of her time.

The big questions are can she reconcile romantic desire with artistic ambition? And what sacrifices will she have to make?

This is a beautiful, heartfelt read about a capable, intelligent and strong woman who did it all her own way.

Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

A dark and beautifully researched novel about the conflict between the heart and the head, between art and love.

A captivating debut about Vogue model turned renowned photographer Lee Miller, and her passionate affair with the artist Man Ray in 1930s Paris.

When Lee Miller comes to Paris in 1929 she wants nothing more than to create a new life. She is tired of being the one in front of the camera and wants to be the one taking photographs. 

Lee had a rather abusive childhood which is alluded to but I would have liked to have heard more about it. It led her to make some bad life choices. When she is introduced to the famous Man Ray, they immediately have a connection. At first,he wants her to model for him but they get into an intense and not that healthy relationship.

The story is told between timelines and is rich in detail and full of all the horrors of war and the debauchery of Paris at that time. Opium dens, erotic vaudeville, multiple lovers.

After betrayals on both side you have a feeling this isn't going to work out. He is egotistical and condescending and she is emotionally messed up.

I enjoyed reading about these two. I would have enjoyed it more if there were fewer words. I found myself wanting it to be over.

Great story, just a lot wordy.

February 5th 2019 by Little, Brown and Company/Netgalley

A book to learn from the past and apply to current times. Lee Miller's break from man after man after Man (yes, that capitalization is correct) is a reminder to break free of all that is holding us back from making a dream into reality. We all belong to ourselves. It is a female photographer's inspiration to trust their instincts and forge their own path. Set against the financial crash and the days leading up to World War II, Lee Miller leaves New York for Paris and then Paris for the European Front. Brilliant artists and minds of the day dance in and out the story like fireflies in the summer. They offer bursts of light in Lee's life and illuminate a hope she has for herself. What's best is that the novel doesn't sugar coat her life or decisions. The age of light is flecked with the darkness of PTSD, abuse, rape, depression, and alcoholism. But even in the blackness, it isn't possible to turn of the effervescence of Lee Miller.