A fun if slightly sloppy low-stakes revenge novel.

This one is more about revenge and a con than it is about forgery or art, something that doesn’t exactly come through when reading through the book’s description. Still, it’s a fun ride, even if the quality of the plot has a number of issues.

As revenge novels go, this is about as—for lack of a better word-goofy as it gets. I cannot imagine this convoluted mess actually working, nor can I imagine it being truly satisfying for the characters when weighing what the central victim originally wanted vs. what they ultimately decided to do. This feels more like the plot of an action movie than a novel, which I don’t especially mean as a compliment, though I don’t truly mean it as a criticism either.

I do think this is a book where it’s better that the reader knows what they’re in for going in (which no one will based on the publishers’ summary),, because it’s stylistically so different from what it is purported to be. But as long as you know that and are ok with a revenge plot that’s more buddy adventure than serious payback, it’s a well paced, fun, and likable story that probably needed some tighter editing but entertains more than sufficiently anyway.

It’s a good pick for audio format if you’re inclined to read that way. The narrator does a lovely job and the story is well-suited to the format.

Let me start by saying that if you enjoy audiobooks with great narrators, you’ll want to consider this audiobook version of The Forger’s Forgery.

Even though this particular narrator’s style doesn’t suit me, he does a fantastic job with characterizations, distinctions, and more, and if he does suit your style, you will absolutely love his approach. Either way, you’re likely to enjoy it simply for his skills.

Now, to the book.

I listened to the audiobook over several months time, admittedly, so occasionally I had to retrace my steps. I often listened while I was cooking or cleaning, following along with the main character, Henry Lindon, as The Forger’s Forgery unfolded.

It’s an international novel that crosses from America to Amsterdam, exploring not only interpersonal relationships of the lead, a professor of art history, but art history and the art world itself.

It deals with some heavy topics, too, so I wouldn’t recommend this as a light read or for younger folks who aren’t “ready” for such topics in fiction. The lead’s wife has been the victim of an assault, so there’s much trauma discussed and worked through.

I will admit, I got lost in the narrative a few times, even with backtracking, because the book jumps around a bit. This isn’t done poorly, but rather it makes it a harder listen when you can’t concentrate well on the story. You’ll want to pause and take breaks so you catch everything!

Overall, The Forger’s Forgery is an exciting, intriguing literary fiction novel that keeps a reasonably quick pace, as long as you’re not expecting an action or thriller. The characters are vivid and memorable (even after a couple month gap, the characters were still extremely present for me, even if the plot needed reminders!).

If you enjoy quality literary fiction with an art-world focus, you’ll likely enjoy this one. The book is available on Kindle and in paperback as well.

I found the story of The Forger's Forgery quite difficult to get in to. Once I did then I thought it was quite fast paced and there were some enjoyable parts but not enough for me to score more than 3/5 stars

For Henry Lindon, when inconvenience enters his conjugal life, the scholastic teacher decides to escape to Amsterdam as a meeting educator. Inconvenience is a companion and his significant other, Marylou, who has remained at home to manage her extreme episode of wretchedness, before long calls with a proposition to come to go along with him in Amsterdam. The foundation of her downturn, Wheeless, the Lindon’s most despised foe, has quite recently been set free from jail and Henry is entrusted to break this news to his sincerely delicate spouse. Not really settled to save their marriage, and Marylou’s mental soundness, Lindon needs need to concoct a silly arrangement, one that would get Wheeless away from them for the last time.

The novel was intended to be a troupe piece, based on the sheer measure of characters we meet. The Lindons are the focal characters yet we likewise met Wheeless in some detail, Marvin, Constance, and Esmeralda Ortiz. None of the characters genuinely created their storyline, however, Marylou’s personality showed some development. Each character was so cumbersomely fitted together, they just had one brief resource with one another towards the finish of the novel, to wander, and never meet again.

Most of the author’s portrayals were dry to the point that it might have been a bullet point article. The story was added to a great extent pushed ahead by his character’s discourse, as opposed to their circular segments. Each new plot point was presented in a long illustrative discourse. All things considered; I did feel like I squandered my energy on this book. If you like a slow-paced book, so if you like these kinds of books, then read this book, and if not, then I would suggest ignoring this book as it will put you into a reading slump.

I know very little about art and even less about art forgery but this book took me through this exciting world of deception and intrigue. Thank to the author, publisher and NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to review this book. I was intrigued by the synopsis of this book but found it boring. It was a DNF for me.

2/5

Book review for the audiobook edition specifically.

Could not finish this completely for the life of me so two stars. I'm sure that there are those who would absolutely love this as with any book but that person isn't me. From what I remember the characters were interesting and I liked the narrator for the audiobook version.

I really enjoyed listening to this book. It had great characters and a interesting story line. I will definitely be suggesting it to friends and family. Thank you #claysmall for writing this book and thank you to #netgalley for giving me the opportunity to listen to this one.

Henry Lindon is a university professor. He has just taken a semester off from his institution in Dallas to take a job lecturing in Amsterdam. Henry leaves for his new job; his wife Mary Lou is to follow. He finds his university supplied apartment with the help of his official liaison and upstairs neighbor, Bernadette, an art professor at the same university.

When Mary Lou arrives, it is with bad news. A figure from their past, Wheeless Kessler, is back. Kessler who ran an investment trust was jailed after allegations of sexual harassment and worse from multiple women. He is even suspected of murder in the case of his niece and police officer Esmerelda Ortiz is still working that case. The Lindons have reason to despise Kessler as he was instrumental in importing dangerous toys that Mary Lou sold unknowingly through her business. When the danger of the toys was revealed, she lost her business as she tracked down and bought back the toys from as many customers as she could find. Mary Lou also has a personal reason to hate Kessler dating back to her high school days. She had been okay while Kessler was in prison but he has somehow found a way to make his victims retract their stories and get released. Now she is back living in fear.

The couple, with the help of Bernadette and Henry's brother Marvin, decide that they need to take care of Kessler once and for all. Henry comes up with an audacious plan, brought to him by the presence of Bernadette with her art background and a new book about a master forger. Will the plan do as Henry suspects and put Kessler out of business once and for all? Will Ortiz find the evidence to tie him to the murder?

This is the second book in the Henry Lindon series. The main story is interesting and the plot is full of twists and turns. The only quibble is that the story moves back and forth in time and location between Amsterdam and Texas which can be confusing for some readers. I listened to this novel and the narrator was perfect and logical without being overly dramatic just as Henry's personality was logical. This book is recommended for mystery readers.

Overly detailed and repetitive at times, but the general plot entwined an old art forger with an modern day murder, a bunch of unsavoury characters, women with unresolved issues and a man no one likes. It comes together at the end.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* 2.5. Not what i thought it was going to be like, and thus not as much my cup of tea as i thought it would be. This book also seemed to drag on even tho imo its not that long. Would recommend to someone who likes more drama art books.

I was really looking forward to The Forger's Forgery by Clay G. Small. I was confused the entire time. The plot was all over the place, the characters were not likeable. This might have been different if I had read it and not listened to the audiobook. The narrator was not great, and I really did not like his tone and pitch. Might be a great book for some, but was not for me.

***** I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my honest review. *****

‘The Forger’s Forgeries’ is a crime novel filled with twists and turns. I loved the story line and the plot to take down a corrupt man. I also found the characters very interesting. However, the end was not that satisfying for me.

I did not love this book but finished it. I wanted to stop the whole time but just kept thinking I was right at the brink of getting into the storyline. I unfortunately do not recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group, River Grove Books for a copy of this book for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. I couldn’t get into it. I think the writing is quality I just didn’t care about the story or characters. It dragged and found myself dreading going back to it. Just not the book for me.

I received a review copy of this audio book in exchange for an honest review.

I hated it. Unfortunately I hate saying that about any audiobook or novel, but this one was just too all over the place for me. Within the first 25% of the audiobook there were so many different plot threads to follow I found myself forgetting what was what. I understand what the author was going for and I do commend the try, but it just didn’t work for me.

The narrator however i felt did a great job and I enjoyed the way he brought the different characters to life.

Thanks to Netgalley for the audiobook of The Forger’s Forgery by Clay G. Small, read by David de Vries.
This book was a bit hard to get into with so many characters and three separate plot lines and some events that might have fit better into a fantasy novel. I will just mention wild hog hunting with a Bowie knife and golden retrievers. The audio narrator was generally good. Some accents were a bit overdone. All in all, it was not a favorite for me.

This was an extremely fun book for me! I am originally from Wichita, KS so it was fun reading a book partially based there. I liked the mystery and the characters. I did find it hard to get into, but once I did the rhythm stuck with me.

I enjoyed this, but if I knew what I was getting in to, I would have skipped this one. The plot has little to do with the promise expressed by the title. Author Small can write well, but the focus was a little off. Too many plot lines not fully explored, in an effort to get to the main plot. I thought I was going to get more of an adventure in Amsterdam, but in reality, only a fraction of the story takes place there. There is so much going on in this book that it's really hard to classify beyond mystery, maybe? The character development is there, pretty deep in some cases, but not really relevant to the plot. It's like reading multiple books at once without a solid ending to any of them.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

When I read the description, I was excited to start it. But after reading it I was disappointed. The plot was really really good but the execution is not that good. The characters, except the main protagonist, were not that interesting, and that made the book a little dull for me. It was little hard for me to go on with the book.

But before reading it I had very little idea about art forgery and Dutch Art. But now I know more than a little. So that's a plus point.

A 2.5 for me.

Special thanks to NetGalley and River Grove Books.