I was excited to get this book, Jo Bonger is such a fascinating person, and I was looking forward to how her story would be told. However, there was a lot in this story that gave me pause, and this feeling of confusion and unease was not made any better after reading the author's note. This book follows Jo's life, starting with her trip to Paris where she first meets Theo and Vincent, through to the end of her life. The majority of the book is about this first 2 or 3 years of her knowing the Van Gogh brothers, which makes for a pretty slow story, until about halfway through when the author begins speed running through, what I would argue, is some of the most fascinating parts of Bonger's life. There's a lot of focus on the will they won't they between Jo and Theo, as well as relationship struggles with Vincent, much of which i'm not entirely sure are accurate and I felt the focus on it was too strong when there was plenty of other material (the author admits that some of these years were not well documented) that could've been used instead. I did not come away from this book with a good feeling, or like I learned something, instead I felt like this book was more fiction than fact, and while I understand that historical fiction is not 100% fact, there should be a basis on the truth that I felt was missing here at times.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers UK for this ARC. Johanna finds herself in a compromising position and leaves to spend the summer in Paris with her brother. Little did she know that he promised her parents that she would be married by the end of the summer or go home to an arranged marriage to someone 40 years older. Once the secret is out, she is determined to accept the marriage proposal from Theo Van Gogh, brother to Vincent. Though Vincent does everything in his power to keep it from happening (including cutting part of his ear off), the wedding continues. She grows to love Vincent like a brother and will do everything for the world to see how talented he was.

This book was an interesting read. This time in Paris revolved around so many artists - Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Degas and all talented in their own right and all a little crazy. This story follows Johanna from her 20's to her death and was quite an insight to how creative and mentally ill Vincent really was. #MrsVanGogh #CarolineCauchi #Jan2023

Historical fiction at its best. A well-written story about a strong woman with a fascinating life. Johana Van Gogh, married to VIncent's brother Theo, was instrumental in bringing posthumous acclaim and fame to Vincent's work. I enjoyed learning about her.

Mrs. Van Gogh is the story of Johanna Bonger, who becomes Mrs. Theo Van Gogh. The story is written from Jo's perspective, from the time she arrives in Paris to live with her brother, to just a few short years later when she makes it her mission to promote her brother-in-law's art so that he becomes world-renowned.

The reality is that very little has been written about Johanna, despite the fact that if it wasn’t for her, Vincent Van Gogh may not have been such an essential part of our world. We get a feel for what she may have written in her personal journal, as well as letters back and forth between her and Theo. The author paints a beautiful picture (no pun intended) of how events and relationships may have unfolded, and it is entirely believable. The sense of time and place is superb. My only criticism is that the “women are not equal to men” narrative gets is a bit too overt at times.

If you enjoy historical fiction and you like strong female characters, I highly recommend Mrs. Van Gogh. Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for an advance e-reader copy of this book!

I was completely unaware of this history, and the description for Mrs Van Gogh really appealed to me. I was so pleased to receive a copy of this and started it eagerly; looking forward to reading some historical fiction of this family.

The story is really interesting, but as much as I appreciated the opportunity to learn about Joanna van Gogh (later van Gogh-Bonger), I just wasn’t able to connect with the writing style here.

This was a beautifully written historical novel. I believed I was in the streets of Paris, hearing the horses hooves and the clattering of the carriages as I entered the world of Johanna Van Gogh.
Like the author, a visit to Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam led to a deeper interest of the lives of Vincent and his brother Theo, beyond the image of 'the tortured genius who cut off his own ear'.
Johanna was ahead of her time and the author portrayed her authentically.

This book is exquisite! Everything about Johanna's story is astoundingly beautiful and hers is a story that needed to be told, a voice that deserved to be heard.

Caroline is the only writer I know that could have done that, could have made Johanna live on and be heard.

I adored being whisked away to Paris in the late 1800s. I adored the bits of French language that flowed seamlessly. But most of all, I adored Johanna, Mrs Van Gogh.

This book is utter perfection.

I found this storyline to be absolutely wonderful. I love reading about strong willed women that makes a breakthrough in society when women were not expected to have opinions and must adhere to the male concepts at the time. Unfortunately for me, the book was very slow for the first half and I found very rushed for the second half. So many famous names were continually put forth, that I had to find out more information about each artist (could that be the reason I found it slow in the beginning?) I found Johanna almost meek like and did not show her true strength until later, I kept cheering her on and hoping she would find herself. I would have loved to learn more details about Johanna and how she really broke through the "glass ceiling". Thank you for writing this novel and your extensive research. Not to mention, thank you for bringing Johanna into the present time so that she won't be forgotten. .