I am an art history major so I thought I would LOVE this book but it was boring to me. I did not want to pick the book up halfway through and this was a DNF for me

"The Lost Van Gogh" is an art heist novel with a lot of twists and turns, but not much heart. Any book about art thieves is right up my alley, and this could have been up there with the best - if the author had resolved more of the pacing issues and slowed the story down for readers to relish the world of galleries, dealers, art history, and skullduggery. Where this book glimmers is when the story slows right down, including various historic diary entries and scenes from WW2, and a moving modern day visit to the Anne Frank house, where characters find themselves confronted with the ghosts of the holocaust. In these moments, away from stock photo Interpol espionage and shadowy dealings, this book might have important things to say. Overall, this novel brings up important subjects about looted Nazi art and modern day art reconstitution. But for the most part, it legs it through the plot at breakneck speed, even summarizing entire conversations via narration, rather than allowing characters to speak for themselves. It wants to be Dan Brown - an easy novel to sprint through on a day at the beach - but it shines when it touches on gritty and serious topics, and lingers there.

I had high hopes for this Dan Brown sounding Davinci Code. However, what I read was wonderfully clever story ideas that never came together nor was believable. It was difficult for me to finish the novel.

Having read this book on the banks of the Rhone while tracing Van Gogh's footsteps through Arles, I wasn't prepared for the modern art world tour. I requested this book in the pre-trip excitement - wanting an all you can eat Van Gogh experience, all starry night and and yellow houses, but I got a world-weary New Yorker on a mission to find a painting his girlfriend thrifted Upstate. Santlofer's style of writing is unpolished, making this an art world thriller more along the lines of Magnum PI than Jack Ryan. It was a nice touristy romp, but not what I was expecting.

I usually stay away from the thriller and mystery book genres, but I am a sucker for Art, and more specifically, Vincent Van Gogh. Beginning with intrigue right from the start, I was hooked immediately, and this kept me up all night wanting to put together the answer to the puzzle. With its many great twists and turns, varied pacing, and gripping secrets, I will definitely be reading The Last Mona Lisa soon.

Thank you for a chance to read this intriguing book!

This is more than a story; it’s a learning experience with stolen art. It’s about how valuable paintings during WWII were secretly taken by Hitler’s law enforcers. We know that some pieces made it into the homes of the German officers while others were sold to dealers with profits that were used to support the German Army.

After WWII, hundreds of pieces were returned to the original owners or museums to be displayed. However, many were not. The book is a fictional story from the present time of a missing Van Gogh piece of art which was mysteriously found worth millions. Will it be returned?

Alex (Alexis) was at a market in a small town two hours north of her home in NYC. She purchased a painting of a lady’s portrait for $25.00 from a hippie. Her boyfriend, Luke, with his skills as an artist, immediately noticed a crack in the corner. He touched it and the top layer of paint fell off. There was another painting underneath it. Alex took photos while Luke unveiled what was hidden: a self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh. The story unravels how this couple tried to search for an authentication and then found themselves mixed up with a dangerous mission connected to the INTERPOL art theft division.

While publishers have released a variety of best-selling books related to WWII, this one is an original related to stolen art. The fast-paced mystery showcases facts about how the Nazis snatched up thousands of famous paintings. Investigations are still ongoing with million-dollar treasures that are traded on the dark web.

I enjoyed the story. However, I had to reread parts in the beginning as I was confused about who was telling the story not realizing it was Luke. After I caught on, it was fine. The details of the mystery made it exciting. This is the first book I’ve read by Jonathan Santlofer. I learned that it’s part of a series from his prior book, “The Last Mona Lisa” which will be added to my list.

At the end, the author gives the reader an outline of what is fact and fictional. Included is an extended reading list along with book discussion questions. The bonus is that the author is also an artist and added wonderful drawings related to the story.

My thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of January 2, 2024.

I really enjoyed this book by Jonathan Santlofer

It can be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading The Last Mona Lisa first. It builds the groundwork for the main characters.

Description: "Luke Perrone, artist and great-grandson of the man who stole the Mona Lisa, and Alexis Verde, daughter of a notorious art thief, discover what may be the missing portrait, they are drawn into a most epic art puzzles. When only days later the painting disappears again, they are reunited with INTERPOL agent John Washington Smith in a dangerous and deadly search that will not only expose secrets of the artist's last days but draws them into one of history's darkest eras."

A lot of this book is speculation, but it was fascinating to read. And I learned about what happened during WW2 to artwork, and we are still dealing with this nowadays. I recommend reading this book.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and recommend it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this action-packet novel which blends fact with fiction in the art world. A lost Van Gogh self portrait is found and then immediately stolen. Interpol and many others are looking for it on the black market, trying to safely recover it before it is lost again. There’s a lot of characters both the good guys and the bad who are on a chase from NYC to Provence to Amsterdam.

Johnathan Santlofer creates an interesting premise and ok story in The Lost Van Gogh but I have to say that I wasn’t amazed by the mystery or characters in the story. I honestly felt that it was just ok and felt like Santlofer wanted to write The Goldfinch.

I did enjoy the style of writing and found everything else throughout easy to read but I wish The Lost Van Gogh had wowed me.

The Lost Van Gogh
Alexis had visited her mother up in New York State and decided to browse in a local antique store. A painting caught her eye so she bought it and brought it back to her NYC apartment. She was curious about the appearance of the painting and asked her boyfriend Luke, a painter, to help her remove the paint. They soon discovered another painting below the top one and it looked to be a long lost Van Gogh self portrait. Alex decided to ask an art expert to authenticate it and on the way to the gallery she was robbed of the painting.
She was a doctoral student in art history and Luke was a painter who also taught at a local university. Together they sought the help of a private investigator to find the painting for them. They learned that the work had disappeared from Van Gogh’s funeral. During the German Occupation of Paris a Resistance worker had removed the painting from others stolen by the Germans and painted another picture over it. However it ended up in German hands and was discarded as not being important. A soldier gave it to his relative in New York State who kept it until her death.
The story explores how INTERPOL uses their resources to find lost or stolen masterpieces. There is mention of how some of these works had been stolen from Jews during the Holocaust and ended up years later in respectable museums and galleries.
Art lovers and history buffs will enjoy this well written and researched story. I received this ARC from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This a thriller about Luke Perrone and Alex (Alexis) Verde who discover a Van Gogh self portrait underneath another painting. But before they can get the painting to an auction room to get it evaluated it is stolen. This leads them to reconnect with Interpol agent John Washington Smith.

Together they start searching for the missing painting and it turns out they are not the only one. A lot of people are looking for the painting and are even prepared to kill for it if necessary.

I found the book exciting as well as interesting. You get put on the wrong foot a couple of times, and it until the last moment the culprit stays hidden. The author clearly has a lot of knowledge about art, painting and van Gogh. I loved the description and background information in this book.

full four stars for this one.

I want to thank Netgalley, Jonathan Santlofer and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for my copy of The Lost Van Gogh by Jonathan Santlofer in exchange for an honest review. It publishes January 2, 2024.
So, first off, I did not realize that this was sort of a sequel. It took me a little while to realize it. It made the reason why the characters had so much history that it assumed the reader knew make more sense. Had I known, I would've wanted to read the first book first.
This is not a historical fiction in the typical sense of the word. It felt more like a "dad book" targeted more toward Jason Bourne Fans. Nothing against that, I enjoy Bourne every now and then, but not with my historical fiction. I found the description to be misleading and probably would not have requested it had I known it had that feel.
I'm certain this would be an excellent book for someone who is more into those style of books.

“The Lost Van Gogh” is a historical fiction novel by Jonathan Santlofer. Like others, I didn’t realize that this is a companion novel (of sorts) to his first book “The Last Mona Lisa.” By companion, I mean that characters in that book are also in this book, however, this book can be read as a stand-alone. A good thing about this book is that there are a number of very short chapters. The unfortunate thing is that there are a number of narrators, and I often became confused as to who was narrating which chapter. Although it was the author’s choice to have the boyfriend of Alex narrate the book, because so much was about Alex, I found it an odd choice. I enjoyed the historical bits about this book - including history of art - but at times it felt a bit too spy-thriller-like for me, with plots and subplots and … it just didn’t always work. However, this book does make me want to read Mr. Santlofer’s first book and, then, if I find that one interesting, I may pick this one up again to read again. I really wanted to like this book more than I did but it just didn’t work (for instance, it took me a long while to realize that one of the characters we had already met was Alex’s mysterious “Luke” - I though he was a separate character - maybe I skimmed too quickly, but I was really confused for a while …).

The Last Van Gogh is a beautifully written book that can appeal to art historians, historians, or people that love a good mystery.
I studied Entartete Kunst, and the names mentioned are familiar to me. Is primarily a book for people that have a background in art history. Looted art during WWII is a big passion of mine. To readers without a knowledge in the field might find the book hard to read. I did appreciate all the sketches , and info at the end.
When I read historical fictions based on truth, I always like to research what is true and what is not. There were many times when an historical fiction taught me facts that I didn't know.

Alex finds a painting at an antique store that speaks to her as an art professional and art lover. After getting it home, her and her boyfriend Luke realize it has another painting underneath. It looks like the long long Van Gogh that was rumored to be one of two displayed at his funeral, but has never been seen again. Unfortunately, someone else was looking for the painting and they steal it. Next unfolds the details of trying to get i in t back, getting a PI involved, INTERPOL getting involved, and others as well. It seems everybody wants it. The lost painting, lost as it was being saved from the Nazis in WW2, brings to light the illegal underworld of buying and selling looted art and the people trying to unite it with original owners and families that it was stolen from.

I liked this book. I love stories of lost things and finding them. I love historical fiction. This brought it all together. However, it did feel like I was missing things not having read the authors previous book ( I didn’t realize there was one or I would have). It felt like a sequel. I felt like I missed important information about the characters that was learned in the first book. But it was an amazing read and a well told story!

I was excited by the premise of this book, but unfortunately the execution didn't quite do it for me. I didn't form a connection with the characters, and parts of the plot didn't really grip me. It's possible that part of the problem was that I haven't read the author's previous book, The Last Mona Lisa, where these characters were first introduced. So if someone tells me they read and enjoyed the first one, I'll certainly recommend that they give this one a shot.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was interested in this book due to how much I loved Santlofer’s previous book, The Last Mona Lisa. This book didn’t disappoint. Based on a self portrait Vincent Van Gogh was rumoured to have painted and was stolen at his funeral, our main character finds that very painting hidden behind an abstract. Unfortunately, it gets stolen, and Alex and her boyfriend go on a journey to retrieve it.

This book was almost cinematic. It reminds me a lot of Dan Brown’s work – books written to be made into films. I learnt a lot about Van Gogh as well as the ethical issues surrounding artwork. It was fast-paced and action packed.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
With a riveting premise, the book starts with an artist carefully concealing a Van Gogh portrait behind another painting on a thin paper. Flash forward to the discovery of the Van Gogh many years later, and subsequently its theft.
Sadly what happened for me was the short chapters, fast paced snippets of information and changing narration made me confused. This was not a book I could easily set down and had me really working hard to stay in it. Every chapter I was thinking “who’s this now?”
Historical fiction is my favorite genre and I was jazzed to pick up another book on the topic of “degenerate art” from WWII, stolen or hidden, resurfacing and traded. I’ve read several of these that kept me on track. It kind of reminded me of a TV program’s camera work, flashing from scene to scene quickly with intense dialogue and lighting. But there you have the visual of who the characters are where you are in the story. I struggled with that in book form.
A generous 3* for me. Just my opinion.

I read the Last Mona Lisa and loved it. This one didnt disappoint. If you loved the Da Vinci Code, this is for you.

Thank you for giving my daughters & I the opportunity to read this book! I think it would have been better enjoyed had I read the books previously written by this author, as there were quite a few references to previous events & characters that I didn't know about. I will always enjoy reading about strong women and lost art. I loved the fast paced plot and understanding the depths of each character. This was a solid book. Thank you!