Perspectives struck the perfect balance of humor and absurdity that kept me engaged throughout. Binet's skillful use of letter correspondence created a seamless narrative flow that made the story both accessible and compelling. So much drama, not matter the era!

Interesting structure. The novel is composed of a series of daily letters written in 1557, following the murder of an artist in Florence. Written by various members of “high society” and prominent artists, the letters explore the life of the dead artist and his work, including a nude painting of the eldest daughter of the Duke of Florence, Cosimo de’ Medici.

Laurent Binet’s Perspective(s) is an ambitious, epistolary whodunit that brings Renaissance Florence vividly to life. Told entirely through a web of 176 letters, the novel begins with the shocking death of painter Jacopo da Pontormo—found in the chapel of San Lorenzo with his own chisel in his chest, beneath frescoes that have already divided opinion.

The letters fly between artists, patrons, apprentices, and royalty: Giorgio Vasari, loyal servant to Duke Cosimo de’ Medici, charged with finding both Pontormo’s killer and a missing painting; Bronzino and Michelangelo weighing in from the sidelines; and even Catherine de’ Medici, scheming from the French court. At the center of the scandal lies not only Pontormo’s controversial fresco, but also a portrait of Cosimo’s daughter Maria, painted as Venus—a work that threatens her future and her family’s reputation.

Binet captures the gossip, rivalries, and maneuvering of Renaissance Italy with wit and energy. The epistolary form works beautifully here: it feels as though we’ve stumbled into a private archive, watching characters reveal too much, mislead, or outright lie in their correspondence. The shifting perspectives keep the mystery taut while also layering in political power plays, artistic debates, and deeply human dramas of love, ambition, and betrayal.

Perspective(s) is both playful and erudite—a historical mystery that’s equal parts salacious court intrigue, art history lesson, and puzzle box. For readers willing to keep track of its large cast, it’s a rewarding, immersive experience. Fans of Umberto Eco, Sarah Dunant, or C.J. Sansom will feel right at home.

an interesting novel, i loved the historial setting with the 16th century italian characters and people. there were so many interesting parts and the intrigue was off the charts. i was slightly let down by the ending (and reveal) but the ride was good!

Pretty solid murder mystery told via epistolary style among various nobles and artists in Florence, Italy. There are a few letters that end up serving as a bit of an info dump as to what actually went on due to the nature of the storytelling style, but there's still some neat political moves that we get to track via these letters. Does feel like there was a bit of a conspiracy around the idea of perspective being introduced in paintings that never quite went anywhere, but it's still a pretty solid read.

Thank you to NetGalley and FS&G for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am rating this 3 stars, since there are things that I liked, and things I did not. First of all, this book is very short- only 272 pages, but it probably should have been less. The premise sounds intriguing, but I felt it started to get a bit repetitive in the second half, and probably could have been at least 50 pages shorter.

If you like art and history, you will probably love this. Overall, a nice effort but just a little too long.

***ARC from NetGalley***

Set in Florence during the reign of Cosimo de ‘Medici, the central mystery centers on solving the murder of the painter Pontormo and a scandalous painting found in his possession.

The author does a skillful job of weaving a fictional narrative around the very real individuals involved in the story. While the main focus is the murder, there are several side stories, including determining who really painted that painting, who stole it when it disappears, and court intrigue involving the queen of France and her niece.

This novel was translated from the original French, which may explain certain instances where the language feels too modern for the time it reflects. Overall, a quick and entertaining read that weaves historical people and moments around an art world mystery. The novel is told the correspondence between the many players and can become a bit confusing, trying to piece together the various sub plots.

I stopped this book at 24%. The premise sounds really good and I love the idea that this is set in such a historical period but the letters back and forth aren’t enough for me to stay engaged. There’s no real descriptions of anything and it feels less plot driven and more just people talking back and forth.

This book is extremely well-researched and has intricate plotting. It’s a clever idea— a murder mystery told through letters in renaissance Florence.

You will have issues keeping the characters apart if you don’t know much about Florence in this time period. (I do not, so I found myself trying to figure out or remember who was who several times.)

Laurent Binet's Perspective(s) is a novel written in letters that takes the reader into the 16th century artistic, political, and religious world of Florence. The murder of Jacopo Pontormo in the chapel where he was painting his controversial frescos in the mannerism style is found dead, chiseled through the heart, sets off the beginning of the story. Giorgio Vasari, art critic and architect, is charged by the Duke with leading the investigation into the artist's murder.

In this world everyone has a motive for killing Pontormo: from his artist peers: Michaelangelo and Bronzino, among others, to the Duke, the Pope, a group of nuns, to members of a seditious band who are fighting for workers guild rights.

Because Binet has created an atmosphere of intrigue and cloak and dagger where everyone is under suspicion, anyone could have been the murderer. This makes the novel thrilling and keeps the reader guessing but, the ending is too fantastical to be believed and begs the question if the author simply ran out of steam and just wanted to end the book. Up until the unfortunate conclusion, I would have given this book 5 stars for its well researched plot and developed characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opprtunity to read this title.

This was not what I expected it to be. I thought the writing style was interesting since you're reading letters sent between each character instead of a typical narration. However, my biggest issues were how repetitive the letters were and how confusing it was to follow. There's so many people to keep track of which made it difficult to keep the timeline straight.

Told in letters, Perspective(s) is a murder mystery in Renaissance Florence, centered around art. The premise is interesting and I was hooked from page one, but I got bogged down a little in the middle. Overall, I enjoyed this literary historical mystery with a unique premise.

I thought this mystery was interesting though a bit dry. The beginning gripped me but I later found I had to work to get into the motivations of the different characters. Generally, I’m glad I read this.

4.2. I really enjoyed this book, a murderer mystery taking part in Florence in the mid 16th century. It focused on the death of the Italian artist, Pontormo, who was in the process of painting the frescoes in the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence. The novel takes place through multiple correspondence among various colorful characters, many from the Italian artistic community, including Vasari, Bronzino, Michelangelo (in his later years while still completing his work at Saint Peter’s in Rome), Cellini, as well as members of the De Medici family including Cosimo, his wife, Eleanor of Toledo, daughter Maria, and Catherine de Medici, Queen of France, and countless others. The story that was woven through the correspondence gave an incredible recounting of what was going on during that time in Florence during the Renaissance in Italy, including the intense competition (including subterfuge) among the artists for favor, the political and religious intrigue, and just the daily life in Florence at the time. The characters were all well developed and I was so immersed in the storyline that I had trouble putting this book down. Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an advance copy in exchange for an unbiased and candid review.

This was such a fun book. I love a book with drama, and bonus points for all of the renaissance artist drama taking place here.

Interesting from its historical perspective, but I'm not a fan of epistolary novels. And despite Binet's typical flourishes and flashes of brilliance, I struggled through this not actually caring about any of the characters. Others love it, which is great - just not for me. Somewhere between 3 and 3.5 stars.

(With thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this title.)

A murder mystery set in Renaissance Florence is everything I didn't know I needed. This felt so different from the usual mystery/thriller, why aren't more authors setting these in historical time periods?! I devoured this.

Did not finish. Perspective(s) by Laurent Binet felt like reading a history book instead of a work of fiction. I could not connect with it.

A murder mystery set in Medici-era Florence, with a cast of characters comprised of famous artists and royalty. I enjoyed the philosophical musings on art, the pro-worker / anti-elite plot that unfolds and some of the humor that was woven into this! And while the epistolary format was a nice format change from what I traditionally read, it ultimately made the story too passive. Especially for being described as a “pulse-quickening murder mystery.” I just didn’t feel that. I wanted Knives Out set in Florence and sadly, this didn’t deliver on that for me! But, if you want to get swept up in a speculative saga featuring some famous historical figures, it could be a fun read.

I could not follow this one at all. Too many side trips with all the different letters and characters. I really wanted to enjoy this bit of history, but after the halfway point, I had no idea what was happening.
I did appreciate that the letters were written in the voice of each character. Impressive to keep the tone correct for each one.