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46th out of 305 books
—
485 voters
The Modigliani Scandal
by
Ken Follett (Goodreads Author)
A fabulous "lost masterpiece" becomes the ultimate prize for an art historian whose ambition consumes everyone around her, an angry young painter with a plan for revenge on the art establishment, and a desperate gallery owner who may have double-crossed his own life away...
256 pages
Published
April 12th 1996
(first published 1976)
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This and 'Paper Money' are some of Follett's earliest works published under the pen name of Zachary Stone. Like 'Paper Money' this is set in the mid-1970s London and is a breezy tale following multiple lives all trying to get their hands on a painting by a dead master. Some want it to further their academic career as an art historian while others want it purely for the sizeable money it will bring in.
There are a lot of characters, as there usually are in Follett books, but at times I did get a...more
There are a lot of characters, as there usually are in Follett books, but at times I did get a...more
The author himself is a bit dismissive about this book in his introduction. It is one of his earliest works, so I didn't judge the book too harshly (mainly because his intro was a bit self deprecating and I'm a sucker for that). It is a lighthearted caper and I enjoyed the characters, of which there are many. It is a quick, easy read (the author describes is as "fizzy") and for pure escapism it serves its purpose. Pros: I like the glimpse into the inner workings of the art world, I love the thou...more
It's hard for me to rate this book. On one hand, it's plot (the search for a lost Modigliani painting) was interesting, but since I know little about art it wasn't really interesting. Plus, this was the first novel (that he'll claim anyway) from a master novelist, so it was a bit, as he put it, fizzy.
Ultimately, while reading it I was amused, but if I didn't know that Follett would grow up and write some AMAZING stuff (see: Pillars of the Earth) I am not sure I would ever pick up another one.
EXC...more
Ultimately, while reading it I was amused, but if I didn't know that Follett would grow up and write some AMAZING stuff (see: Pillars of the Earth) I am not sure I would ever pick up another one.
EXC...more
This story is based on the world of art - it highlights the hypocrisy exhibited by the collectors and dealers - their allegiance to well-known maestros, and indifference to yet unproven artists (even if they are good); the extremely high stakes involved, and the abounding forgeries.
And like 'A Place called Freedom', it is also quite different from the usual spy/thriller fare of Follet. The author acknowledges that this is an experimental work, and may be disappointing to critics and readers. But...more
And like 'A Place called Freedom', it is also quite different from the usual spy/thriller fare of Follet. The author acknowledges that this is an experimental work, and may be disappointing to critics and readers. But...more
Jun 05, 2010
Nissa
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2004,
dont-remember-reading
This book was loaned to me by a Follett-loving friend. I just checked Amazon to refresh my memory of the basic plot and I can see that the reviewers there didn't love this book. Writing a review six years after the fact is a dicey proposition so I won't go out of my way to praise or bash it but I will say that I enjoy Follett's writing because it allows me to use my brain while I read. His books are guaranteed to get my wheels turning and don't I feel clever when I can follow erudite references...more
Mar 08, 2013
Graeme Waymark
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of Follett, vacation, quick read, beach..
Shelves:
2013
It is good to see where Ken Follett came from; or from what he started with as guidelines for writing a novel. Knowing how well he has gone progressively from his beginnings, it is easy to say that he showed his prodigious talent right away. But from reading of this novel, that cannot be said. It is a pedestrian mystery novel that makes a good entertaining read.
It was not until Follett developed his talent as a researcher and then demonstrated his skill in squeezing together a myriad of facts, d...more
It was not until Follett developed his talent as a researcher and then demonstrated his skill in squeezing together a myriad of facts, d...more
Je vous préviens, je déteste ce genre de livre. Ils sont sans grandes surprises et l'originalité y est souvent nulle. J'ai tout de même pris la peine de le lire, car Ken Follet est un écrivain extrêmement populaire de nos jours. J'avais une certaine curiosité; pourquoi est-il si populaire. Je n'ai pas trouvé de réponses à ma question. Bien-sûr, «Le scandale Modigliani» est son premier roman, datant de 1976, et qui vient d'être réédité et traduit, suite à l'engouement populaire de l'auteur.
En fa...more
En fa...more
Aug 25, 2009
jzhunagev
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
to die hard Ken Follett fans
Recommended to jzhunagev by:
found it at BookSale
“The Modigliani Scandal” by Ken Follett (Book Review)
“The Modigliani Scandal” is a lighthearted early caper from internationally renowned master thriller writer Ken Follett.
The plot concerns Dee Sleign, an art historian on the hunt on her next thesis subject; Charles Lampeth, a genteel cunning gallery owner who hires private detective Dunsford Lipsey; and Julian Black, a desperate man mired in debt setting up his own art establishment. All these characters converge on track of a “lost masterpi...more
“The Modigliani Scandal” is a lighthearted early caper from internationally renowned master thriller writer Ken Follett.
The plot concerns Dee Sleign, an art historian on the hunt on her next thesis subject; Charles Lampeth, a genteel cunning gallery owner who hires private detective Dunsford Lipsey; and Julian Black, a desperate man mired in debt setting up his own art establishment. All these characters converge on track of a “lost masterpi...more
I doubt if the book had much of a readership before "The Pillars of the Earth" came out. It was initially, and not surprisingly, published under a pseudonym. A somewhat contrived plot, difficult to really believe. A few sex scenes and innuendos thrown in for good measure. You really do wonder why we have the heroine taking off her knickers in the crypt of a church to remove the dust from a set of old paintings. I was rather surprised too to discover Livorno (Leghorn) located on the Adriatic Coas...more
Hard to believe this is from the same author who gave us Pillars of the Earth.
What a load of rubbish.
Story doesn't make sense, characters are awful and overall a real struggle to get through.
I wanted to stop reading so many times, but because of his other work I remained hopeful he would bring it all together in the end. Unfortunately not.
If you want to start reading Ken Follet, do not start with this one.
I guess this book also shows that practice makes perfect, even for writers.
What a load of rubbish.
Story doesn't make sense, characters are awful and overall a real struggle to get through.
I wanted to stop reading so many times, but because of his other work I remained hopeful he would bring it all together in the end. Unfortunately not.
If you want to start reading Ken Follet, do not start with this one.
I guess this book also shows that practice makes perfect, even for writers.
Just finished this book. Not as suspenseful as other Follett books, but still interesting. Some great twists that I didn't expect. The especially nice one involved Julian and his wife Sara - if you read it you'll know what I'm talking about. I only wish that the characters of Julian and Samantha Winacre could have been fully resolved, as I was left wondering what happened to them eventually. A nice little twist on who concocted the whole plot we're reading about.
carino, frizzante, divertente, leggero, senza morti, orrori, disgrazie o altro...una lettura piacevolissima per un viaggio fra treni ed aerei (e ritardi vari di cui manco mi sono accorta grazie a queste pagine deliziose come una buona birra fresca in un pomeriggio d'estate).
Non e' un capolavoro, ma e' godibile e ben scritto.
Consigliato per distrarsi fra un mattone e un dramma.
Non e' un capolavoro, ma e' godibile e ben scritto.
Consigliato per distrarsi fra un mattone e un dramma.
I read this book because I've been wanting to try a Ken Follett (my dad is a huge fan) and I am a big art-lover so the story sounded intriguing. It was a decent page-turner, but I was not impressed with the ending (it was confusing regarding what actually happened!) or with his writing style. This was one he wrote in the 70s though, so perhaps I would like his later books better.
I like The Modigliani Scandal for its simple mystery. The plot is fabulous in this book. I thought of The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons while reading. The reason is for this book's inescapable suspense and travel to Italy, Greece, England, etc. I enjoyed the trip.
The focus on artwork that Follett includes is what makes this book fabulous and anticipatory. I found myself reading for the sake of the art work. At some points I could guess very easily what was going to happen, but overall the...more
The focus on artwork that Follett includes is what makes this book fabulous and anticipatory. I found myself reading for the sake of the art work. At some points I could guess very easily what was going to happen, but overall the...more
For a long time I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was about this book that was so...familiar. And then I figured it out.
It reminds me of a Georgette Heyer London mystery (as opposed to one of her "cosy" mysteries, or Regency romances)--except Heyer does it much, much better.
Two days of reading out of my life that I'll never get back.
It reminds me of a Georgette Heyer London mystery (as opposed to one of her "cosy" mysteries, or Regency romances)--except Heyer does it much, much better.
Two days of reading out of my life that I'll never get back.
A goofy, slight, and very dated novel -- Ken Follett's first, and it shows. A disparate group of unlikeable young people are all unbelievably put on the trail of a lost Modigliani painting (one that the famous painter painted while high). This is a ham-fisted critique of the art world with some sex and drugs thrown in for shock value. Like Jacqueline Susann, but not as fun.
Tengo la idea de que Ken Follet es un gran autor, sin embargo, este libro me decepcionó bastante. La trama no es muy buena y la siento bastante lenta. No te emociona en lo absoluto. En lo particular con lo único que me identifique fue que el personaje principal es una historiadora del arte y que ama a Modigliani.
So far I like this book, especially since it deals with art, a subject I'm just starting to appreciate. However, I must reduce my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars simply because the book is rather dry. This is a very plain narrative of events occurring in the story without any interesting or unique characteristics to the writing style, literary style or plot. If I knew more about literature and literary techniques I could probably use more technical jargon, but I can only sense the end result that...more
Aug 08, 2012
Marie
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
anglais-world,
abandon
Je savais que ce ne serait pas de la grande littérature mais je n'avais pas réalisé que ce livre a été écrit dans les années 70. Le style est plat, les personnages pas développés et on donne trop de détails qui n'ajoutent rien à l'action. Je me suis ennuyée et j'ai sauté pas mal de pages...
It had a lot of potential, but being one of his first books he didn't capitalize on the suspense at the end of the book and make it great. He just summarized the ending for you instead of making you read through all the excitement. I would love to see him take another stab at the writing.
I read a lot of Follett in the early 80's, in fact did a paper on his heroines. Although this book was a enjoyable and intriguing and I still wonder about the very end, it wasn't up to those thrillers. Makes me want to read them again. He does weave an intricate plot.
As I promised myself, I am working myself through Ken's books and read this his first one. He is quite critical of himself but I really liked it. It had a lot of things going on but Ken knew what he was doing and had good control of his whole story
Having a hard time getting through this one. So far it seems full of unpleasant people doing foolish things. Also, I don't mind it when "serious" literature plays around with point of view, but I prefer my guilty-pleasure reading to maintain a single perspective, or at most two or three. It's hard to lose myself in a story that jumps around so much.
I was so excited to read this book, I mean I liked The Pillars of the Earth, and when I saw one of his earlier books had Modigliani in the title, what could be better, a mystery involving art! So I was surprised when starting the book that there was a forward added to new editions written by Ken Follett himself, which pretty much ruined my anticipation. Apparently he thought he had written this very serious mystery/thriller, but the critics called it fluffy. Not an exact quote, but you get the p...more
Overall this is a fun read. The author in the introduction hints at deeper meanings lurking within and how the critics missed this deeper message. I side with the critics. There are hints of a deeper moral message but this is scrambled up sufficiently to make one wonder what the message is. I love the characters, but the overall plot leaves too many unanswered questions about them.
Too many shallow characters. Not his best work. Almost gave up because I just couldn't "care" for the subject or characters, but it was only 190 pages so not too much time wasted. I've read some great books by Follett so will try something else.
A huge let-down considering the fact that i have enjoyed reading his other books immensely. Not enough tension in the narrative and a little too soft for my taste.But i liked it, nonetheless.Overall ,a lackluster book that could have been brilliant.
What a little gem.....an early Follett, quite different from the later books....I agree with his critics as he notes in the forward, very different....and I thought a funny who did it....could be made into a cute movie.
A little thin for Follett. He is one of my go-to authors when I don't know what to read. I usually like his books, but this falls a little flat. Won't give up on him yet. Still love the Pillars of the Earth books.
Not your typical Ken Follett novel, which even he states in the front of the book. It's a mystery surrounding the search for an art masterpiece, so no gruesome murders involved. All in all, a quick, light read.
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Ken Follett burst onto the book world in 1978 with Eye of the Needle, a taut and original thriller with a memorable woman character in the central role. The book won the Edgar award and became an outstanding film.
He went on to write four more bestselling thrillers: Triple; The Key to Rebecca; The Man from St Petersburg; and Lie Down with Lions.
He also wrote On Wings of Eagles, the true story of ho...more
More about Ken Follett...
He went on to write four more bestselling thrillers: Triple; The Key to Rebecca; The Man from St Petersburg; and Lie Down with Lions.
He also wrote On Wings of Eagles, the true story of ho...more
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24 août 08:22