I never understood the appeal of Mona Lisa’s famously enigmatic smile until I saw it through the eyes of these characters. I also hadn't known much about the Nazi occupation of France or the art thefts during World War II, or about the continuing political unrest after the Allies arrived. It was fascinating to learn about some of this history from an "insider’s" perspective, if you will.

Chasing Mona Lisa seems to be a well-researched novel, and the plot twists just kept coming. The emotions were intense and changed quickly as the characters carefully plotted their next move, waited restlessly for information, or rescuing a friend, or running for their lives. I did get confused a few times though; Eric and Gabi often alluded to their previous mission (I haven’t read the previous book, The Swiss Courier) and some of the German characters were hard to distinguish from one another for most of the story.

Normally spy novels aren't really my cup of tea, but I did like this one, so I think I just might have to go track down a copy of The Swiss Courier next!