Shadowing Botticelli's Beauty

by Caleb Ives Bach

A suspenseful tale of Borgesian circularity, Shadowing Botticelli's Beauty features an unusual cast drawn from three distinct C.I.A. operatives running sensitive operations during the Cold War; players from the art world among them a painter-architect based in Buenos Aires, and from ages past, the Renaissance master, Sandro Botticelli; and colorful inhabitants of an elite, New England prep school. But throughout this sinuous tale of intrigue, there is the constancy of "Abel Baaker " devoted husband; journeyman case officer; apprentice school master; autodidactic painter; and, last but not least, self-appointed art detective. While weathering the chaos of revolutions, personal tragedies, identity crises, a treacherous colleague, and radical career shifts, the novel's dauntless protagonist tenaciously stalks a lost masterpiece looted by a Nazi war criminal in the closing days of World War II. Baaker's story, which has a basis in fact, is told with the assuredness of a veteran insider privy to the clandestine realm of spies, the arcane province of art historians, and the twisted turf of private boarding schools. While making for a fine read, with its rewarding resolution, Shadowing Botticelli's Beauty ponders the opposing roles of chance and grand design in the destiny of its memorable characters.

312 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008