Publisher: Avon
Date published: October 2009
ISBN: 978-0-06-176527-8
Historical fiction
Paperback
Reviewed by Valerie
Obtained via publisher
Rachel takes a stroll to get a rest from the brothel where she works. She falls asleep and wakens to find someone is sketching her. It is a red-haired man in a yellow hat. This is the foreigner who lives in the village, Vincent van Gogh. When he comes to visit her at the brothel for the first time, he brings a bouquet of wildflowers. He asks if he can paint her but she refuses. This is the start of a relationship that reaches to their very souls. A very deep love develops both of them and Rachel will stay by Vincent’s side, even through the turmoil of his own soul threatens to keep them apart. Vincent is plagued by demons and when he gives her a present that both shocks and alarms her, she realizes the truth about the man she has fallen in love with.
This is a fabulous story that really captivated me from the first page. We all know Vincent van Gogh. We all say he’s that crazy man who cut off his ear. Well, Sheramy Bundrick has gone to great lengths to tell us just how crazy, how sad and how deeply Vincent was troubled. There are some fact files at the back of the book, which are very interesting. I am sure you will see the artist in a different light. Ms. Bundrick takes true historical facts and adds in some ‘what-if’ elements to make this a wonderful story. We feel along with Rachel as this man feverishly paints and hopes everyday that his paintings will sell. We worry with her as he gets ill and has strange fits. And I challenge you as a reader not to read this book and shed a few tears at the end.
This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.
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