The Improbability of Love

This book was quite emotionally charged. I found it really strange and not very much to do with the connotative romance in the title. The book itself is full of cunning and secrets all involving a painting - which makes it even more strange. But, at least it's strange in a positive way. 

Again, I found this book in Foyles in Brum - saying this, I only picked it up because I thought "well I haven't read a romance in a while" and voila. It wasn't a romance novel. But, I discovered something very odd about this book that makes me like it - not only that the main character and I share a name, but also that there is a strange connection between every single event that happens. It requires you to pay extra attention to it. 

Characters:

My favourite character was the main character - Annie. She is a self-devoted woman who gets caught up in unfortunate circumstances in the art world after purchasing a painting and then being framed for murder. Her emotions range from completely emotionless to heartbreaking sobs of delirium. Annie was a great character on the whole - and seriously, she is not actually the one that all the secrets revolve around, so don't be fooled. 

Themes: 

My favourite theme was secrecy. Much like a piece of really good detective fiction, this novel seems to unravel secret after secret - connecting events from the near future all the way back to the world wars and the nazis. There is a constant guess at who's being a fox and who's being a snake. There's never any real certainty of loyalty - and the title/cover does not give off this vibe. Never judge a book by its cover. 

Storyline:

Or should I say storylines ? Well, knowing Annie's story is fine enough - but the background stories to Rebecca's family and Jesse and even the background story to the man who owned the painting before Annie. All of these stories seemingly intertwine and I really do think that this book made you think about events in a bold and exciting way. 

Verdict:

I give this book 9

100% for characters: Come on, we have the same name 

100% for themes: There's secrets just layered on top of each other. 

100% for storyline: There's even a narrative from the painting's perspective. THE PAINTING HAS ITS OWN NARRATIVE! And that ending (gosh, the feelings!)