This is a very special read. Lots of atmosphere and wonderful descriptions of art and the process of working on art.
The tension and foreboding in the novel is very good. I loved every word.
All the (painted) stars!

A fairy tale of artistic creation
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In a sensuous and confident debut, Steeds examines the roots of art and creation, of love and passion and fear, marrying The Tempest and Beauty and the Beast into a hazy, sun-soaked historical novel that lingers long after the last page. Tyro journalist Joseph Adelaide treks to the French hinterlands to interview reclusive Edouard Tartuffe, a revered artist who has withdrawn from the world. Arriving at Tartuffe’s, Joseph is shocked to meet the great man’s niece Ettie, and to be rebuffed by the artist himself. But Joseph is allowed into Tartuffe’s studio as a model, and so the summer unfolds, as Joseph observes Tartuffe while he observes Joseph, and Ettie manages her silent support of her uncle, all of them keeping their own counsel until the truth comes smashing out.

This is a gloriously evocative novel, each of the characters drawn in complex narratives that loop around each other, mirroring the endless orbits that the three leads find themselves, circling secrets that drive them, that might sustain them, or perhaps excoriate them. The ending is telegraphed at the beginning but it is so much more than what might a reader might expect.

This is the third book I have read in the last year on women’s roles in art, craft and creation, and if perhaps this is a moment for that to lift its head above the parapet, then all to the good. This is very, very good, and I urge you to read it now.

Four and a half stars, rounded up to five.

The Artist by Lucy Steeds
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This debut novel has it all; romance, history, art and suspense. With a gentle touch and a slow build the story takes the reader into a carefully considered tableaux of still life. Vivid descriptions of food and colour are layered in paint-strokes and secrets.
We find ourselves in a small village in Provence in 1920’s, the aftermath of war is lingering and our three protagonist’s lives are intertwined as much as they’re also in collision.

The great painter and artist, Edouard Tartuffe, is a stubborn recluse. The young and naive writer, Joseph, is visiting in the hope he can write an article about the painters work and make a success of himself.
In the heart of it all is Ettie; Tartuffe’s niece and housekeeper - a woman with her own talents and dreams threatening to challenge the male dominated status quo.
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For lovers of fine art, Provence and historical fiction this novel will make you taste the juice from the plums and feel the hot, claustrophobic air of Summer.
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4/5 stars
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An advance copy from NetGalley was gifted in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a riveting read, it reminded me a little of The Muse by Jessie Burton. I was captivated by the expertly layered narrative I particularly enjoyed the writing style. A great story.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Many thanks to the author, Lucy Steeds, @netgalley and the publisher, @johnmurrays, for an ARC of this book, which was published in the UK and Ireland on 30 January. I found it to be a gripping, immersive read that looks at women's role in the creation of art.

In the early 1920's, a young, budding journalist, Joseph, travels to the south of France to interview the reclusive artist, Edouard Tartuffe. However, when he gets there, he learns that Tartouffe has no interest whatsoever in the interview or in explaining his art to the world. He does need a model for his new painting, Young Man with Orange, so Joseph is permitted to stay.

The stories of the solitary Tartouffe never mention Effie, his niece and chef, housekeeper, secretary and studio assistant. Joseph initially finds Effie to be an elusive figure, always silent and slipping out of sight. But as the summer progresses, Effie and Joseph draw closer, and he realises that in just looking at Edouard, he's been looking in the wrong place.

This is a great book that uses multiple techniques - Effie's experience, her thoughts, her point of view, Joseph's observations - to explore and refute the idea that women are artists, not merely muses. (That might seem obvious, but look at the number of female artists represented in any major gallery compared to the number of male artists and you realise how far we still have to come.)

The writing is superb, equally capable of catching the experience of shell-shock or Effie's time working in a hospital as it is of conjuring up what Tartouffe is painting. And as someone with a degree of aphantasia, I often find it difficult to picture scenes or objects described in novels in my mind. With this book, though, I still had a good sense of the art described and what it was meant to evoke because the writing is so precise and good at capturing the essence of an object or scene. I would definitely recommend it.

4.5

This debut novel blew me away!

Set in rural Provence, this was an intriguing, layered read surrounding Joseph, a young British journalist, who is invited to stay with the renowned but reclusive painter Tartuffe to write an article about his work. We also read from the point of view of Tartuffe’s niece, Ettie, who has spent her life shackled to her uncle, subjected to his cruel ways.

Tartuffe, as a character, is completely fictional but seemed so real. This was so well written and atmospheric with a hint of mystery running through it. I was completely hooked from the first few chapters.

I will be sharing a full review on my website linked below. A beautiful sweeping debut novel from Lucy Steeds.

The Artist is itself a work of art. A beautifully slow and enchanting story about one very special woman finding her way in a man's world and learning to live for herself. I think the moral of the story is - never underestimate the intelligence and quiet cunning of a woman with nothing to lose and everything to gain.

The story begins in 1920 when a journalist Joseph is invited to visit the reclusive Édouard Tartuffe in his secluded French home. Unexpected and at first unwelcome, Édouard is soon accepted as long as he remains silent when observing the artist at work.

Perhaps even more compelling though is Edouard's niece Ettie. Moving like a shadow it takes time for Joseph to get to know her hidden depths, but when their connection grows, there is passion and secret trysts. Edouard has never wanted Ettie to have her own life and has never allowed her to explore her own talent.

But Ettie has an ally in Joseph and he sees her as nobody else ever has. Her confidence and determination grows and ultimately leads to her taking the most drastic of actions to ensure she is able to live the life she has always dreamt of.

The writing in this beautiful book is sublime and engrossing and I simply loved everything about it.

Set in the 1920’s after World War 1 in rural southeastern France.
Joseph Adelaide a young journalist is invited to the home of a reclusive artist Edouard Tartuffe, known as Tata. There he finds Tata and his niece Sylvette known as Ettie.
As a sweltering summer turns towards autumn does Joseph get the answers he seeks.

The writing is very descriptive and vivid and an interesting book to read. I did about halfway through guess correctly how the book would end.
It made me wish I had a talent to paint.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Publisher for an advanced e-book copy. Opinions about the book are entirely my own.

Joseph, an aspiring journalist, is surprised and delighted to be invited to visit the reclusive artist Tartuffe at his studio in rural Provence.
He finds Tartuffe in the company of his niece, Ettie, who appears to fulfil many roles in the household.
As Summer progresses, Joseph is asked to model for Tartuffe and begins to develop some sort of relationship with him, while keeping with the constraints of the household. This becomes impossible as his relationship with Ettie begins to blossom.
This is a sensational novel, full of rich descriptive prose of the landscape and the paintings. The heat shimmers off the page and the tension builds as Joseph and Ettie try to keep their secrets Ettie is such a complex character and you can really emphasise with her as her backstory is explained. Poor Joseph is so desperate to break out from his family and is wretched with grief over his war wounded elder brother. The power that Tartuffe wields is despotic - relying on awe and fear to keep them in their place.
I loved this novel, and if you enjoy historical fiction I’m sure you will too.

Told by Ettie and Joseph, the former, a talented woman forced to live in the shadows, the latter a journalist who is keen on interviewing a mysterious artist and deals with his brother’s PTSD.
The novel is set in Provence, which is vivid as usual and beautifully described.
Interestingly, the writing was a mixed bag for me; wonderful for the setting, not subtle and complex for the actions by the characters.
Overall, this was my feel. I wanted to love this book, but despite the potential, the plot was not as deeply explored, the writing not groundbreaking, and sometimes on the nose for my tastes.
I am glad this book exists, and perhaps its potential will be explored in another book by the author.
I will not be reviewing this publicly. I can see that this book has a wide audience, and I hope it does well.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher John Murray Press for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

TW: abuse, death, references to WW1, PTSD and mentions of attempted suicide

Provenance, France. 1920.
The reclusive artist and genius Edouard Tartuffe and his niece Ettie live in the rural countryside, and despite his fame, Tartuffe has never spoken about himself or his process. When Joseph, an eager British journalist hoping to write an article about his hero Tartuffe, is picked as the next model for Tartuffe’s next painting, he is shown a world and a life he could never have expected. Ettie, meanwhile, is always present but rarely noticed despite the fact that she prepares Tartuffe’s canvases, cooks and cleans for him and keeps the studio organised to his particular tastes. She has never been given the chance to study, travel or explore her desire to draw, despite knowing that she has a talent for it. Soon enough Ettie and Joseph become close, brought together by the complicated Tartuffe, and as the summer grows hotter, things become even more confusing when Joseph realises that maybe Tartuffe isn’t the genius he expected- but Ettie is.

This book pulled me in so swiftly, the next time I looked up I’d read over half. The writing and language used in ‘The Artist’ is just gorgeous, particularly in how Joseph and Ettie look at the isolated world of Tartuffe’s house and their lives. Joseph is an idealist at heart, his brother is in hospital with severe PTSD after the war which has thrown him, and he hopes that he can decipher the mysteries behind Tartuffe’s eccentric genius. The man he meets is nothing like the ‘Master of Light’ that he expected, and once he becomes Tartuffe’s sitter, it becomes more than just a job. Likewise, Ettie is quiet and brilliant, withdrawn and isolated; her story really resonated with me, her uncle feels threatened by the idea of her artistic talent and so has cut her off, but Effie still attempts to be an artist in secret. Throughout the whole book you feel the heat and weight of the French summer, the frustration Joseph feels as he tries to get answers from Tartuffe and Ettie and the taste of the food Tartuffe so faithfully paints even when people are trying to eat it. ‘The Artist’ was the perfect book for me as an art lover and art history student but I think this could be enjoyed by anyone, the story is so smoothly written and the themes of trauma, identity, family and love are managed really well. It really questions the idea of artists and their gifts, about who gets to have that title and why so often equally amazing women are pushed to the side. This was such a powerful debut and a book I’ll definitely come back to in the future, I loved it.

Rating: 4.5/5

"Here was the man who could create beauty from nothing. Here was an artist who had dined with Van Gogh and argued with Cezanne, Who had expanded the boundaries of paint and colour and light itself." This evocative quote sets the stage for Lucy Steeds' debut novel, "The Artist," a captivating historical fiction that transports readers to the scorching landscapes of 1920s Provence.

The novel centers around Edouard Tartuffe, a renowned but reclusive and excentric painter, who never gives interviews. Tartuffe's reclusion is disrupted by the arrival of Joseph, a young English journalist seeking to consolidate his career by interviewing the great painter. Soon Joseph understands this interview will come with a cost. Joseph will have to pose for Tartuffe as a model for what will become his most famous work of art. While Joseph pursues his professional ambitions, the true heart of the story lies in the awakening of Ettie, Tartuffe's niece and a young woman yearning for a life beyond the confines of her uncle's isolated world.

The romance between Joseph and Ettie unfolds slowly and deliberately, allowing for a nuanced exploration of their individual desires and the societal constraints they face. While some may find the pacing slow, it allows for a deeper immersion in the atmosphere and a more profound understanding of the characters' internal struggles. The story is never dull. Steed wastes no word.

"The Artist" is more than just a historical romance; it's a thoughtful exploration of artistic inspiration, the pressures of fame, and the search for one's own identity in a rapidly changing world. Steeds' prose is both elegant and evocative, capturing the details of 1920s Provence with vivid imagery. It is hard to fathom this is a debut and I will be reading more of her work.

I would highly recommend The Artist for readers who appreciate character-driven historical fiction, particularly those with an interest in art, the complexities of human relationships, and the enduring impact of historical events.

Failed artist Joseph writes a column for a new magazine and he has managed to get invited to the Provence home of legendary recluse Edouard Tartuffe. It is 1920 and Joseph is escaping the post-War malaise where his brother is suffering from shell-shock and he has been disowned by his father. Ettie is Tartuffe's niece, tied to her uncle she has found a way to express herself as an artist but longs to be free.
This novel is onethat, for a change, really lives up to the hype. The writing is very evocative of the dry, scented, hot provencal summer and the passion for art and what it really means comes through. It's not the sort of story I would rave about but this is a confident and powerful debut.

All is most decidedly not as it first appears in Lucy Steeds’ secrets-laden novel in which a final revelation, with the extra spin it puts on the title, raises a provocative question about genuineness in art.
Not the weighty tome that that might suggest, though, Steeds’ novel is an eminently readable affair which takes readers back to the period of the First World War, which is over by the time of the book but still very much casting its shadow, most notably on its protagonist, Joseph, who is still coping with his brother having enlisted while Joseph incurred his father’s wrath by declaring himself a conscientious objector.
So put out with him, indeed, was his father – milksop! shirker! he hurled at him – as to have sent him fleeing to art school in Paris, where, for all his love of art, his agitation is severe enough to get him removed. But providence steps in with the offer of a job writing for an art magazine, which has him journeying to France to interview a notoriously reclusive artist, Edouard Tartuffe, after Joseph is surprised to receive an affirmative response to his request for an interview.
“Come,” the summons said simply, which would seem inviting enough, though upon Joseph’s arrival, in one of the novel’s myriad mysteries, the artist denies any knowledge of the summons, though he does propose that Joseph be the model for a new painting he envisions.
It’s a proposition Joseph initially resists but finally accedes to in no small part because of Tartuffe’s appealing young niece, Ettie, who has secrets of her own including how she came to be living with her uncle and what exactly happened to her mother, who we're told left for America only to come back in a coffin. And there’s the question of the identity of Ettie’s father as well as what made for Tartuffe ending up in such a remote place after making a name for himself in Paris.
A host of mysteries, as I say, the novel poses, with perhaps the most intriguing one coming in its prologue, which immediately engages a reader with the question of how a woman in a gallery could be looking at a picture of Tartuffe’s which we're told was consumed in a fire over 30 years before.
Seemingly inexplicable, the mystery, but one which, like the others in the novel, is satisfactorily resolved in a book which, for all its seriousness of purpose, is eminently readable and of interest both to readers specifically interested in art as well as those simply looking for a good story.

I loved, loved, loved The Artist! A beautifully written story of a young woman, Ettie, wanting to escape from her uncle's dominance, and a young man, Joseph, who wants to know all there is to learn from the uncle, Tartuffe, a well-known artist who is also a recluse. The setting is a remote farmhouse in Provence in 1920, with the repercussions of WW1 playing its part. The action takes place during the summer months and the heat and building of tension leaps off the page. What happened to Ettie's mother, Tartuffe's sister? Why has he secluded himself and Ettie away from everyone else, with the exception of his Parisian agent? Why has he invited Joseph to visit him? The Artist is a truly wonderful read and much more than the usual historical novel. I look forward to rereading it as soon as possible. Right up there with my books of the year, already. Many thanks to NetGalley and John MUrray Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I've spent nearly seven hours in this meeting room today. As the light outside fades, my thoughts drift once again to Tata and Ettie’s world. I can almost feel the sun’s warmth on my neck, breathe in the heady scent of Provence’s summers, and taste the honey clinging to my fingers. Crickets hum, and sunflowers glow with golden light. Oh, how I wish I had taken that donkey track instead of Joseph.
When Joseph receives a single-word letter from Tata, he believes he is finally on the verge of revealing the brilliance of this elusive painter to the world. But as he steps into Tata’s stifling, unpredictable world, he quickly realises how difficult it will be to even scratch the surface. That is, until the quiet words of Tata’s timid niece begin to show him that true vision goes beyond what the eyes can see.

If there's only one book you read this year, make it this one. It's a delightful, captivating experience that will engage all your senses. Thanks to Netgalley for an advance copy and Lucy Steeds for an absolutely stunning debut!

It’s 1920 in Provence, Joseph a young journalist has travelled from London to meet his obsession, the reclusive artist Tartuffe.
And so begins Lucy Steed debut novel in the steaming heat of the summer. She uses only three characters, giving the novel a concentrated, claustrophobic feel.
There is Etta, Tartuffe’s granddaughter, closed off the everyone, her sole person in life to serve her grandfather.
Tartuffe is the gruff, self-absorbed artist, prone to violent outbursts, a man who demands everything.
Joseph is her catalyst the one who infiltrates the house, who ignites the flame of simmering tensions and bad feelings
As the heat rises, feelings of claustrophobia intensify, their pasts unravel, secrets rise to the surface and truths are confronted.
It was a melting pot of emotion, and Steed put me right there in the middle, the intensity almost unbearable as the three wrestled with their futures, of an outcome you desperately hoped for.
It is rare that a novel captures my emotions, makes me fall so intensely in love with the characters, with the sublime imagery, with a narrative that I relished yet Lucy Steeds has succeeded where others have failed.
The Artist is a novel I will never forget, bravo Lucy Steeds.

The Artist is a remarkable piece of work. Rich, descriptive prose, 3 dimensional characters who evolve across the pages and the stunning backdrop of southern France - a dream!

I loved the impact Joseph and Ettie had on each others lives, the way they tiptoed around one another in an elaborate dance as the try developed, and the secrets they shared? Wow!

The descriptive manner she captured nature, food, smells and texture was intoxicating and it drew me in, I felt it right through my bones.

I'm generous with book ratings, and have offered a few 5 stars already but it makes me want to rethink that - so I'm giving this 10 stars out of 5!

Simply breathtaking - this is going to stay with me for quite some time.

Thank you so much to the publishers for my advanced copy and congratulations to Lucy, what an achievement coming up with this story and then painting it so beautifully with your words.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.

Joseph is a young art journalist grieving the death of his mother and his brother's loss of health after fighting in WWI. After writing a letter pleading for an interview with one of the worlds greatest French artists-Eduardo Tartuffe-he receives a one word summons: "Come". When he arrives at the secluded farmhouse at the edge of a small village in which Tartuffe- "Tata"-lives, the great man has no memory of inviting Joseph to come and orders him away. His niece, Ettie, saves the day by suggesting that Joseph model for a work Tata has long wanted to paint: Young Man with Orange. Over the following months Joseph becomes a part of both of their lives and learns far more about Tartuffe and Ettie than he'd expected, including some unexpected revelations.

I love books about art. I love stories in which art holds an important place. I love stories about feminist struggles in which female characters overcome patriarchy. The Artist was all of these things and I mostly enjoyed those aspects. Ultimately, though, the prose and the story let me down.

The prose confused me as there would be beautiful passages that drew me in and painted a vivid picture: "He can picture Harry ensconced in his club: plush chairs, chandeliers, taxidermied pheasants. The low murmur of other white-mustached gentlemen with rounded bellies..." "He is clad in a sharp black suit and wears a scarlet cravat around his neck like a slit throat." but also sections that were much more cliche and even cloyingly sentimental. "Starred deeply into her eyes" "He grew up at the end of Rupert's outstretched hand, their younger sister Flora clinging on to the other. But then there came a day when their hands slipped from one another forever." The romantic sections in particular made me cringe.

The story took quite a while to get going and once it did didn't seem to have a clear direction. Bizarrely, the author gave away the major twist in the prologue. Maybe not all the details, but it was obvious from the beginning what was really going on with Ettie and Tata. Then the story built up to the full revelations as if they would be shocking or dramatic, and they weren't, because anyone would have already guessed. So, I assumed there would be more, some further complexity to draw me through the rest of the novel. But there wasn't. Everything else that happened was predictable. The explanations for Ettie's choices were repetitive and circular and eventually felt as if the novel was stalling, trying to draw things out to make a word count. And then there was a whole section involving a new character, Amir, that had nothing to do with anything else and felt like it belonged to a different book. The writer didn't do a good enough job tying it into the rest of the narrative. There was another revelation, but again, it wasn't significant enough to be interesting. The ending was vague, which was strange after so much over-explaining of the rest, and I felt dissatisfied by loose ends not being clarified. Basically, the story didn't work for me. I'd expected more and felt like not much was delivered overall.

I enjoyed the feminist aspects of the book, the way Ettie learned that she could become an artist in her own right, despite Tata's possessiveness and the world's sexism. But it also felt like a relatively superficial exploration. A bit on-the-nose and obvious. with nothing new revealed. The book made me think of the Glen Close film, The Wife, which I think handled similar subject matter in a more complex and interesting way.

So, ultimately, this book was not for me.