The Muse
by Jessie Burton
A picture hides a thousand words . . . On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn’t know she had, she remains a mystery – no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery. The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. Into this fragile paradise come artist and revolutionary Isaac Robles and his half-sister Teresa, who immediately insinuate themselves into the Schloss family, with explosive and devastating consequences . . .
While certainly intrigued by The Muse’s synopsis, I cannot say that this novel would’ve been one I would’ve chosen based on synopsis alone. In fact, the biggest draw of this novel was its author–Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist, a novel I read and thoroughly enjoyed several years ago. It was the lingering impression of incredible storytelling that prompted me to pick up The Muse, and I’m so glad I did for it has solidified Burton as an author whose novels I will read no matter the subject.
Burton’s writing is fantastic and shines especially within The Muse’s dual POV narration and timelines. The story alternates between Odelle’s first person narration in London 1967 and a third person POV from multiple characters in Spain 1936. While I wasn’t an immediate fan of the narration style–something about Odelle’s POV and how it addressed the timeline didn’t quite click with me–the slight apprehension of the writing faded with each page I read. I was pulled further and further into the story and became enraptured, settling in and enjoying every aspect of the story as it unfolded. Full of evocative descriptions that effortlessly painted scenes in my mind, intriguing characters, and timelines that were woven together flawlessly, The Muse was an easy novel to get lost in.
There was something fantastically appealing, raw, and understandable about the questionable morality of The Muse’s characters. Full of secrets and hazy justifications for less-than-admirable actions, these characters managed to wrap me up within some of their justifications, blinding me to just how wrong some of their actions were as I saw them for the desperation so woven into them. It was fantastically conveyed, this contradictory feeling of seeing everything as it was in plain fact, but understanding so well the emotions that seemed to make sense of what was going on and almost believing them instead. It certainly made for an interesting reading experience, especially as I had to question whether or not I even liked–genuine like, not admiration for a well-written character–most of the characters. One aspect of this novel I loved was the stark contrast between our narrators. Odelle is a Trinidadian woman living in 1960s London, having moved there to become a writer and finding it nothing like she’d imagined. Olive, the rich daughter of an art dealer who doesn’t believe in her, has just moved to rural Spain with her parents and is surprised to have found real happiness and a sort of success there, though not perhaps the way she’d wanted it. Their lives seemingly have nothing in common and no overlap, but each was captivating and utterly engaging. Secondary characters throughout the novel shined, as well, with surprising depth and impact on the story and myself as a reader.
The Muse focuses on the life of a painting–those around it when it was first painted and the impact it had decades later on lives so different from its original keepers. Despite a somewhat slow start, The Muse builds into a complex story of how seemingly unrelated lives and events are interwoven and impact each other. As story threads started to come together and make the larger picture clearer, I couldn’t pull myself away from this story. The events of the plot floored me as they unfolded, with characters defying my expectations and assumptions and forcing me to reevaluate the way I’d been thinking of them. With dual timelines, multiple characters of import, and subplots that carried incredible weight, The Muse is a novel that does not lack depth, surprise, or excitement.
While there are things I would change about how The Muse unfolded for the sake of my own opinions of the characters, there is not one thing I’d change about it as a novel or as a reading experience. Burton’s writing was fantastic, her skill and talent as an author on full display within this enthralling tale. While initially unsure of whether this story could be something I truly loved, it all came together in a way that is undeniably worth raving about.
5/5
Thanks for reading,
Madison