"The colors and swirl of 19th century Paris come to life in this touching novel about learning to truly see-in art and in love. Berthe Morisot lived an impressive life, and Paula Butterfield has written a novel worthy of her." – Carrie Callaghan, author of A Light of Her Own and Salt the Snow Above all, Berthe Morisot yearns to be a professional artist. Despite the skepticism of her parents and the male-dominated conservatism of the Parisian art world, Berthe pursues her artistic passion. Chafing under the tutelage of traditional masters, Berthe is mesmerized by Paris' most revolutionary artist, the debonair Édouard Manet, whose radical paintings reflect a brash modern style. Berthe consents to model for Édouard and in the process falls deeply in love, an affair that both must keep hidden from the world, for Édouard is married to another. As the city of Paris is convulsed by the Franco-Prussian war, and dark family secrets are revealed, the lovers are driven apart. Berthe, after enduring the horrors of a city under siege and suffering from recurring depression, marries Édouard's brother, the mercurial Eugène Manet. Quiet married life is not for Berthe, however, and she-along with her infamous contemporaries, which include Edgar Degas, Paul Cézanne, and Claude Monet-develops the radical painting style that challenges the stifling traditionalism of the Salon: Impressionism.
"Butterfield provides more than surface brush strokes, adding exquisite details of Parisian and Berthe's life, the view from an artist's eye, and the eruptions of techy temperament. This is an impressive debut novel for Butterfield, who builds on her experience as a teacher of women's art history to develop a multi-dimensional painter of the light, la luministe."
K. M. SANDRICK, reviewer at the Historical Novel Society
"This exceptional novel illuminates the beauty and struggle of both the artist and the female spirit during the bloody time of the Franco-Prussian War."
