When the author bought a falling down fortified house on the Staffordshire moorlands; he had no reason to anticipate the astonishing tale that would unfold as it was restored. A mysterious set of relationships emerged amongst its former owners; revolving round the almost forgotten artist; Robert Bateman; a prominent Pre-Raphaelite and friend of Burne Jones. He was to marry the granddaughter of the Earl of Carlisle; and to be associated with Benjamin Disraeli; William Gladstone; and other prominent political and artistic figures.But he had abandoned his life as an artist in mid-career to live as a recluse; and his rich and glamorous wife-to-be had married the local vicar; already in his sixties and shortly to die. The discovery of two clearly autobiographical paintings led to an utterly absorbing forensic investigation into Batemans life.The story moves from Staffordshire to Lahore; to Canada; Wyoming; and then; via Buffalo Bill; to Peru and back to England. It leads to the improbable respectability of Imperial Tobacco in Bristol; and then; less respectably; to a car park in Stoke-on-Trent. En route the author pieces together an astonishing and deeply moving story of love and loss; of art and politics; of morality and hypocrisy; of family secrets concealed but never quite completely obscured. The result is a page-turning combination of detective story and tale of human frailty; endeavor; and love. It is also a portrait of a significant artist; a reassessment of whose work is long overdue.Nigel Daly is an antique dealer and house restorer.
#3020417 in eBooks 2014-04-24 2014-04-24File Name: B00JWQ483S
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. I like that. I recently got into coloringBy SilverdogUnlike some other Kindle coloring books; this one has a link to download and print these on your own. I like that. I recently got into coloring. Its something my son and I can do together while we are at the cabin relaxing. My son is only 6 so he cant color these very well but its an activity he and I can do together and share our results with one another.Disclaimer - I received this ebook for free in exchange for my honest; unbiased; and fair review. In no way has this influenced my review. I rely on reviews just as much as you do and detest fake five star reviews. I very much appreciate reviewers who take the time to provide their honest and unbiased reviews and; for that; I am extremely grateful to them.When I need or would like particular products; I take the time to research those products as I do quite a lot of online shopping. I also take the time to test every product; whether received for free; at a discount; or for full sale price; to find out if the item holds true to its claim.If you found my review to be helpful in any way; then I trust that I have provided the necessary details to make your buying decision an informative and positive one.Should you have any questions; please feel free to ask away and hopefully I can provide an answer. Thank you for taking the time to read my review; it is very much appreciated.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Complex mandala designs; for both teens adultsBy Greg; Tina FamilyPurchased this coloring book (Kindle download edition) to check if we want to purchase this book to test out some of the multiple download pages. We have checked out many of the these types of coloring books these compare to some of the others and are decent in design challenge to color; which is what we are looking for in a coloring art project. This book has some unique patterns; but some of the patterns seem to be slightly similar to others in the same book or another book from this company. A concern if you are purchasing this paperback book; is this coloring artbook is only 44 pages total; when others from this same company are twice the size or larger.We also love that you can download certain pages to try out before you purchase any coloring book from Speedy Publishing/Jupiter Kids. The pages to download are a mixture of what they have to offer from 12 different books: 3 adult; 8 kids 1 faith sample coloring books. Plus we like that we can print the downloads on thicker paper to color on; we use art paper or bright cardstock to make the colors pop. This bonus makes it nicer all around; to be able to use quality color pencils on quality art paper; to get a nicer finished art project. We hang our completed pictures right next to our nieces projects on the frig; in one of those nice frames that holds 30-40 pages for display.We started coloring a few years ago with our niece it made us feel so relaxed; that we checked into adult color books; now they seem to be very popular easier to find. Another nice thing in this book; is in foreword it goes over the benefits importance of coloring. It also explains that coloring is good for Alzheimers Dementia and helps with stress anxiety; all of which we found very interesting.Pros:Easy to download onto our KindleGreat as a preview; before you make a purchaseUnique complex patterns to color; in most of the pictures Includes bonus download pages to test; which we already have used; printed colored a few different pages.Cons:Download samples are not from this book; but there are 12 different books to print pages from; but only 3 adult. Plus you cannot print them from your Kindle; which seems odd. Overpriced for the small size of this book; this coloring artbook is only 44 pages total; when others from this same company are twice the size or larger.Overall we like this adult coloring book (Kindle download edition) and would recommend this to anyone looking to check out the artwork before buying the paperback book. This book gave us a preview of what the actual book contains; but does not have any pages to actually color in print out form or on the kindle. Just a quick side note...we thought our niece would enjoy doing this book with us; but found out it is not for most children of a younger age; since they might become frustrated with the thin tight coloring areas.Disclosure: This product was received for free to be evaluated; tested reviewed; however this in no way influences our process in leaving product feedback ratings. We as well as most other buyers; rely heavily on reviews posted by other shoppers; and feel everyone should leave honest; detailed well written reviews no matter what. So only 100% honest reviews are given by us; regardless of whether a product is purchased at full price or for a discount.Thank you for you time interest in our review. If we have been helpful or you have any questions; please let us know - Greg; Tina Family0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Nice artwork and creative designsBy haganarrettThis is a nice book with creative patterns. I particularly like the floral arrangements. The leaves and flowers along with the Mandala make for a perfect combination. I really like how these images are not specifically constructed to be Mandala. My favorite is the one with the leaves and the flowers. Its intricate designs make it a very nice looking picture.I recently went to a museum. It was quite interesting going through some of the exhibits. Irsquo;m honestly not one to stare at a painting for extended periods of time but I can definitely respect those who do. I did go through an exhibit at the museum and saw early works of Mandala pictures and learned a little bit about Kautilya and the influence of Mandala paintings in politics. The take away from this was the importance of enjoying the beauty for what it is as it would disappear. It was fascinating mainly because of the influence these paintings had on Buddhism and many other religions. Itrsquo;s a transcendent form of art that is quite pleasing to look at as well.When looking at these paintings; you feel the wholeness of each of the designs through its circular arrangements. The meanings create a sense of unity and one can really appreciate the art through its intricate designs. Irsquo;ve truly come to embrace a sense of creativity through these special pieces and find myself not only coloring but figuring out colors and patterns that I can create with these images. Itrsquo;s probably the best activity that adolescents and older adults can spend time on. I can envision an elderly couple spending time coloring between the intricate lines. It can improve a sense of hand eye coordination and imagination.The company; Speedy Publishing LLC is a book company that Irsquo;ve had the pleasure of working with. Irsquo;ve purchased many of their products and throughout my time working with them I never had problems. They are concerned with maintaining high quality content for their readers and do a good job of taking care of their authors as well as their customers. This is the type of company that I love and appreciate to work with. I have recommended their products to my friends and family and am confident Irsquo;ll continue buying in the near future!The seller of this product has provided the product at a discount in return for an honest and unbiased review. I do not receive rewards or incentives for this review. I thoroughly test all products prior to evaluation and write a comprehensive review unaffected by the seller. The reviews of products are meaningful to me as I evaluate products from read reviews prior to purchasing. I am entrusted to write an honest opinion that evaluates the product and only the product. Good reviews are not a requirement and I hope my review helps in your decision making with this product
