Rating: 
Summary: Beautifully Written Prose, Compelling Characters
Review: Monica Szabo is a 50 something artist looking for something. She finds something as B, responds to her question during a speech about where the male muses are. But B is much more than just her muse, he becomes her lover and her financial support at the same time.Some really important questions are asked as we move through the book. For me, her attempts to rise above the fact that she was having sex with B and he was giving her money for her art and whether that made her a whore was one I gave a lot of thought to. Moreover, I think some really interesting takes on modern day feminism were explored. The thing that made this book so compelling for me was that Monica is not a likeable character in the least. She's a horrible mother, she's selfish, she doesn't treat B very well most of the time and yet, you want to read more about her. Very few authors can suck you in that way. I didn't see this book as a romance novel. Goodness knows I've read enough of them. There is no ease here, no real romance. Sex sure, but a lot of difficult exploration of personal stuff keeps it far from the harlequin romance descriptions I've seen in some other reviews. The real difficulty of balancing one's feminist preconceptions with the reality of sharing a life with someone else, especially when they are supporting you financially brings it to a completely different level. No, the book isn't perfect but it is compelling and beautifully written. This is a rare and delicious treat.
Rating: 
Summary: Way too long!
Review: I found this book, entertaining and a profoundly moving view of an artist's eye, her passionate need to create work, and the secondary role all else falls to, in these moments. Also, Gordon has the artist confront her struggle with money (and its attendant power). As a poor artist, being "scotch" is a puritan-like ethic, yet the heroine quickly adjusts to vast wealth, feeling she alone can appreciate it without corruption. I found this a great and interesting struggle of money and morality with the beauty of Bruce Chatwin's "Utz" in its portrayal of art.
Rating: 
Summary: Intriguing Book
Review: I am reluctant with most modern fiction to give 5 stars; it's always difficult to predict how well a novel will bear up over time, compared to the classics. However, I'd be inclined to give this a higher rating. I have read it twice and find the depiction of the protagonist intriguing. She is presented warts and all, cranky, demanding, contradictory, hungry, humorous, self effacing and talented. She seems like such a modern heroine, unlike the others in Gordon's typical novels. She is like the women I have known. The book presents her perspective well, showing her vacillating motives and desires. It sets up a great situation and unwinds it in fascinating ways. Yes, it has a pat, all-too-convenient plot development concerning money, but one can see why the author wanted to show a side of the protagonist that might have been difficult to spotlight otherwise. I was reminded of the Erica Jong books I read as a teen, before Jong got so exhibitionistic.
Rating:
Summary: B is not for me!
Review: This book is great. It brings up a lot of issues, particularly about the value of money, sex, and art. But 'B' just isn't for me. He is almost TOO perfect (which I suppose made him the perfect model for Christ!) He offers Monica everything she needs in order to produce great art: time, space, money, and sex. B is totally at her beck and call- and does he ever complain? No! Is he totally undemanding and selfless, without needs of his own? Yes! He is just too perfect. I think I'd prefer someone more human, someone who actually thought about themselves once in a while. While swimming naked, Monica thought, "Movement is utterly easy, you're working against nothing, what you're in wants you to move in it, with it, it offers no resistence, only help." That's B. And who wants that? Who wants to just 'float' through life? I'd rather have a good workout any day.
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