Rating: 
Summary: Chasing Cezanne is a very silly book.
Review: Save your time and read "A Year in Provence" instead. This was a silly book - little characterizaiton or plot, with a handsome hero and a beautiful female lead, naturally. Is there any other kind?
Rating: 
Summary: Doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do!
Review: Chasing Cezanne illustrates the concept of doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do. Too often people ignore the small details. If you've ever read the play Trifles by Susan Glaspell, you know the motivation for murder was covered up because people overlooked the small details. In Chasing Cezanne, Andre is unwilling to overlook the trifles he believes are out of sync with the world as he perceives it. It is this unwillingness to ignore the details that leads him to uncover a conspiracy to conceal art forgeries. Along the way, he discovers the importance of relationships in business and love. The author, Peter Mayle, doesn't slow the dialogue down with metaphorical language. His people move just as easily from one continent to another. So, if you're interested in mystery, intrigue, romance, and art, this is the book for you. It's Lawrence Sanders' McNally without the use of affectation; a grown up hero who can make decisions on his own without consulting pater or relying on alcohol to sustain him.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun, Charming
Review: Outrageously fun. A great little scam with turns and twists of an imagination run wild
Rating: 
Summary: This is a best seller?
Review: I was so excited to get this book, expecially when the librarian told me that is was so marvelous. I kept reading the book expecting it to get better. I think it would have made an excellent short story. The character development was minimal and except for the descriptions of the gourmet meals unimaginative. You can skip this selection
Rating: 
Summary: "Chasing Cezanne" Makes a Bad Impression
Review: Suprisingly, this is Peter Mayle's most pedestrian effort. Mayle's fans, of which I consider myself one, will (and have) devoured this offering on the reputation of the author alone. Unfortunately, we will all be left hungry.
Strangely absent from "Chasing Cezanne" are all of Mayle's trademarks; captivating descriptions of wish-you-were-here settings, engaging characters, careful wit, comfortable pacing and curious, unexpected plot twists.
I quickly got the sense Mayle was intentionally trying to avoid being stereotyped as "The Author of Provence" by inserting his characters in as many places that weren't the South of France as possible. This results in disjointed flow and contrived development.
Reviews have charged Mayle of skimping on character development and dawdling on plot. I must agree. Further, the book ends as if it were written with the editor and publisher standing over Mayle's shoulder, tapping their feet as he hurredly tied together the (somewaht sloppily loosened) loose ends.
Wait for the paperback and read it on the beach next Summer.
Rating:
Summary: Subtitle: Peter Mayle takes a vacation from writing.
Review: Pales by comparison to Hotel Pastis. One wonders how the editor and publisher let this book get through the mill. Mayle must have been under a three book contract. The editor must have been distracted. If you must read the book start around page 180. You won't be missing much
Rating:
Summary: Losing Cezanne on the way to dinner.
Review: Food,glorious food.Paris in spring.New York,
London,the Bahamas,the south of France.Rich,
even wealthy people.Worldly, not so rich but
chic people,ambitious,greedy and silly
characters inhabit this novel of air puff plots,
inept thieves and clumsy small timers involved
in world class art theft.
Andre does photo shoots for glossy magazines.He's
single,lives in Manhattan,loves food and Paris,
adores the south of France where on an
assignment at Cap Ferrat he becomes witness to what looks like the theft of a $30 million Cezanne.He captures the scene with his camera,
and upon his return to New York gets involved
in the chase for the painting,what happened,
who did it, why, for whom?
This is a cute story with a Hollywood ending.
The real painting is rescued, but only after
Andre and the good guys survive a failed car crash
set-up,a bomb attack and being trailed by an assassin. Sprinkled throughout are countless
lunches and dinners in glamorous settings.
Potentially fast paced, the story gets bogged down
by distractions and cliches about food,people,
habits and it's easy to lose interest. There are
comparisons between French and American food,
discussions about airline food and French vs.
American lifestyles.Should we care? The characters
are also brought down by silly diction, Camilla, a
high-powered editor, uses "sweetie" in addressing
everyone and the English gentleman (surprise)
uses "dear boy" dozens of times.And the like.
It's also dated and makes the main character
too naive for his other worldliness, for example
in describing what his girl friend wears one
morning sitting on the bed, "The T-shirt was just
long enough to keep her out of jail." Hm. Finally,
other outdated, even curious comments about New York include,"The streets of Manhattan's upper
East Side tend to confirm the view of those who see the city as a frontier on the brink of war.
Apartment buildings are garrisons,..." This I havn't heard anywhere since the 70's.
If you can ignore the cliches, the fawning
descriptions of French food and the dated ideas
and dialog of the characters, it's possible to
discover a breezy,fun travel story with sunny
images of Mediterreanean life pleasing enough
to make you want to visit.
Rating:
Summary: Delightful!
Review: I thought this book was really fun and entertaining. It's been a few years since I've read it (I have all of Peter Mayle's books), and I think I'm going to reread it and enjoy it all over again. Those who think it's clumsily written are missing out on its sheer entertainment value. I thought it was great. I'd write something more specific, but don't remember enough details. Maybe I'll come back after the reread! But I would definitely recommend this as a fun departure from Mayle's typical "here's what I did with those silly French people" approach.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as 'Anything Considered'
Review: Still a decent novel considering the drivel out there nowadays.
Rating:
Summary: Fake Cezannes and Frou Frou Fiction
Review: I loved Mayle's "A Year in Provence" and "Toujours" and based on the pleasures of reading those two books picked up a $4 remaindered paperback edition of "Chasing Cezanne." What a disappointment! The characters are two dimensional; all dialogue is stilted and hackneyed. The plot is a fallen soufle. Mayle should stick to what he does best: non fiction travel writing.
This book gets one star and that's for Mayle's brief, veiled appearance in the character of Andre Kelly when he makes his prounouncement on "The French Paradox."
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