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Summary: An insider's look at the art world
Review: One of the most engaging aspects of M.J. Rose's writing is that she gives the reader an "insider's look" into a possibly unfamiliar venue. "Flesh tones" is set in the art world, and both the process of painting and the business end were depicted in an interesting and convincing way. The characters were attractive and made you care about them.
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Summary: This book is excellent!
Review: This book was excellent. It's compelling and sexy. I especially liked the way the story was structured, with the trial scenes alternating with scenes from Genny's past. Genny is a passionate character who is very likeable as well--what she goes through becomes very important for a reader.
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Summary: A superb study of love and obsession
Review: What is the dividing line between deep love and obsession? Who should be allowed to judge when a relationship crosses from one to the other?Genny Haviland met artist Slade Gabriel in her father's gallery when she was 17. They became lovers, an affair that lasted for only weeks in reality but survived for the rest of Genny's life in her heart and soul. They meet again twenty years later, only to have Gabriel learn he has fallen victim to rapidly advancing Alzheimer's. Knowing he could not bear to live without his art, Genny agrees to help him commit suicide. But a missing letter results in her arrest for murder, and a grief-stricken Genny has no inclination to fight the charge. Instead, as the trial proceeds, she reviews the past, the present and the relationship that has defined her emotional life, looking for an answer that may defy explanation. In her latest novel, M.J. Rose explores yet another aspect of the relationships between men and women and how those relationships can define us even more than we define them. Child of a distant mother and a father whose love carries strange, twisted undertones, the young Genny is ripe for the kind of intense, all-encompassing passion she finds with Slade Gabriel. She is at once sympathetic and irritating, stubbornly clinging to the loss of her lover as if it will somehow compensate her for the greater loss of the emotional connections she never had -- or allowed herself to have. FLESH TONES, however, is more than simply a study of one woman's overwhelming need for enduring love. It is also about creativity, and how the truly great artist will always have one small part of his or her soul they cannot share no matter how deeply they love another. Written with powerful emotional intensity and a clear, discerning eye for both the glories and the agonies of both love and passion, Flesh Tones will resonate with anyone who has ever loved what they can never completely have, but it will also provoke tough questions in those who have not.
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Summary: Suspenseful novel
Review: You will not want to put this beautifully written book down. Even without the sensual love scenes, each chapter tempts the reader by giving just a little more information about the intriguing characters and by raising many more questions. How do Genny, the daughter of an art gallery owner, and her long-lost lover, painter Slade Gabriel, get back together after 20 years? Why does he force her to do something she really doesn't want to do? What illness does he have that is so bad he wants to die? Why is Genny on trial for his murder when she says it was an assisted suicide? The suspense doesn't stop until the final chapter. Whether or not you're interested in the art world, you'll be interested in the world of these well-drawn characters. That M. J. Rose manages to turn painful topics, such as obsession and an emotionally distant parent, into an enjoyable well-crafted novel, rather than a soap opera, is to her credit as a writer and storyteller.
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