The Collector’s Apprentice

A Novel

By: B. A. Shapiro

Narrated by: Xe Sands

Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

It's the summer of 1922, and 19-year-old Paulien Mertens finds herself in Paris - broke, disowned, and completely alone. Everyone in Belgium, including her own family, believes she stole millions in a sophisticated con game perpetrated by her then-fiance, George Everard. To protect herself from the law and the wrath of those who lost everything, she creates a new identity, a Frenchwoman named Vivienne Gregsby, and sets out to recover her father's art collection, prove her innocence - and exact revenge on George.

When the eccentric and wealthy American art collector Edwin Bradley, who is based on real-life museum founder Albert Barnes, offers Vivienne the perfect job, she is soon caught up in the Parisian world of post-Impressionists and expatriates - including Gertrude Stein and Henri Matisse, with whom Vivienne becomes romantically entwined. As she travels between Paris and Philadelphia, where Bradley is building an art museum, her life becomes even more complicated: George returns with unclear motives...and then Vivienne is arrested for Bradley's murder.

B. A. Shapiro has made the historical art thriller her own. In The Collector's Apprentice, she gives us an unforgettable tale about the lengths to which people will go for their obsession, whether it be art, money, love, or vengeance.

©2018 B. A. Shapiro (P)2018 HighBridge Company

Not as good

Not as good as the other works of the author. The performance is annoying at times .

Good but not good enough

The story was pretty good, but the jumping back and forth in time and characters was confusing and detracted greatly from the enjoyment. i wanted to like it more, but my confusion got in the way.

Audible and the producers must understand that a not small part of their market are people listening in cars while commuting. As one of those, i understand the urge to be dramatic and lower the volume, but much is list when listening in a car. Very disappointing performance.

Excellent Book

I found this to be an excellent topic. It was filled with an artful story; an interesting plot; an ending, surprising yet justified. I loved the readers voice which seemed to add depth to the story. Bravo!

True to form, and DO touch that dial

I like historical fiction, art history, and murder mysteries, and came across B A Shapiro's work a few years ago. After reading her other 'art' novels, I was hooked, and delighted to land on this one from Audible. Unfortunately, as others have written, it was very difficult to understand the reader, and I stopped listening about 15 minutes into the story, and didn't return for a few weeks. When I did return, I decided to up the volume, and that seemed to make the reader's voice clearer, and I was able to finish listening to the story. To those contemplating buying this recording I say, if you like Shapiro's work, you will likely enjoy this one, too--it has more twists and turns than some of the others. And try upping the volume.

Captivating!

Love the tone and overall performance of the narrator.

Great story line that keeps the reader engaged throughout.

The wry and artists came alive through the storytelling.

4.09 stars

I've learned much of what I know about art history from fiction novels. This is the second audiobook I've listened to by B.A. Shapiro. Obviously, she is very knowledgeable when it comes to art and art history. The Art Forger is my favorite novel by her, but The Collector's Apprentice is also a good read/listen. XE Sands narrates both novels, and she does a good job in each instance. If you like art and you like fiction, it would be hard not to like this author's work.

Overall rating: 4.09 stars

Too many holes in the story, not convincing

I enjoyed The Art Forger and The Muralist. Those two were excellent stories, though I was never enthralled with Xe Sands as a narrator. She’s not great with men’s voices (though in this one she improved a bit on that score). This time, I found the constant back-and-forth in time an unnecessary device, causing a sense of discontinuity and confusion. The story itself has some holes in what is credible - I don’t want to write any spoilers, so I’ll leave it at that. This book did not measure up to those two art-themed books, and I suspect I will not bother with her recently released new book.

Great story!

I really enjoyed this book, it was filled with lots of twists and turns period. I look forward to listening to More of books by the author.

Engrossing

Very good plot twists and believable characters keep you Wanting to know more about how the art influenced decisions of the characters

Good art mystery.

I liked the book but at times struggled with length.
all in all good art read