The Portrait
by Emilia Kelly
Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance
Release Date: September 13, 2022
Pages: 308
Get from: Library | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
My Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Every work of art tells a story. And every story has its secrets.
London, 1850. Iris Sheffield has plenty of people to worry about in her life: Hope, the ailing younger sister for whom Iris feels responsible. Winston, Iris’s fiancé, who is consumed with his work. And James, the handsome but arrogant artist painting Iris’s portrait, with whom she is forced to spend countless, awkward hours.
But when Iris finds the diary and photograph of a mysterious young woman, she can’t stop wondering who the woman is and what has become of her. The more questions Iris asks, the more she suspects someone does not want her to discover the answers.
Exploring themes of sisterly bonds, familial obligations, and the lengths we go to for those we love, The Portrait illustrates the surprising and frightening ways a work of art can tell a story.
Review
NOTE: This review is based on an eBook I purchased from Amazon.
In my mind, one of the most important aspects of mysteries — and especially thrillers — is the way the story urges you to learn the conclusion. Unfortunately, as I continued reading The Portrait, I found I didn’t care what the conclusion was. Had I read this story expecting a general “historical fiction” book, it might have been more appealing to me.
I think The Portrait would be better served getting re-categorized as a historical romance. The slow-build, almost enemies-to-lovers romance between Iris and Mr. James could easily be marketed as the main storyline.
There are a few story threads that don’t make sense or are left hanging at the end. For example, Mrs. Carmichael’s cat is called out enough times that you expect it to ultimately have a large role, only for it to be completely forgotten.
Mrs. Carmichael herself is set up as this foreboding character who controls her son, only for us to find out she play no part in anything. I can only assume she was meant to be a red herring, but the “mystery” was so slow-moving and inconsequential to the main characters that it didn’t work.
I also need to acknowledge that I needed to read The Portrait as an alternate universe story. While I’m not as cognizant of Victorian mores as I am of Regency ones, there are still many instances of happenings that would cause massive scandal in the Victorian era. These are completely ignored in the story or treated as no big deal. It was easy to forget that The Portrait was set so long ago as much of it felt modern.
I didn’t notice any spelling or grammar errors; the book was, technically, well-written. But, I never felt “someone [did] not want her to discover the answers.” At best, people are evasive in their responses. You don’t get any sense of danger until the end, which then seems out-of-place.
While this wasn’t, technically, a bad book, it definitely wasn’t for me. It also did not — in my opinion — live up to its description.
Notable Quote
Chapter 22: How meaningful would your beloved letters be if, instead of written by the hand you love, they were made by some impersonal instrument?… Show me a man who goes out of his way to have a woman captured in paint, and I’ll show you a man who’s serious about the subject.
About the Author
Emilia Kelly holds an M.A. in Art History from Brigham Young University. She loves reading with her children, taking walks with her husband, and visiting small towns in New England. The Portrait is her first novel.
Author links: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Amazon Author Page
Have you read The Portrait? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
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