Miss Garnet's Angel by Salley Vickers

Julia Garnet feels totally at a loss when her friend and flatmate Harriet dies. Feeling she needs a change in her life, she moves to Venice, where she discovers art, new friends and ideas and is encouraged to throw off a lifetime of caution. She becomes very interested in the Apocryphal story of Tobias, a version of which is woven through the narrative of the novel.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of Venice and the art. I also enjoyed how Julia's character developed throughout the novel. I wasn't so keen on the characters Toby and Sarah who were parallels to the characters in the story of Tobias. That just felt a bit contrived to me, though the original story was fascinating.

I bought this book in a second hand shop when I was visiting my parents and decided I would read it immediately and add it to my books for the Italy in Books Reading Challenge.


Miss Garnet's Angel by Salley Vickers published by Harper Perennial.