I had high hopes for this book based off the reviews but after getting in about 100 pages I was still waiting for it to get interesting. It's a fairly fast read but I was left wanting more. There's no real mystery to where the story is going; the author tries to add in some drama but it really doesn't come off very well. By the end I just wanted it to be over, it just couldn't hold my attention because the story was so bland.

I suppose the story of a long-lost masterpiece could be interesting. This tale, however, was not compelling enough to warrant a full book. Harr first wrote this as an article and that was probably plenty. He admits that he needed a project in mind in order to be accepted to a fellowship abroad and this is what he came up with.

The tale focuses entirely too much on Francesca Cappelletti, an art student who, while researching the provence of another Caravaggio work, finds a ledger entry mentioning "The Taking of the Christ" (this book's subject). She makes an effort to find the painting based on the clues she unearths, but is unsucessful. The paiting is eventually found by a restorer completely unrelated to Francesca; he stumbles across the painting by chance, no thanks at all to Francesca's research. Why is she included in this book as such a major player? She did nothing to bring "The Taking" closer to discovery. I guess Harr assumed a 24 year old woman would be a more fun protagonist than a 50 year old man.

This is why the book should have been left as an article. Harr was required to provide too much filler (do we care that Francesca marries the man who accompanies her to Scotland? I think not) and while it is an easy read, it's ultimately a "who cares?" experience.

The Lost Painting: The Quest for a Caravaggio Masterpiece
For anyone who loves art, especially Caravaggio, mysteries, and Ireland, this is a must read. Couldn't put it down. It is especially interesting how the search for the painting is attacked from two ends: the researchers who are looking for the painting and the owners who don't know what they have. If, after having read the book, you don't book the first plane to Dublin and drop into the National Gallery of Art just to see the painting, you are really missing a treat.

As an earlier reviewer noted, many scholars acknowledge that there probably are several missing Caravaggio masterpieces lying about forgotten and neglected.

And, indeed, just as I began reading this book, a November 2006 news report announced that a painting owned by Queen Elizabeth II had been revealed to be a lost work by the Italian master Caravaggio.

The picture, which has been in the Royal Family's possession for about 400 years, had been dismissed as a copy, being obscured by varnish and dirt. It had been left in a storeroom at Hampton Court for decades until experts from the Royal Collection set about restoring the piece. After they spent six years studying the painting, they announced that is "The Calling Of Saints Peter and Andrew", a genuine Caravaggio and one of only 50 surviving canvases by the 17th century artist.

Reports estimated the painting, which was first bought by Charles I, sold and then reacquired by Charles II, could be worth more than £50 million --$100 million at current exchange rates!

I wasn't sure if this was fact or fiction. It reads like a mystery story. It grabs you, and keeps you intrigued throughout. It's a kick to learn that it's all true! Great read!