1--What is the title of your latest release?
THE ENGLISH MASTERPIECE
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
When a high-profile art forgery rocks London's art scene in the spring of 1973, the Tate Gallery’s Lily Summers finds herself embroiled in a world of glamour and secrets, tensions and lies.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
1973 London provided a unique, and perfect, time and place. Life in 1973 held some of the same tensions we experience today in terms of global uncertainty, regional wars, and high inflation. That made it relatable, but it is also a period in time that we all look back to with fondness, famous for a very distinguishable fashion style and music scene.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
I would like and respect her at the beginning of the story. She is a hard worker, talented and sincere. But we’d be better friends at the end— she learns a lot and is more relaxed and understands herself better. I suppose that kind of thing is true for all of us after we go through some form of crucible.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
creative, determined, stubborn
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learn so much with every book — about me, writing, the time and place, the characters, etc. But for this one, I’d say the act of creating a forgery as well as the psychology around such an endeavor was the most fascinating thing I studied, as well as the change in art as a commodity and the insurance ramifications from the 1970s into the 1980s.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I edit as a draft — after a first fast-write for any given scene. I liken my process to running the tide up a beach. I write as far as I can go, then let myself recede, and start at the beginning again, editing as I go until I am writing new once more.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
It used to be chocolate — and that is still and will always be a strong contender. But a couple years ago, I developed an addiction to Mary’s Gone Crackers Sea Salt Real Thin Crackers. I have no idea why. They aren’t even thin!
9--Describe your writing space/office!
We just moved to Montana full-time last summer and my new office is wood-paneled and a truly lovely writing space, with bookshelves and two wonderful paintings on opposite walls that make me smile every time I see them. It’s a super peaceful space.
10--Who is an author you admire?
Wow! Tough question. There are so many I admire both as writers and as people. In the contemporary world: Kate Quinn, Lisa Barr, Fiona Davis, Patti Callahan Henry, Kristin Harmel and tons more. Reaching to the past, C.S. Lewis and Jane Austen are two of my favorites.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
Pride and Prejudice. I read it when I was about thirteen and it has definitely influenced how I think and write.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
I was home, after a whirlwind adventure of acquiring an agent then pitching to publishers, when I received my new agent’s call with the news of a three-book contract. Then, once the jubilation died down, the panic set in and I really had to figure out how to do this job.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
At present, historical fiction. But that can change quickly.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
Hmm… Another super tough question. I’m not sure I have one. I will say this, if The Holiday, Notting Hill, or Secondhand Lions come across the television, I probably won’t turn them off.
15--What is your favorite season?
Fall. I love the colors, the smells, the crispness of the air, the first fire in the fireplace…
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
To be honest, I sort of like it to be similar to any other day, as long as it involves birthday cake in the evening.
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
Slow Horses. I am on the final season right now, Season 4, and it’s a tight show, really well done, and well-acted. I hope there’s a Season 5 coming, but I haven’t had the courage to investigate.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Moroccan/ southern Mediterranean. I love the spices and slow cooking and never tire of the flavors.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
I hike, fly fish, read, and I love it when friends come to visit.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
Ah… This is fun. In my head it’s titled The Undercover Bookshop and it’s a split-time story with a London bookshop, a spy, a young mother, a young doctor, her sister who runs the bookshop, and a four-generation mystery.
A Novel
Set in the art world of 1970s London, The English Masterpiece is a fast-paced read to the end, full of glamour and secrets, tensions and lies, as one young woman races against the clock to uncover the truth about a Picasso masterpiece. Perfect for fans of Kate Quinn and Ariel Lawhon.
As the recently promoted assistant to the Tate's Modern Collections keeper Diana Gilden, Lily helps plan a world-class Picasso exhibit to honor the passing of the great artist—and she's waited her whole life for this moment. The opening is beyond anyone's expectations—the lighting, the champagne, the glittering crowd, and the international acclaim—until Lily does the unthinkable. She stops in front of a masterpiece and hears her own voice say, "It's a forgery." The gallery falls silent.
Lily's boss, Diana, is polished perfection, schooled in art, and descends from European high society. She's worked hard to become the trusted voice in London's modern art scene and respected across the Continent. The Tate's Picasso Commemorative is to be her crowning achievement, featuring not only the artist's most iconic and intimate works, but a newly discovered painting—one she advised an investor to purchase. But when Lily makes her outrageous declaration, suspicion and scandal threaten everything Diana has achieved, as museums and collectors across Europe, already doubting most post-war acquisitions, fall into chaos and rumors of a world-wide forgery run wild.
All Lily has ever wanted is to follow in Diana's footsteps and take the art world by storm in her own right. Yet one comment puts not only her own career at risk but also her mentor's. Unless . . . Was she right? With the clock ticking and the clues starting to pile up against her, Lily must uncover the truth behind the Picasso before she loses not only the career she's always wanted, but her freedom.
Block off your calendar and lose yourself in The English Masterpiece, a thrilling read that will keep you on the edge of your seat till the very end from the author who brought you The London House and The Berlin Letters.
Action | Mystery | Women's Fiction Historical [Harper Muse, On Sale: June 10, 2025, Paperback / e-Book , ISBN: 9781400347278 / eISBN: 9781400347285]
Katherine Reay is a national bestselling and award-winning author who has enjoyed a lifelong affair with books. She publishes both fiction and nonfiction, holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University, and currently lives outside Chicago, Illinois, with her husband and three children. Follow Katherine on Instagram, Facebook and her personal website here.
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