May 9th, 2025
Home | Log in!

On Top Shelf
Sandra BrownSandra Brown
Fresh Pick
THE GREEK HOUSE
THE GREEK HOUSE

New Books This Week

Reader Games


The books of May are here—fresh, fierce, and full of feels.

Slideshow image


Since your web browser does not support JavaScript, here is a non-JavaScript version of the image slideshow:

slideshow image
Wedding season includes searching for a missing bride�and a killer . . .


slideshow image
Sometimes the path forward begins with a step back.


slideshow image
One island. Three generations. A summer that changes everything.


slideshow image
A snapshot made them legends. What it didn�t show could tear them apart.


slideshow image
This life coach will give you a lift!


slideshow image
A twisty, "addictive," mystery about jealousy and bad intentions


slideshow image
Trapped by magic, haunted by muses�she must master the cards before they�re lost to darkness.


slideshow image
Masquerades, secrets, and a forbidden romance stitched into every seam.


slideshow image
A vanished manuscript. A murdered expert. A castle full of secrets�and one sharp-witted sleuth.


Since your web browser does not support JavaScript, here is a non-JavaScript version of the image slideshow:

slideshow image
Two warrior angels. First friends, now lovers. Their future? A WILD UNKNOWN.


The Crimson Portrait

The Crimson Portrait, December 2006
by Jody Shields

Little, Brown
340 pages
ISBN: 0316785288
EAN: 9780316785280
Hardcover
Add to Wish List


Purchase



"Fascinating historical fiction."

Fresh Fiction Review

The Crimson Portrait
Jody Shields

Reviewed by Mandy Burns
Posted December 9, 2006

Historical | Fiction

During his leave from the war, Charles convinces his wife Catherine to help wounded soldiers recover from their injuries by transforming their home into a medical hospital. However, Catherine never thought she'd be carrying out this decision alone and a widow. She embarks on an emotional journey that leads her to struggle with reality when she begins to mistake a wounded soldier as her fallen husband. Dr. McCleary arrives at the new medical hospital with enthusiastic confidence; he fully expects to ease the grim future of the soldiers with little hope to re-enter society as normal men. With the help of an artist, Dr. McCleary assists in creating an innovative facial mask that promises to begin the healing process. Will Catherine find a way to resurrect Charles? What will it cost her if she does? The medical detail in this book was astonishing, and Ms. Shields did a fabulous job of painting a picture of the anguish soldiers must have been feeling during that time, however I had a hard time liking the unstable heroine.

Learn more about The Crimson Portrait

SUMMARY

Spring 1915. On a sprawling country estate not far from London, a young woman mourns her husband, fallen on a distant battlefield. The eerie stillness in which she grieves is abruptly shattered as her home is transformed into a bustling military hospital. Recoiling from the chaos, unhinged by grief, the young widow finds unexpected refuge in a tender young soldier whose face, concealed by bandages, she cannot see. Their affair takes a fateful turn when she confronts--and seizes upon--the opportunity to remake her lover in the image of her lost husband. THE CRIMSON PORTRAIT is a novel of glittering surfaces that belie dark truths. Its rich cast comes into focus as the novel peels back layers of suspense and intrigue to illuminate the abiding mysteries of affinity and desire.


What do you think about this review?

Comments

No comments posted.

Registered users may leave comments.
Log in or register now!

 

 

 

© 2003-2025 off-the-edge.net  all rights reserved Privacy Policy