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The Last Masterpiece

A Novel of World War II Italy

ebook
2 of 2 copies available
2 of 2 copies available

In a race across Nazi-occupied Italy, two women—a German photographer and an American stenographer—hunt for priceless masterpieces looted from the Florentine art collections.

In the summer of 1943, Eva Brunner is taking photographs of Nazi-looted art hidden in the salt mines of the Austrian hinterland. Across the ocean in Connecticut, Josephine Evans is working as a humble typist at the Yale Art Gallery.

When both women are called to Italy to contribute to the war effort, neither imagines she will hold the fate of some of the world's greatest masterpieces torn from the Uffizi Galleries and other Florentine art collections in her hands.

But as Italy turns from ally to enemy and Hitler's plan to destroy irreplaceable monuments and works of art becomes frighteningly clear, each woman's race against the clock—and against one another—might demand more than they were prepared to give.

The Last Masterpiece takes readers on a heart-pumping adventure up the Italian peninsula, where nothing is as it seems and some of the greatest works of art and human achievement are at stake. Who might steal and who might save a work of art—and at what cost?

Inspired by the incredible true story of the Monuments Women, the Fifth Army WACs, and the looted Florentine art collections during World War II, the latest historical novel by USA Today bestselling author and art historian Laura Morelli plunges readers into the heart of war-torn Italy.

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    • Booklist

      May 15, 2023
      Morelli's (The Night Portrait, 2020) third novel set in Italy during WWII may be her finest yet. It's 1943, and two women are working to save the art treasures of Florence from theft and destruction. Eva Brunner is a German photographer documenting the art hidden in an Austrian salt mine. American stenographer Josephine Evans joins the Women's Army Corps and is assigned to work with the Monuments Men tasked with protecting Europe's art treasures. Initially, Eva believes the Nazi claims that they are saving Florentine artworks from the approaching British and American forces and will return them to their original owners, but she eventually realizes their true intentions. Josephine wants to see the world and find her place in it, and her work in Italy opens up new possibilities. This captivating blend of history and imagination takes readers on two remarkable journeys through war-ravaged Italy. The women's parallel stories are fast-paced, full of drama, and populated with a cast of colorful, often complex characters. Art enthusiasts and fans of historical fiction will enjoy Morelli's expertly crafted story.

      COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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  • English

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