Master Of The Prado: A Novel - Tapa dura

"Sierra's triumph is to have forged a novel that instructs so easily and deliciously (yes, there are footnotes, but they're easily ignored if you're uninterested) you'll feel enriched however you read it. You may even be inspired to book tickets to Madrid. Just because we read something doesn't mean we're finished with it." * NPR * Sierra is at once a great art historian and a greatwriter, and these two worlds merge and mesh in this wonderful book. Part guideto my favorite museum, part fictionalized autobiography, part dialogue on themysteries of the art world and part novel, the sum is prism refracting thelikes of Bosch, Velazquez, Titian and Raphael through the author's ingeniouseye. -- Dr. Noah Charney, bestselling author of The Art Thief and The Art of Forgery

Bestselling author Javier Sierra takes you on a grand tour of the Prado museum in this historical novel that illuminates the fascinating mysteries behind European art-complete with gorgeous, full-colour inserts of artwork by da Vinci, Boticelli, and other master artists. Presented as a fictionalized autobiography,The Master of Pradobegins in Madrid in 1990, when Sierra encounters a mysterious stranger named Luis Fovel within the halls of the Prado. Fovel takes him on a whirlwind tour and promises to uncover startling secrets hidden in the museum's masterpieces-secrets that open up a whole new world to Sierra. The enigmatic Fovel reveals how a variety of visions, prophesies, conspiracies, and even heresies inspired masters such as Raphael, Titian, Hieronymus Bosch, Botticelli, Brueghel, and El Greco. The secrets they concealed in their paintings are stunning enough to change the way we think about art, uncovering mysteries about historical facts, secret sects, and prophetical theories. It is these secrets that lead Sierra to question his entire understanding of art history and unearth ground-breaking discoveries about European art. At once a captivating novel and a beautifully illustrated reference guide to Madrid's famed museum,The Master of the Pradois full of insights and intriguing mysteries. Sierra brings historical characters alive in this astounding narrative filled with dazzling surprises that will entrance you as much as the pictures within.