"As chronicler of the life and work of brilliant artist Lorin Jones, Polly Alter - museum curator and would-be painter - at first has it all figured out. Lorin, left to die alone in Key West, was done in by the white, male art establishment. But as Polly's interviewing progresses, Lorin comes down from her pedestal, and her "villains" emerge as likeable persons; at the same time, some of the truths about Polly's life are shattered or realigned"--Library...

Detective Flavia di Stefano of Rome's art theft squad joins forces with art historian Jonathan Argyll to investigate the theft of a simple icon of the Blessed Virgin. The object turns out to be worth far more than anyone thought.

In 1892 Paris, Julius Stewart painted The Baptism, a Vanderbilt family scene that contains an embarrassing secret. In the present day, art historian Grace Atwood becomes obsessed with the painting and its hidden clues for reasons that have more to do with her personal ghosts. Either her doting husband is trying to make her think she's crazy, or she really is in the early stages of dementia.

Brian Moss is the urban gay everyman. Nearing 40, Brian has settled for sex with strangers. His incomplete dissertation on painter Toulouse-Lautrec haunts him. He toils four night a week as a friendly bartender and one day a week as a frustrated art history instructor, career paths that disappoint his hard-driving land developer father, who is recovering from a mild stroke. In general, it's an unsettled autumn for Brianp̮lus, a man who romanced him...