The Vanishing of the Mona Lisa : A Novel - Martin Caparros

The Vanishing of the Mona Lisa

A Novel

By: Martin Caparros, Jasper Reid (Translator)

Paperback | 8 March 2011

At a Glance

Paperback


$48.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $12.19 with

 or 

Aims to ship in 10 to 15 business days

When will this arrive by?
Enter delivery postcode to estimate

On August 22, 1911, the world was shocked by an audacious crime: Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre. Although some people suspected subversive artists like Picasso or Apollinaire of perpetrating the theft, no arrests were made. Two years later, an Italian named Vincenzo Perugia was detained after attempting to sell the Mona Lisa to an antiques dealer in Florence -- but the mystery of the theft itself was never satisfactorily resolved.

In his spellbinding novel Valfierno, Martín Caparrós tackles this enigma, presenting us with a fascinating criminal unable to go to his grave without divulging the details of his outrageous heist. In tantalizing conversations with an American journalist, the Marqués de Valfierno sheds light on his past secrets, including his sordid origins as Bollino, son of a Buenos Aires servant woman, a man ultimately transformed into the most notorious con artist in the world. A sly and consummate entertainer, Valfierno reveals the shifting identities of the anonymous Argentine boy who has gone on to become a veritable artist, creating for himself the perfect role of wealthy aristocrat in Belle Époque Paris as he prepares for his crime.

Featuring an engaging cat-and-mouse drama and unforgettable characters, Valfierno is a brilliant fictional-ization of the greatest theft of the twentieth century, as well as a compelling psychological portrait of a true mastermind. Valfierno, Caparrós's eighth novel, won the prestigious Premio Planeta award in 2004.

More in Historical Fiction

A Piece of Red Cloth - Leonie Norrington

RRP $34.99

$26.95

23%
OFF
Nephthys - Rachel Louise Driscoll

Paperback

RRP $34.99

$31.75

The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress - Sue Williams

RRP $34.99

$17.95

49%
OFF
Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

RRP $22.99

$21.90

A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles

RRP $22.99

$21.90

Small Things Like These : An Oprah Book Club Pick - Claire Keegan
Lessons in Chemistry : The multi-million-copy bestseller - Bonnie Garmus
The Sherrin : A bloody battle on and off the field - Peter Stanley
Wide Sargasso Sea : Penguin Essentials - Jean Rhys

RRP $22.99

$21.90

Outlander : Outlander Series : Volume 1 - Diana Gabaldon

RRP $22.99

$21.90

The Alice Network : A Novel - Kate Quinn

RRP $22.99

$21.90

The Pillars of the Earth : Kingsbridge - Ken Follett

RRP $26.99

$25.75

The Silence of the Girls - Pat Barker

RRP $22.99

$21.90