The Last Painting of Sara de Vos: A Novel

It took him years to realize it was the flirtation and admiration he craved, not the actual conquest.

until the room bloats with darkness.

furious with God.

And there are unexpected places where the paint rises in clots and flakes.

The word restore seems loaded now.

He could buy Rachel a celebratory gift, but then he’s half a block away and it’s already an afterthought.

he would feel the brute force of nostalgia or a sense of loss or elation and it always seemed to be emanating from a particular painting.

For half an hour, he’s clairvoyant and fond of everything around him.

This is the same room where Kathrijn took her final breath, where her fingertips turned black and the light ebbed then vanished from her eyes.

He’s agnostic but prone to bouts of wild superstition, a personality flourish he tries to conceal.