I thoroughly enjoyed this account of the repeated thefts of certain paintings from Rossborough House in Ireland, including a rare and beautiful Vermeer picture. The accounts of the Dublin underworld were a bonus that was, by turns, infuriating and hilarious. Definitely recommended. ( )

This true-crime art heist tale, published in 2004, has as many unlikely twists, betrayals, and double agents as a compelling mystery novel.

In 1974, a British heiress sympathetic to the IRA, together with three men, stole 19 paintings, including Vermeer's LADY WRITING A LETTER WITH HER MAID, from Russborough, a castle and the dwelling place of the English aristocrats Sir Alfred and Lady Beit in Ireland. The paintings were recovered; but in 1986, the Vermeer and other paintings were stolen again by a bold Dublin gangster named Martin Cahill. Set against Irish tensions of the late 1900s that reflected the chasms between the classes and between Ireland and England, this story illuminates the darker side of art--including the connections to drug and mob money and to violence.

My fascination with the stories and historical tidbits that surround high-end art began when I worked at Christie's Auction House in NYC in the 1990s. Much of what I learned there about the art world became good fodder for the novel that would eventually become A TRACE OF DECEIT. I first read this book (THE IRISH GAME) as I was drafting TRACE, years ago, because it tells more than the story of the solved art heists. It also tells the story of how a man restoring the painting carefully removed the top layer of paint (which was added after Vermeer died) to reveal a red wax seal on the letter, which adds to the emotional depth of the painting; and how a conservator discovered the technique Vermeer used to achieve perspective in his painting. Amazing.

I reread this book again recently because as I develop my new protagonist, Inspector Michael Corravan, born in Ireland and raised in an Irish section of Whitechapel, I'm obsessing about Ireland--its history, the prejudices against the Irish in England in the 1800s, and the complex web of police and criminals that reached from one island to the other across the Irish Sea.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in art, Ireland, and true crime. ( )

NA

Who knew it was so easy to steal art?

Only one thing kept me from giving this 5 stars, was there was a part near the end that made absolutely no sense to me..... The part about Isabella Stewart Gardner & her museum.....

So there is this estate in Ireland: Russborough, at the time of the theft it was owned by Sir Alfred & Lady Beit (from England).... and in that estate is billions of dollars worth of art & paintings which have been stolen & recovered not once, but twice.

This book is about those stolen paintings, the thief, & the art recovery team. It also talks about how stolen art is used for collateral to purchase drugs & munitions, and is recycled to be used for collateral again. One of the ways to ascertain value is unwittingly done for the criminals by the police & newspapers. When a major piece of art is stolen, the police will assess the value, and the newspapers will usually place a photograph of the work, history and value of the piece, thus giving providence of the piece of art.

I found this book to be very interesting and well written. It wasn't too long or involved and it held my interest. Originally I picked it for the relay tag: Ireland, but it fell short by 30 pages..... but because it was interesting I set it aside to read later. ( )

I enjoyed the book, but not as much as several others I have read re infamous art thefts. It is a bit disjointed as it tries to tie together different actual events. Art theft is an interesting topic, with so many twists and turns; however, this book did not bring in the suspense factor found in other books on the topic. ( )