Memory of Bones by Alex Connor

Published by Quercus,
15 November 2012.
ISBN: 978-0-85738-962-6

When Leon Golding comes into possession of the ‘long lost skull’ of  Spain’s most famous artist Francisco Goya, he is ecstatic.  Leon has devoted his life to solving the meaning of Goya’s black paintings.  Now his patience will be rewarded and the art world will finally recognise the name of Leon Golding.   His brother Ben, a

reconstructive plastic surgeon at the Whitechapel Hospital in London, worries that maybe Ben is heading for another breakdown, or not taking his medication.

Unfortunately, in Leon’s excitement at getting the skull authenticated, the news has leaked out, and alerted some very rich and powerful collectors who will stop at nothing- not even murder - to own this most prized piece of art history.

Alex Connor paints a grim picture of the ruthlessness of collectors in the art world.  With the skull recognised as a money spinner, even those who can’t afford it jostle to become a middle man for they foresee big commissions for the one in a negotiating position.  But they haven’t reckoned on death. This skull has been missing for nearly two centuries it certainly now has some adventures as the Golding brothers try to keep it out of reach of obsessed collectors and the head of the powerful Ortega family.

With well-fleshed out characters, Alex Connor weaves a gripping tale of greed, deception and murder.  Culminating in a marvelously satisfying twist, this book is highly recommended.

-----

Reviewer: Lizzie Hayes  

There  are two earlier books The Rembrandt Secret and  A Legacy of Death

Alex Connor is an art historian and working artist.  Her interest in painting and art history has now sparked her interest in writing thrillers set in the art world. The first was The Rembrandt Secret about Rembrandt; the second has just been published, Legacy of Blood, is about Hogarth, and the third is to be published in August 2012 about Goya. Alex first started painting and writing after she was stalked and beaten up. During her convalescence she studied hard, and finally reached the point where she was able to write about all her passions, bringing in her insider knowledge. In order to get into the mind set of the artist about which she is writing Alex paints one of their pictures. She painted Rembrandt’s Old Woman, when she was writing The Rembrandt Secret, and did a copy of Hogarth’s Self Portrait when she was writing Legacy of Blood.

Alex has talked on TV and Radio about many facts that are new to the public. She was a presenter on This Morning for a strand called PAST MASTERS which was based on her non fiction book on art The Wrong Side of the Canvas which was published in UK and USA about artists’ lives.   For more details about Alex visit her web site

www.alexconnor.com