Cezanne's Quarry

by Barbara Corrado Pope

Overview

A beautiful young woman is found murdered . . . and the clues to her death point to her spurned lover, Paul Cézanne.

In this richly atmospheric novel, a mysterious young woman named Solange Vernet arrives in Aix-en-Provence with her lover, a Darwinian scholar named Charles Westbury, and a year later is found strangled in a quarry outside the city. The young and inexperienced magistrate, Bernard Martin, finds his investigation caught in the crossfires of a raging cultural debate. 

Initially assuming that Solange’s murder was a simple crime de passion by either a jealous Cézanne or a betrayed Westbury, Bernard soon finds himself on a mission to unravel the secrets of Solange and Cezanne’s hidden past. Exploring questions of science and religion that persist even to this day, Cezanne’s Quarry is a provocative debut mystery about life, death, love, and art.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781605987675
Publisher:	Pegasus Books
Publication date:	09/22/2009
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	384
File size:	532 KB

About the Author

Barbara Corrado Pope is a historian and the founding director of Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Oregon. She is the author of the novels Cézanne’s Quarry and The Blood of Lorraine.  Barbara lives in Eugene, Oregon, with her husband.

Editorial Reviews

How is the (in)famous 19th-century artist Paul Cezanne connected with a beautiful murder victim?Aix-en-Provence in southern France, 1885. During the summer recess of the court, veteran police inspector Albert Franc importunes young judge Bernard Martin to view a newly discovered body in the absence of the vacationing prosecutor. Martin is amazed to recognize the red-headed victim, found strangled in a quarry on the outskirts of the city. She is Solange Vernet, a law student whose intelligence and beauty captivated Martin in a casual meeting at a bookstore, where they discussed Darwin and the law. Martin feels compelled to assist Franc in his investigation. They first question Solange's lover, British scholar Charles Westerbury, who, clearly nervous, casts suspicion upon his acquaintance Paul Cezanne, impugning the artist's character. Concealing his grief until he's away from the precinct, Westerbury dissolves in tears and determines to track down Cezanne, "the cause of it all." This is easier said than done, both for the prime suspect and the police. The bohemian Cezanne, it seems, has a loyal pack of friends willing to conceal him. Questioning the artist only deepens the dilemma: Who was this mystery woman who called herself Solange Vernet? Emile Zola figures prominently in the answer. Pope's debut includes much fascinating information about the artist and life in late 19th-century France. Its mystery feels more like a MacGuffin enlivening a picaresque roman a clef.

Kirkus Reviews

Could Paul Cézanne be a killer? Pope animates her canvas with plenty of vivid period detail. Francophiles and history buffs will find much to savor. A provocative debut.” (Publishers Weekly)


“Cézanne's Quarry is a highly accomplished, compelling novel. Beneath an exquisite veneer of historical detail lurks a thoughtful exploration of science and religion, of old values and new, and of a woman's place in the world.” (Hallie Ephron, The Boston Globe)

From the Publisher