An Object of Beauty - Tapa dura

Steve Martin...on the evidence of this book seems to be almost indecently multi-talented...Martin cunningly mixes the work of real artists with those of his own invention... it has something of The Great Gatsby about it...An Object of Beauty is an impressive and enjoyable book. The real protagonists of the novel are Art and Money - and the love affair between them (THE SUNDAY TIMES)

Substantial and profound...Martin casts the same sharp eye over Lacey's manipulation of her lovers as over her manipulation of the market. He launches a blistering attack on the banalities of conceptual art - not least when a billionaire collector grabs a Joseph Beuys Felt Suit from his wall after his tuxedo is stained. This is a rich and illuminating novel that neither relies on nor suffers from its author's celebrity status. (DAILY MAIL)

Funny man Steve Martin proves his literary mettle with this genuinely good novel examining the New York art world. Following a young intern determined to conquer the scene, it charts the complexities and absurdities of art-centric Manhattan. Think The Devil Wears Prada with paintbrushes. (GRAZIA)

[An Object of Beauty] has something intelligent to say about how taste and collecting have changed over the past ten years and how the easily understandable movements of the Sixties and Seventies have given way to the pluralism today, where anything goes. It shows how absurd most collectors and curators have become in their attempts to keep abreast of this shifting scene where money is no more real than the art it helps to buy. (THE SPECTATOR)

Lacey is a wonderfully enigmatic heroine...Martin sketches his characters deftly, evoking their world with ease...But the real objects of beauty are the art works themselves. Described lovingly, and illustrated with colour plates, it is evident why this medium is a passion for our characters and the author himself. Martin is illuminating and informative and has many a wise word...those with no prior interest in art should also reach the final page enlightened and captivated (DAILY EXPRESS)

Glistening with glamour, intrigue, ambition and betrayal, Steve Martin's (yes, the actor) novel is intoxicating. (EASY LIVING)

The expertise of Martin is dazzingly in evidence here...it is thoroughly delightful, evoking a vanished gilded age (NEW YORK TIMES)

a look behind the scenes of the New York art world. Charting the rise of glamorous Lacey Yeager it lifts the curtain on what drives collectors... a wry perceptive and properly told story from an insider and a fan. (ELLE)

Best known for classic films such as Parenthood and L.A. Story, Steve Martin is also an accomplished writer. His latest novel tells the story of ambitious Lacey Yeager, who's determined to crack the New York art world. However, her bubble looks set to burst as a secret from her past threatens to destroy everything she's worked for. (STAR (5 star review))

An Object of Beauty charts the hedonistic and ugly underbelly of the New York art scene over the last 20 years. Slyly navigating its choppy waters is Lucy Yeager, an ambitious self-involved art seller who could enter a room 'with the pizzazz of a Broadway star'. The book bursts at the seams with research, from varnishes to price tags... and the scene's beauty, fetishisms and absurdities are all neatly captured. (METRO)