ARTIFICE

Art, lies, and Nazis.

In 1943, Isa de Smit survives the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam by keeping her head down. She hates the Nazis, who have taken some of her beloved friends, like Jewish artists Moshe and Hilde, and even executed her gay artist friend, Arondeus, for resisting. She knows that Truus, her former best friend, is in the Resistance, but 18-year-old Isa’s job is protecting both the Gallery De Smit, including the hidden Vermeer, and looking after her widower father, an impractical painter. When she rebels by selling a fake Rembrandt to the Nazis for tax money, she’s drawn into action via an uneasy alliance with a young art-loving Nazi soldier named Michel Lange who’s craving escape, smuggling Jewish babies away before they’re sent to their deaths, and interacting with collaborators and Nazis to sell forged art. Part historical thriller, part portrait of a life played out against a turbulent backdrop, this engrossing read inserts fictional Isa into the true stories of two fascinating historical figures, all of which is detailed in the lengthy author’s note. The writing leans heavily on artistic descriptions, with painterly descriptions of both physical and emotional landscapes. Inattentive readers might sometimes get lost in the complex plotting, but this is a genuinely immersive, teen-centric answer to the historical thrillers that fill adult shelves and will satisfy plenty of readers.

Gripping.