Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Francine Rivers is my favorite author by far so I hate giving a bad review. A good novel overall but sadly it fell very short (while I absolutely love The Mark of the Lion Series and Redeeming Love!) All four of those books are simply phenomenal with impactful, believable characters and spirituality that draws you closer to Christ. In The Masterpiece, however, something was lacking and I felt disappointed even after finishing the book. It is slightly derivative and dry. The situations created weren’t realistic and were very predictable from the get go. Also, there was too much flipping back to Grace and Romans past ( Roman/Grace aged 7,10,15,20) which typically gave details that were already previously stated in the ‘present tense’ chapters right beforehand; so much that the facts became redundant and I honestly started skipping paragraphs because it was a repeat of what she’d already told us several times already. It became boring and tedious to read. The ink wasted would have been better spent on showing us Grace and Roman falling in love, gettting together, getting married etc. Instead, those details everyone wanted to know, were strewn on the very last pages as an afterthought in the epilogue. Even then SEVERAL questions are left unanswered and made me feel cheated. (Spoiler alert) Is Roman Samuels bio father? That was the most interesting part of the entire book then it never developed any further. And what happened to Nicole who moved in with her boss? And the landscape Roman painted with Grace hidden in the picture? And Aunt Elizabeth’s sudden change of heart? Ugh frustration. With the other Rivers books I’ve read (and re-read several times after) left me in tears and utterly moved. The masterpiece was dull, and not filled with the same spirit and complexity as the other novels. I still love Francine Rivers, but sadly this book wasn’t really worth reading and won’t be re-read again.