A slender novel that does Robert Browning's dramatic monologues proud, The Portrait by Iain Pears is an unforgettable vengeance scenario. When retired painter Henry MacAlpine lures famed critic (and former patron) William Nasmyth to a lonely isle off the Brittany coast for a final portrait, both men's pasts are revealed in painful entirety. Perfect beach reading for the midnight-in-the-walled-garden set; also highly recommended to any artist who has suffered critical slings and arrows in bootless fury.