Laura Morelli

Laura Morelli weaves together the story surrounding the fifteenth century creation of Leonardo da Vinci painting, The Lady and the Ermine, and the painting’s twentieth century imperiled journeys back and forth from Poland to Germany in the hands of the Nazis during World War II.

In this well-researched historical fiction, the subject of the painting commissioned by Ludovico in Moro, Cecilia Gallerani, comes to life as the regent of Milan’s mistress, mother of his illegitimate child, and later, Countess, married to Count Ludovico Carminati de Brambilla. But so do the 20th century heroes who risk their lives to keep her image safe: more specifically, a German art conservator, Edith Becker, who is essentially imprisoned by Hans Frank, the Butcher of Poland; and a young Italian-American soldier — a husband, father of two daughters, Pennsylvania coal miner by trade, artist by hobby—who is assigned at times to work with the Monuments Men, who were attempting to save and recover all the works of art the Nazis stole throughout Europe.… (meer)

Cecilia - young, pretty, smart and musically gifted, she has captured the heart of the lord of Milan, Ludovico. A powerful man, though not strong enough to walk away from a very beneficial marriage contract. So Cecilia stays in a wing of the castle, visited in secret and occasionally brought out to sing for guests - that is, until her beautiful gowns can no longer hide her delicate condition.

Leonardo - he dreams of how to please his patron. Strengthen the castle, build a better bridge, make a man fly? He could work on all of that if he just had the time! And now the patron wants a portrait of some girl? Well, he's going to make this portrait different than expected.

Edith - she followed her father into art conservation but all the Nazis want day after day is her ranking on the art they bring her. Truckload after truckload of stolen art. Unfortunately her boss has taken a shine to both Edith and the da Vinci and he's hell bent on keeping them both for himself.

Dominic - he used to spend his downtime making charcoal drawings of his wife, trying to remember her features. Imagining what their newest child looks like. He used to love art, but the brutal death of his fellow soldiers has beaten all the passion out of him. Until one day his commander introduces him to a detail called the Monuments Men - can he find any purpose again?

I enjoyed this book so much! It took me forever to read it. It was engaging and enjoyable, I just couldn’t seem to make good ground while reading it… and then it was over. I loved the imagined life of this real painting and I enjoyed the trials that Edith and Dominic endured and overcame.

to learn more and to see a photo of the Monuments Men with the painting visit:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_with_an_Ermine… (meer)

Laura Morelli wasn't an author I had heard of until I got onto Goodreads. I am ecstatic that I have had the opportunity to get an advanced copy. I feel like I won a small lottery of sorts. There was so much attention to detail in "The Last Masterpiece". I could tell that Morelli put in the time, and at the end of the book in the "Acknowledgements," I saw that many people put in the hours on this book to bring it to life. The facts do matter, even in a fictional book. As someone who appreciates non-fiction books, this read as a true story, not as a fictional book and I believe it is because of all that attention to detail. I highly recommend anyone who loves art history, art in general, WWI buffs, or even people who love falling in love should read this.

The only reason I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 was the lack of an emotional connection I felt between me and Josie and Eva. Maybe there wasn't enough about their backstories to give me a link to them, but they were solid leading ladies. My husband now wants to read this little gem.… (meer)