This is an interesting novella, which left me with mixed – but generally positive – feelings about it. Cambridge alumnus Oliver visits his former tutor, the elderly Theo Parmitter, and Theo starts to tell him the story of a painting hanging on his wall, which depicts a carnival scene in Venice. Overall, there are three narrators – Oliver, Theo and a Countess who used to own the painting before it came into Theo’s possession. Between them, they reveal the secret of the painting – or not so much, because it wasn’t really a secret – after about a third of the book, I guessed pretty much what was going to happen.
In less than 150 pages, Susan Hill has certainly crafted an interesting story, with plenty of atmosphere. It was very easy to read (and could easily be read in one sitting) and enjoyable overall, but the ending was no surprise, which may be why at the end of it, I was slightly bemused. Maybe I was hoping for some kind of shock denouement.
This is definitely a story where the pleasure is in the journey, not the destination. Worth reading; satisfying, but not spectacular.
(Author’s website can be found here.)
Between the Pages 
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