Review of 'The Engraver's Secret' by Lisa Medved

Review of The Engraver's Secret by Lisa Medved

Release date: April 3rd, 2024

Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers Australia

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REVIEW

Lush and lyrical, mysterious and mesmerising, The Engraver’s Secret took hold of me with its intriguing journey from the past to the present. Filled with secrets and suspicion, danger and division, betrayal and prejudice, I was kept on the edge of my seat as this tale unravelled. But there are also glorious elements of wonder and wisdom, mystery and magic, discovery and fulfilment spread across these pages to give it the right balance.

Ultimately this is about father-daughter relationships, customs and expectations, trust and forgiveness. There are many parallels in the two threads and unique surprises. Each strand is told separately yet they are hinged on each other. And when the blending of the two stories of fathers and daughters come together in the end, it is an exciting feast of history and imagination.

One thread is set in the 1620s in Antwerp (part of the Spanish Netherlands at that time). Its lead character Antonia, is a curious girl with a desire to be independent. She aspires to be a female cartographer but this is not an age when women with certain professional ambitions are accepted. Yet, her father, Lucas, an engraver for artist Peter Paul Reubens, has raised her to value and know her mind. Because she is observant and intelligent, she notices all that goes on around her: the battles, the jealousies and the vengeful acts of pride that prevail in this male dominated world. Although her father provides her with a good education and praises her intelligence— even stating she is ‘bright as any boy,’ everything changes once her mother passes away during childbirth. And when she learns of a terrible secret, she is faced with new challenges —including her father’s new ambitions for her. This causes quite a conflict.

Antonia takes comfort in her friendship with, Clara, daughter of artist Rubens. But once Lucas has a serious rift with him, the girls’ friendship is threatened.  Antonia’s father abruptly announces they are moving, far from the home she loves and knows. This raises feelings of despair and frustration in Antonia. She feels he has ‘discarded’ her ‘future in Antwerpen’, her ‘friendship with Clara’ and her ‘happiness’ as easily as the worn mattress stuffing in the courtyard.’ She has no choice in the matter and must comply to his wishes for that is what is expected of her. Everything about her previous life is suddenly forbidden: including entering her father’s workroom which she frequently visited, seeing her dear friend Clara, freedom to speak against the move. She likens herself and her powerlessness to a ‘linen press or a crate of goblets…to be bundled up and shipped to a new destination..’ Her cries are ignored and as she says: ‘I was a chattel, to be stuffed in a create and muffled with wood shavings.’ On top of this, her father wants her to marry a man she abhors while her heart is set on another. Antonia is caught in a dilemma of how to be loyal to her family and still be true to herself.

The current timeline is primarily set in Belgium. We follow Charlotte who heads to Antwerp on an art historical mission to research the Baroque master Rubens. Feeling grief from the loss of her mother, she is also carrying the shock of recent news that her father is alive: a man she never knew and thought was dead. So, moving to Antwerp carries a two-fold purpose: to engage in important art research and to obtain answers from her father who lives there. But what she finds on this journey is far more than she could ever expect. Students are experiencing attacks on campus, becoming victims of break-ins. Then there’s a startling discovery hidden inside an ancient map folio, that sends her on a dangerous treasure hunt. There are lots of weird events going on in the university and she does not know who to trust. There are some obsessed ambitious individuals who will do anything to get the sacred items they seek for recognition.

As for the father-daughter aspects of these two stories, in the ancient timeline Peter Reubans’ and Luca Vorsterman’s rift affect both families. Friends Antonia and Clara are forbidden from seeing each other. Grief from separation takes hold. But the girls find a way through secret letters. Through them we learn what is happening in the two households. Antonia’s life is marred by her father’s pride just as Charlotte’s life (in the modern timeline) is affected by her mother’s dislike for her father. She has grown up with this prejudice but when she meets him, she wonders how true her mother’s assessment is? Her confusion is understandable and it will take a series of events before she sorts out her own feelings towards him.

But at least Charlotte also has a friend in Miles, a co-worker who helps her on the mission to solve the Great Reubens Mystery. And encourages her to reconsider getting to know her father.

Although she comes up against frightening forces, there are some wonderful surprises in store for Charlotte: including family connections that make her question how much genetics play not only in physical characteristics but also in a person’s talents, interests, behaviour, mannerisms, etc.

This is a fascinating story that is both captivating and enlightening. I highly recommend The Engraver’s Secret for those who enjoy a great blend of adventure and art history. It moves along at a comfortable pace with plenty of roadblocks, clues and excitement that kept me turning the pages to see how things would resolve. There were some wicked twists, too, with the two timelines coming together in a seamless finale! 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to HarperCollins Australia for my review copy.