The Artist

Reviews / Votes

The Artist is a lush, impressive debut; the writing is rich and sensuous, especially in descriptions of food, the landscape and the act of creation. Lucy Steeds, a graduate of the Faber Academy, is one to watch * The Times, Best Historical Fiction of 2025 * Vividly poetic . . . A seductive combination of romance, puzzle and poetry, The Artist also offers a considered interrogation of the value of art: to open windows in human existence, to push against limits, to bring freedom, perspective and light * Guardian * The height of summer in 1920s Provence is a place of honeyed heat and slow-burn attraction. This is the intense, beautifully realised tale of reclusive painter Tata, his put-upon niece Ettie, who's living a secret artistic life of her own, and aspiring writer Joseph, who finds himself drawn into their tempestuous, luminous orbit in this smouldering book * Daily Mail * The stifling Provence landscape and the visceral nature of creating and consuming art are evoked beautifully . . . Steeds command of language is dextrous and powerful . . . a hugely accomplished portrait of ambition and self-fulfilment * Observer * A sultry, headily perfumed portrait of monstrous male egos and oppressed overlooked women . . . The Artist uncovers its secrets by stealth * Daily Telegraph * This compelling, evocative debut will transport you to idyllic, sun-drenched Provence in 1920 . . . An absorbing, poetic read * Mail on Sunday * The air is thick with the power of art, the sensuality of food, the desire to be seen and create alarming heat * Sainsbury's Magazine * A blaze of a book, poetic, passionate and quietly powerful * Daily Mail * Romantic . . . brings to life a painter's studio in 1920s Provence * Country & Town House * Sensuous and brooding * Bookseller * Enthralling . . . the descriptions of the landscape, the meals they eat and the art created are so rich and evocative it's as if you're there * Good Housekeeping * A vivid and atmospheric literary novel, rich in observational detail, that explores and transcends the oppressive power dynamics of artistic creation * Sydney Morning Herald * Lucy Steeds transports the reader with her sensuous depictions of food, art, and landscape . . . an assured and atmospheric debut about creativity, female agency, and the legacy of war -- Sarah Perry, author of THE ESSEX SERPENT A furiously romantic, sun-drenched mystery about the violent power of good art. The Artist will leave you yearning in every sense of the word -- Yael van der Wouden, author of THE SAFEKEEP The Artist is an intoxicating tale of creativity, possession and freedom told by the alternate voices of a young English writer and a French woman who have been drawn into the orbit of a celebrated but reclusive artist. As they circle around him during one hot summer in Provence, both his secrets and theirs slowly come into the light. This is a compelling, beautifully textured and impressively assured debut about the risks we take to get what we want, a novel which asks questions about all those who are painted over by history -- Joanna Quinn, author of THE WHALEBONE THEATRE Gorgeous . . . Steeped in the heat and atmosphere of 1920s Provence, this novel brims with intrigue, hope and yearning. The questions it asks will linger with me: about authenticity, about what it means to be an artist and to long to leave a mark on the world -- Elizabeth Macneal, author of THE DOLL FACTORY and THE BURIAL PLOT Phenomenal . . . beautiful, pacey historical fiction, vividly realised. It drifts with the scent of summer, the land lit up and throbbing, the food piled high and richly painted, the paint as thick and buttery as food. I wanted to eat it. Yes, I even wanted to eat the paint. Read this book! -- Seth Insua, author of HUMAN, ANIMAL I could not love this beautiful novel more . . . the final chapters left me with that delicious heart-bursting feeling, full of hope and delight -- Florence Knapp, author of THE NAMES Beautiful . . . Steeds uses vivid, sensory language to evoke the sultriness of a summer in Provence and the tyranny of living with a genius artist . . . A thought-provoking book whose characters will stay with you long after you've finished reading it * Historical Novel Society * Steeds's debut is gorgeously immersive, the summer Provencal landscape vividly evoked and her descriptions of art arresting * A Life in Books * The author has had so much advance praise for this novel that we feel slightly awed by it. It might be a 2025, fictional reply to Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence, published in 1989, a book that proved to be publishing gold and single-handedly sent a million Brits down to the land of lavender and wine * Off the Shelf, Quad * Sheds light on the unsung women bhind great artists. Throw in the glorious remote Provence setting, and I can't imagine a better book to escape with * Stylist * We are instantly immersed in a lavish sensory realm . . . we absorb their world through the fragrance of linseed oil and sun-baked olive trees, through touch and taste and longing. * Radio Times * Captivating . . . with imagery as lush as an oil painting * Washington Post * A banquet of a novel and a carnival of the senses * Stornaway Gazette * The Artist is a lush, impressive debut; the writing is rich and sensuous, especially in descriptions of food, the landscape and the act of creation. Lucy Steeds is one to watch * The Times *