The Titian Committee

by Iain Pears

Book Overview

Iain Pears combines "articulate characters and erudite art commentary" (The New York Times Book Review) in this sophisticated, suspenseful series featuring art historian Jonathan Argyll and the delightfully clever Flavia di Stefano.

In The Titian Committee, the two embark on a daring investigation after a member of a famous research committee is found dead in a Venetian public garden.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425185001
• ISBN13: 9780425185001
• Release Date: August 2002
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.3" x 8.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

I liked it and enjoyed reading it

This is a 'lovely' murder mystery. It has interesting characters, interesting information about art and art critics and of course Venice. The story is very well constructed and has a very 'Venetian sense' of justice. Having spent a lot of time in Venice myself, the author did well with the maze of the city and the Venetian personalities in the book.

The Titian Committee (Art History Mystery)

Excellent service, prompt delivery, excellent conditon as described, packaged well. Would use again.

Lead characters outshine beautiful location.

The second in the Jonathan Argyll series is dissimilar from the first in that it is set in one location (I prefer books that wander across Europe), but has more enough mystery to keep anyone guessing as suspects come in and out of reasonable suspicion. Not much detail is given to the secondary characters, so it allows for a really quick read with a satisfactory ending that explained why my choice of murder was wrong. As usual with Pears there is historical accuracy, as well as plenty of humor. All in all, a great weekend read when you do not wish to dive into a larger book.

Another Good Entry in the Series

This is the second book in this series of art mysteries (Raphael Affair was first). The series need not be read in order as I found when I read this one out of order. Pears' ironic humor is abundant and his main characters all so human. The cultural aspects always add to the plot and Pears' writing style also adds.The plot of Titian Committee is good. The author presents the reader with members of a research committee who are all - at some time or other - suspects, prime suspects or murder victims.Like some of Pears' other books, there is a moral decision/question that throws an extra twist. Are the good guys always good? Or is it good to be a good guy and not so good? Somehow the reader gets the warm feeling throughout this book that Mr. Pears writes with a constant grin on his face. This is an enjoyable light read.

Gee I miss Venice (I read it for the scenery)

I think I'd read anything set in Italy, and Iain Pears does a wonderful job conveying its charms in this series. This particular book is set in Venice, which is really brought to life (I got rather excited when the body of a victim was found in a canal that was down the street from a hotel where I once stayed.)This is my first of Pear's 'art history mysteries,' however, and the characters and the plot have yet to grow on me. Flavia diStefano, an Italian detective, is energetically drawn, but Jonathan Argyll, the art expert who tags along with her, is an enigma. Perhaps he is more colorful in other stories in this series. The plot is pretty tortured and difficult to retain if you are not an art history export. There is rather a lot of detail conveyed third-hand (scenes in which two characters sit in a cafe talking about what a third character said to a fourth character).Nevertheless, every time I want a 'hit' of Italy, I'm likely to go back to this series for a quick fix!

Fun, quick read

Just as enjoyable as the first of the Art History Mysteries ( The Raphael Affair), this book has convinced me to read the rest of the series. The author has an excellent sense of place (in this case Venice), character and storyline. I thought the conclusion a tad muddled, but I really like the art history that forms the backbone of the tale. Those with strong medieval/Renaissance history will have a better chance than I did at guessing the ending.