Fake Like Me

This novel was an unexpected surprise in that it's marketed more as a psychological thriller, when in fact it's a literate, lyrical, fascinating exploration of not only an unnamed narrator, a young female artist, but also a group of 5 more established artists who have formed a sort of art commune called Pine City. Our protagonist eventually becomes part of this community when a fire destroys the eight major works she's completed for a gallery showing in three months. Through connections, she's able to use the abandoned studio of Carey Logan, one of the five, who drowned herself on the property. I worked as an art consultant for years and so was totally transfixed by the descriptions of this artist's work, so detailed and so intriguing. The only other recent description of how an artist works that I can remember was Mia in Little Fires Everywhere and Bourland has given us even more insight into the creative mind, not only the inspiration for this women's paintings but the sheer physicality and the quite large expense that goes into the production of large-scale works such as these. There is a central mystery to the narrative but no terror/suspense/fear in the sense of the Gone Girl clones. No, this is literary fiction/women's fiction with fully-formed characterJust released in paperback.
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