Tulip Fever by Deborah Moggach

Suddenly, entering rooms familiar from paintings by Vermeer or Pieter de Hooch, you are transported back to 17th century Amsterdam, A young artist, Jan van Loos, is painting a portrait of wealthy Cornelius and his beautiful young wife, Sophia. The scene is set. Sophia’s betrayal and the reckless lovers’ speculation on tulip bulbs trigger their undoing and bring down others around them. Nothing is quite as it seems. Passion burns beyond seemingly restrained facades; disguise and intrigue lurk behind heavy drapes covering chequered floors and Delft tiles. Tension builds, fuelled by anxiety, secrecy and deception. ‘Mankind’s hopes are fragile and life is therefore also short’: words etched on a glass in the opening paragraph recall life’s transience. Take time to study the sixteen paintings reproduced within the pages of the novel. Note the intimate relationship between mistress and maid, tall houses by the canal, mysterious interiors: rooms within rooms, still-life compositions of peeled fruit, foreboding skulls and billowing striped tulips as fresh as if painted yesterday. Tulip Fever is a wonderful read.
(Originally part-published in Women’s Weekly)