Book Review: Art and Soul by Claire Huston*

[Ad-gifted] This book is definitely what it says on the tin, which could either be the metaphorical paint or cake tin. Whichever one you decide, Art and Soul by Claire Huston serves up a delicious slice- well more than a slice really- of romantic escapism that will keep you hooked until the end. This is ideal for a holiday read or when you know that you have some time to be tucked away cosily somewhere with a book. Don’t mistakenly think that it’s one that you can pick up and put down. Once you begin, you’ll want to follow Becky on her tumultuous journey with her latest ‘boss’ until the very end.

When Becky is contacted by the teenage daughter, Phoebe, and sister, Lauren, of a reclusive artist, Charlie, who is languishing in his pit of despair over the breakdown of his marriage and his ailing career, she is faced with her most difficult client yet. The path to creative genius never runs smooth. You will laugh and almost want to shout out loud with frustration at the characters in the book as Becky navigates her way over the bumps and upended paint pots, not to mention the bitchy socialites with more money than personality, to earn the commission that she so desperately needs to keep her head above water. Becky finds the task in hand far more complicated than re-kindling the painting career of her artist. She becomes the proverbial fairy godmother as she dusts her magic, and cake sprinkles, over more than Charlie’s painting slump and you’ll love her the more for it. Especially as you witness the barbed comments and spikiness from the manager of the Art gallery who seems set to not only relaunch Charlie’s career but become the muse for it.

What I thought of Art and Soul ?

Becky is a bright, intelligent yet struggling single mum to her beautiful son Dylan and she is unable to unleash the full spectrum of her talents on the world due to her commitment to him. To make ends meet, Becky hides in the shadows (where she prefers to reside) and acts as a modern-day Mephistopheles (anyone with a love for literature like me will appreciate the references sprinkled throughout the book) for the privileged elite who can afford to pay her to prevent an array of mishaps. However, Becky isn’t as invisible as she believes, and as the novel unfolds, the impact that she has is made startlingly clear.

To pinch a sound bite from the blurb, the book is set in ‘the Comptons, a charming, leafy area of Southern England’. In her role, Becky has to deal with the snobbery and downright rudeness of some of those with money; however, she is excellent at her job and in her words, she, ‘knows where the bodies are buried’! This means that her network is wide. This network includes her best friend, the bad-tempered expert cake maker, Ronnie, whose baking skills are second to none, and her long-suffering partner Mike. These interesting and ‘human’ ingredients make for the perfect cake for you to savour with a cup of tea!

The narrative is mainly written from the point of view of Becky but it does flick to the other characters at points throughout the book. This takes you by surprise at first but it allows you to have a crumb of an insight into their perspective that keeps you hooked. ‘Art and Soul’ is a decent-sized book with 394 pages, slightly bigger than your average easy read. It still only took me a couple of days though because I didn’t want to put it down. You know when you look in the window of a cake shop and see a cake that looks like it will taste delicious (my favourite is usually lemon drizzle) but you’ve been disappointed before when the cake doesn’t live up to expectations. This book will definitely be the cake you don’t regret choosing and it will leave you with a lovely sweet after taste!

How much is Art and Soul and where can you buy it?

‘Art and Soul’ is Claire Huston’s Art first finished novel and it will be published today. The Kindle edition is available to buy or 0.99 (which is an absolute bargain!) while the paperback copy retails for £8.99 from Amazon here.

About the Author

Claire Huston lives in Warwickshire with her husband and two children. Art and Soul is her first novel. A keen amateur baker, she enjoys making cakes, biscuits and brownies almost as much as eating them. You can find recipes for all the cakes mentioned in Art and Soul at www.clairehuston.co.uk along with over 100 other recipes. This is also where she talks about and reviews books.

About the Book
Author: Claire Huston
Publisher: Goldcrest Books International Ltd
ISBN: 978-1-911505-65-5
Pages: 394

Review by: Row Jukes

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* Disclaimer: We were given a copy of the book in return for a feature. All opinions are our own.