The Last Weynfeldt is one of those wonderful books that are just a pleasure to read.  I'm never sure how much is lost in translation, this book was written in German originally, but I think the essence of the story works in any language and culture.

The title refers to the main character, Adrian Weyndfelt, who is the last in the line of his distinguished family.  Adrian is an art expert, collecting art and working for an auction house valuing and writing details in the catalogues for auctions.  He still lives in the apartment he was brought up in, the housekeeper is the same one who worked for his parents and he is still friends with many of his parents friends; he is a creature of habit.  He also has a set of younger friends, all artistic in character but apart from that they have nothing in common; they just seem to use him as an investment bank for their projects.  He also isn't lucky in love, he hasn't had relationship in years until, one evening he meets Lorena, the image of his previous girlfriend, and the harbinger of trouble for Adrian.  There is a sense of detachment about his character, he always seems removed from situations, shows little emotion, which could relate to his abandonment issues from childhood where his mother use to threaten to leave him if he didn't behave and then his girlfriend walked out on him and never came back.

I will admit that it took me longer than it should have to read this book as I kept on stopping to look up some of the works mentioned (modern art has never been my forte), and I have included an image of the original cover of the book which shows the art work at the centre of the plot.  The Last Weynfeldt centres around two paintings, one original and one a copy, that are the centre piece of an auction, but which will be auctioned?  We follow Weynfeldt as he has to decide what to do, and how his friendships may influence his decision.  This opens up an interesting dialogue about the authenticity of art, and how some reproductions can be better than the original but not as valuable due to ownership and who painted it.  The pace is fairly consistent throughout and it kept my interest and attention until the end.  There are brilliant characters, all very quirky, a mixture of ages and backgrounds that show different sides of Weyndfelt.  There was even a funny 'Pretty Woman' moment with Lorena in an expensive boutique that brought a smile to my face.  The attention to detail of setting was beautiful, almost like a painting itself.

I found The Last Weyndfelt a wonderful and thought provoking read.  I had an empathy for Adrian, he is a generous character but others take advantage of his money and his kindness; he was not only the last Weyndfelt but probably the last of a generation where manners and appearance were important.  The art forgery mystery kept me gripped and guessing until the end, as did the relationship with Lorena.  This is an intelligent and thought provoking novel about art, the human condition and secrets and lies; a superb read.

Adrian Weynfeldt is a very rich man who lives in a vast apartment in Zurich. He has no need to work, but enjoys his job as an appraiser of fine art. A modern Maecenas, he also enjoys giving his money away to artists, who frankly do not appear to deserve it. Personally stunted by his oppressive upbringing, damaged by a love affair in his youth which went disastrously wrong, he remains detached from others, but is increasingly seen as fair game for exploitation. When he meets a young woman who reminds him of his long lost love, she sees the opportunity to make a lot of money.

Part of the pleasure of reading this novel, is to see how far Weynfeldt can be pushed, how far he can be deceived, how far he can be robbed. He is middle-aged, alone, and will hand out money to anybody without question. He finds it hard to react emotionally in a situation; his so-called friends are either much older than he is (his parents’ friends in fact), or much younger (but in need of cash). He appears destined to be the last of his line.

A decent, gentle and unselfish man, how far will he be duped and betrayed? Or is the deceptively mild Weynfeldt more astute than others have judged him?

This is a clever, twisting story about art fraud, deception and human frailties. Often funny, sometimes bitter-sweet, it maintains a suspenseful storyline right to its close.

Suter, The Last Weynfeldt, trans. Steph Morris, No Exit Press
Martin Suter is Swiss, and sets his crime fiction in Switzerland. Adrian Weynfeldt is an expert in paintings at a local auction house in Zurich. (Local is itself more or less a term of art.) He lives alone in the large family flat, which has at its centre the memory of someone who has already died—his mother--at a great age, naturally, leaving behind her only child. So well brought up is this last Weynfeldt that his veneer appears to be impenetrable. His manners are a work of art, his works of art are impeccable, and his wealth is great. He seems not to realise that he is lonely, until he rescues a shoplifter. And thus begins his life of crime, in a milieu in which his word is his bond. This isn’t a wonderful novel, but it is lightly amusing throughout. The apogee is when Weynfeldt decides to turn one of the rooms in his enormous apartment into a small gym. Nothing interesting there, except that the room he chooses was his mother’s bedroom, which has (until now) remained as she left it. The book is lightly sketched throughout and quite predictable. Should you be unfortunate enough to get the ’flu this winter you might enjoy it.

Very respectable effort.. an art historian deceived by an old friend gets involved for what he thinks is first time in fraud .. and encounters a hardly attractive woman, a thief too .. as if all are duplicitous but him .. for first time!! His innocence irked me along with some overly elaborated, foolish personality traits. When he's deceived about a painting, my heart sank .. he should be tough and enough .. but it fit the author's overall theme and purpose. In that respect, a successful novel if a little drawn out .. sophisticated writing with full descriptions and real people. Impressive... worthy to read.

This almost has the feel of a C19th novel: leisurely, stately, though the topic of art fraud, forgery, and aesthetic value is modern. Slow in places, a bit more zip would have made it feel less ponderous. Well-researched, though, about the art world.