Review: The Witch of Painted Sorrows by MJ Rose

The Witch of Painted Sorrows

by MJ Rose

Publisher: Atria Books

Pages: 384

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Sandrine Salome flees New York for her grandmother’s Paris mansion to escape her dangerous husband, but what she finds there is even more menacing. The house, famous for its lavish art collection and elegant salons, is mysteriously closed up. Although her grandmother insists it’s dangerous for Sandrine to visit, she defies her and meets Julien Duplessi, a mesmerizing young architect. Together they explore the hidden night world of Paris, the forbidden occult underground and Sandrine’s deepest desires.

Among the bohemians and the demi-monde, Sandrine discovers her erotic nature as a lover and painter. Then darker influences threaten—her cold and cruel husband is tracking her down and something sinister is taking hold, changing Sandrine, altering her. She’s become possessed by La Lune: A witch, a legend, and a sixteenth-century courtesan, who opens up her life to a darkness that may become a gift or a curse.

This is Sandrine’s “wild night of the soul,” her odyssey in the magnificent city of Paris, of art, love, and witchery.


Kritters Thoughts:  A courtesan, a grand daughter, some witches/ghosts and 1920s Paris, France made this book a REAL interesting read!  Sandrine escapes her home of New York to her grandmother's of Paris hoping to start new and reconnect with the grandmother that didn't play a big role in her childhood, but raised her father who she gravely misses.

Sandrine arrives to Paris - scared and alone, but with some interactions in Paris she becomes quite a different person.  Watching Sandrine's character evolve was enjoyable, but I didn't completely fall under the spell of why these changes occurred. I love ghost stories, but this one went a little too far and above and beyond what I tend to enjoy.  The other aspect of the book I loved was the painting.  I loved reading Sandrine as she explored the painting side of herself and learned about the contemporaries of 1920s France.  I did appreciate how the paintings in Sandrine's grandmother's home intertwined with the mystery at the heart of the story.

If you are a fan of historical fiction, let me send out the warning that there quite a few sexy scenes in this one and with ghosts and witches abound, this wasn't your run of the mill historical fiction.  I was a fan of MJ Rose before I read this book and still am one, but not sure that this was my favorite from her shelf.


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Meryl Moss Media.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.