The Portrait

"Mighty scary. Only an author as clever and confident as Pears could pull off this trick." Newsweek
 
"A stripped-down exercise in creeping dread." Christian Science Monitor
 
"A shrewd and masterful raconteur...a tour de force." The Washington Post Book World
 
"Weirdly haunting, the traps [Pears] sets for the critic are also traps for the reader." Baltimore Sun
 
"One gutsy novelist... The suspense becomes almost unbearable." Boston Globe
 
"A fascinating world of high-minded literature written on a small canvas." Houston Chronicle
 
"An exquisite little gem." Booklist, starred review