The Spectacle

"The status-obsessed, money-fueled New York art scene provides the backdrop for a page-turning new social thriller."—People.com

“A high-powered page-turner, The Spectacle does a deep dive into what lies beneath the shiny veneer of the art world. With unique insights and cutting satire, Anna Barrington reveals the ambition, greed, and fraud that fuels this multibillion-dollar business—not to mention a bracing love story. Highly recommended.”—B. A. Shapiro, New York Times bestselling author of The Art Forger and The Lost Masterpiece

"Seductive and tense, The Spectacle pulls you behind the velvet ropes of New York’s ultra-exclusive art world and into its darker undercurrents. . . . In Anna Barrington’s thrilling debut, a love story intertwines with scheming dealers, pretentious artists, and ruthless collectors. The question is: will the lovers survive their own ambitions? Fans of Katy Hays’s The Cloisters and Elizabeth Kostova’s The Swan Thieves will love this sensational addition to the art world thriller."—Lauren Nossett, author of The Professor

"A highbrow fever dream of a novel, The Spectacle is tailor-made for the discerning reader who craves getting lost in a world that is chic and severe in equal measure. I inhaled this decadent glimpse into the underbelly of the art world, led with aplomb by a character of such disturbing charm, the shades of Tom Ripley and Patrick Bateman were impossible to ignore. Anna Barrington delivers a biting and brilliant debut more than deserving of its perfect title."—Rachel Koller Croft, USA TODAY–bestselling author of Stone Cold Fox