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The Love-Artist

jane alison

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Why was Ovid, the most popular poet of his day, banished from Rome? Why do only two lines survive of his play Medea, reputedly his most passionate, most accomplished work? Between the known details of Ovid’s life and these enigmas, Jane Alison has created a haunting drama of
psychological manipulation, and an ingenious meditation on love, art and immortality. When Ovid encounters a woman who embodies the fictitious creations of his soon-to-be published Metamorphoses, he is enchanted, obsessed, and inspired. Part healer, part witch, she seems to be myth come to life, and Ovid lures her away from her home by the Black Sea to Rome. But the inexorable pull of ambition leads him to make a Faustian bargain with fate that will betray his newfound muse.

242 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,2001

This edition

Format
242 pages, Paperback
Published
April 6, 2002 by Picador
ISBN
9780312420062
ASIN
0312420064
Language
English
Characters More characters
  • Ovid (Roman)

    Ovid (roman)

    Ovid (20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18) was a Roman poet, living during the reign of Augustus, and a contemporary of Virgil and Horace.He is best known for the Metamorphoses, a 15-book continuous mythological narrative written in the meter of epic, and for colle...

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jane alison

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Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 100 votes)
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TheGoat1111
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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In this historical fiction novel of ancient Rome, the famous poet Ovid travels to the Black Sea and returns with a new muse and love interest: the exotic, young witch, Xenia. The couple's relationship is atypical, and the narrative spirals towards a new imagining of the reason for Ovid's final exile from the city. The language is beautiful and lyrical, adding much to my experience of the story, and Alison created a seamless and compelling Rome. I loved the mystery and artistry in this book.
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jessalwayz
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Poetic Justice

This intriguing, tightly woven tale grabbed me from the la prima pagina with its lush evocative prose and mercurial movement.

Ovid was exiled from Rome… we know from history, but scholars continue to ponder and argue the reasons for and nature of this bitterly harsh banishment. The play that was to be his masterpiece “Medea” remains forever only a few lines of enigmatic prose.

Springing from this enigma, the story of the magical Xenia ... Xenia, a foreigner, a baby left adrift, only to blossom into a very powerful enchanting female force, ablaze, untamable and capable of magical forces. Exotic and erotic, she yearns to acquire the quinta essentia, the substance of life! Possessing an ineffable feminine jouissance, Xenia’s character is strongly sensual, yet softly childlike.

The back-story that Ms. Allison weaves is a deeply wrought, yet finely tuned instrument …icy hot…mythically mad… and passionately portrayed!

Within this duality of human nature, sex and power converge to excite and entice the reader to travel with Xenia and Ovid over the wild animals housed beneath the stones of Rome while feeling the electricity flowing between their very souls.
I walked the stone streets and felt the marble statues; inhaled the fragrant herbs and felt the warmth of Roman baths wash over me…the prose was so radiantly rendered!

My heart knew the twist that would close this journey, but it takes careful attention to the movement in this cleverly crafted novel to fully realize what Ms. Allison ultimately offers up!

I hope to read more from this enchanting author!… I’d especially love to follow Xenia deeper into the Black Sea over the pebbles and back into that water where she came crashing up through the bubbles into the fresh air! Exhilarating!

Highly recommended!
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CrystalAnimeTear
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Had this book not been assigned to me for a course, I most likely would not have picked it up. And that, my friends, would be a sorrow and a pity; I would have missed out on something brilliant.

Author Jane Alison has created one of the most lyrical novels I've ever read. Her book imagines Ovid as he writes his "Medea" (only two lines of which survive), inspired by two women in his life: Xenia and Julia.

One of the things I found most interesting about this book is how little dialogue was used. Alison shows us what the three main characters are thinking and feeling, while creating an impression that they seldom speak about those feelings or the decisions that result from them. From the moment Ovid meets Xenia in the Caucasus to the time that they part company, we have a picture of Ovid's Rome (and Xenia's disturbing visions of its future), with all of the politics and violence that were at play during his time. We also see three people steeped in their own needs and not caring that they use others around them as pawns.

The prose in this book is nothing short of gorgeous. Fans of literary and historical fiction will both find much to like here.
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leo22334455
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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"The Love Artist" is the story of the famous poet, Ovid, and his exile from Rome. Not much is known about why exactly he was exiled. Not much is known about what his life was like when he was exiled. The author is able to take what we do know and create a fascinating story about what may have happened to Ovid during that time period.

The book is definitely a quiet one and takes a little while to truly hit its stride. It eventually gets there but it just takes a little bit. It slowly unfolds as we find out about Ovid's exile and the woman that he meets there that will change the course of his life, both personal and creative. He very quickly falls in love with a woman that may have become the muse for Ovid's Medea, of which only two lines survive today. This woman is mysterious. She may even have some magical qualities and she may actually be a witch. Ovid molds her character into the perfect character for his work.

I liked the settings in this book most of all. I still have not read all that much historical fiction set in ancient times and I really find myself appreciating books that have a lot of detail about the setting. I love armchair traveling and definitely appreciated exploring somewhere new.

Overall, this was an interesting look at Ovid's life.
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Reya
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Дочитала наконец-то роман «Певец любви» Джейн Элисон об Овидии, обязательный к прочтению на курсе по исторической литературе от Виргинского университета, который я сейчас слушаю на Курсере.
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Цель у меня, как вы понимаете, любопытная. Возможно, есть кое-какие задумки когда-нибудь попробовать что-нибудь написать самой, но это пока очень эфемерно. Пока что я в принципе хочу понять, как работают писатели, особенно как работают те из них, что пишут исторические романы. У людей из литературного мира считается трудным взять реальные факты и перемешать их с вымыслом, чтобы получилась живая, увлекательная картинка, от которой у читателя осталось бы полное ощущение: «да, так всё и было». Здесь тонкий баланс правды и лжи, того, что было на самом деле, и выдумки. От того, насколько этот баланс выдержан, зависит успех исторического романа.
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«Певец любви» в этом плане хороший пример. Для Джейн Элисон поэт Овидий был кумиром, она изучала его творчество много лет, переводила его элегии, даже жила какое-то время в тех же городах, что и он. Можно сказать, присутствовала некая «одержимость». Возможно, это обязательный компонент для писателя — быть чуточку «одержимым» страной, эпохой и персонажем, о котором ты пишешь. Получилось убедительно.
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Я думаю, что «Певца любви» будет полезно прочитать пишущим людям, чтобы наглядно увидеть, как с помощью мельчайших деталей можно воссоздать давно ушедшую эпоху, оживить давно умерших людей. Остальных увлечёт сюжет со множеством интриг и поворотов. Здесь много магии, переплетённой с искусством. Ведь речь об истории создания легендарной трагедии Овидия «Медея», которая не уцелела и от которой до нас дошло лишь несколько строк.
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Это было захватывающе. Рекомендую.
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bessiecad
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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I usually love Greek tragedies, but this Roman romance was really compelling and beautifully written. Would have liked more story.
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HetaliaTrash101
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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beautiful writing, absolutely atmospheric and prosaic. but damn my guy has some sweaty ass wrists.
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waethrman
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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This book had the plot, characters, and setting to be something very interesting, but ended up being just strange to me because of the passive tone that was used and strong tendency for the text to imply and not simply just say. Perhaps I don’t know enough about ancient Roman history or customs, but I was confounded by some of the vocabulary and customs described in this book and too uninvested in the reading of the book to spend the time looking up terminology. The mysterious photo of Jennifer Lawrence on the cover doesn’t help matters as I don’t think it was ever made into a movie. Overall, I rate this book a confusing slog.
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