Books like The Bernini bust by Iain Pears

Jonathan Argyll, a weary art dealer, finally makes a sensational sale—a Titian—to a well‑endowed Los Angeles museum. He expects the transaction to finish quickly, but the city’s underbelly proves far more perilous. Suspicion falls on a crafty smuggler who may be transporting a Bernini bust from Italy. Meanwhile, the museum’s domineering owner is found dead, and the trophy artwork and the suspect vanish. Argyll finds himself embroiled in a desperate race to uncover who killed the owner, why the bust disappeared, and who is manipulating the art crime market. The novel combines sharp mystery, intriguing art‑historical details, and the colorful backdrop of Los Angeles. Audiences enjoy a tense procedural that highlights the treacherous, high‑stakes world of art dealing and the secrets hiding behind priceless artifacts. Keywords: Jonathan Argyll, art dealer, Titian, Bernini bust, art smuggling, Los Angeles, murder mystery, museum crime, investigation, crime drama, art theft, police procedural, detective Fiction

First publish date: 1992