After one of his artists is murdered and a fake Monet deal goes terribly wrong, corrupt Manhattan art dealer Adrian Sellars, who makes a fortune selling art forgeries and spends most of it feeding his heroin addiction, takes to the streets to save his life. Reprint. PW. NYT.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
THIEF OF LIGHT David Ramus. HarperPaperbacks, $6.50 ISBN 0-06-109420-X. Sex, drugs and old masters figure into former art dealer Ramus's first novel, pitting a Manhattan art forgers' fence against murderous Yakuza gangsters.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Who is David Ramus and how did he sell this, his first novel (his first published writing of any kind), for $1 million? Ramus was a high-stakes art dealer during the volatile 1980s when art became as hip a commodity as junk bonds and narcotics. When the whole inflated scene self-destructed, Ramus was left in dire straits: his debts were enormous; he was the subject of a federal investigation; and he was addicted to heroin. These alarming experiences lie at the heart of his slick and readable tale of corruption, revenge, and redemption in the New York art world. Adrian Sellars is a brash young dealer with a lucrative scam, selling perfect forgeries of paintings by such masters as Monet. He earns enough money to run a seemingly legitimate and lavishly appointed gallery and to support his drug habit. Life is good until his forger is brutally murdered the night before he's scheduled to deliver a very important painting to Adrian for sale to a demanding Japanese businessman. The action takes off along typical thriller lines. There's a love interest and plenty of scheming, double-crossing, dumb luck, close calls, and gratuitous violence. True, Ramus does turn some nice phrases when he writes about painting, but aside from a touch of class and a likable enough hero, this is pretty standard fare. The publisher, however, believes otherwise and has planned a hefty first printing and an all-out publicity push, so there will be a demand. Donna Seaman
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An extrodinary novel,
By ilya kuznetsov (commerce, MI) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Thief of Light (Hardcover)
"Thief of Light" is a book about the real world. A world filled with drugs and crime where people are willing to kill others for money. The main character Adrian Sellers is vividly portrayed by Ramus and the entire cast of characters are nicely done by Ramus. I could see the characters come to life in front of my eyes. The setting was set against the background of the worst part of New York City. This is a very interesting setting and really gives the book the edge over others of the genre. Adrian Sellers, the main character, is very well portrayed because he is based on the author, David Ramus. I really enjoyed reading this book and liked the style of writing that David Ramus used. It had a dark tone and mood to it and really immersed you in the world. I can not really relate to the book but that didn't stop me from enjoying it thoroughly. It is a joy to read and a real page-turner. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys to read.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fast,exciting,smooth flow,
By A Customer
This review is from: Thief of Light (Mass Market Paperback)
I was simpley amazed at the writting of this 1st. time author, that I came on line to see if he has done others. I am anxious to read his other works to see if this was a fluke are if David can realy write. When I started this book only maybe into the 1st to 3rd. chapter Dean Kontz New novel came out. I had to rush out to get it immediately. To my own amazment,I went onto finish the Thief of Light first.
3.0 out of 5 stars
No Light in the End of the Tunel For This Kind of Literature,
By Alysson Oliveira "Alysson Oliveira" (Sao Paulo-- Brazil) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Thief of Light (Hardcover)
David Ramus's first novel is interesting, a page turner, but the huge amount of clichés makes it very pointless. It is the kind of book that when finished you ask "What is the point?", and this is a question that should never be asked to any work of literature -- or any other kind of art.Due to the fact that Ramus himself was a marchand, the novel has many points close to reality -- anyway, he knows how this world works; but what could be a dark trip to the underworld of art becomes a cold thriller. The characters are very one demensioned: the good guys, the bad guys -- and there are also some undercover people, but you can easily discover them. The protagonist Adrian Sellars is the over-clichéd idea of bad-guy-cum-good-guy looking for rendemption. He solve his problems to easily. Life has been to good to him, as a matter of fact. He is rich, but he owns millions to other art dealers; he has money to buy everything he needs, but we never know where it comes from, once he uses the only money he has in the beginning of the novel to buy drugs. Add to him the lovable and shallow Devon, a very rich girl who happens to be his secretary... why? Because the author wants her to be, this is the only explanation. The Japanese Mafia is very caricatured. Their moral code in Ramus's hands become a simple reverence-killing-reverence-hummiliation and strange guys in expensive suits. His style of writing is the simplest possible, and you can point out how the end will be after reading 100 pages. There is no twist that makes you hold your breath and the ending... well, it is what you got in your mind. This book is definetily a page turner, because it is easy and it doesn't require too much of your mind, just read to spend your time; or read "Thief of Light" between two hard books in order to refresh your mind, but don't expect something deep or provoking . Another thing: I wish I could give 2 ½ and not 3.
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