The Restoration Artist

Leo Millar is a young painter in Paris who seems to have it all—a beautiful French wife, a talented young son, a thriving career. And then in one terrible moment he loses everything. Overcome by guilt and despair, he flees to an island off the coast of Normandy, thinking that his life is over. Soon the island begins to work its magic when Leo encounters a brilliant but troubled musician who is fighting her own demons. But it is only when a strange, damaged child enters Leo's life that he has a chance to move beyond his own losses and find, perhaps, a new definition of love and the restoration of hope.Advance Acclaim for The Restoration Artist"With the language of a poet and the eye of a painter, Lewis DeSoto has written a book of astonishing depth. This timeless novel lures the reader to a near-mythical island of beauty and longing, and there explores loss, grief and the meaning not only of art but of life itself." —Lauren B. Davis, author of Our Daily Bread and The Empty Room"The Restoration Artist is an elegant book—sombre, observant and immensely readable. DeSoto understands that within the necessary aloneness of an artist there is a need for connection. When a man is an island, he finds meaning in the rhythms of the tide." —Katherine Govier, author of Three Views of Crystal Water and The Ghost Brush"Lewis DeSoto has a sure and constant eye for both the physical world and the breach between the artist's vision and the artist's heart. This novel is a tenderly rendered tableau of loss and renewal." —Tessa McWatt, author of Step Closer and Vital Signs