The Painting

A young Hungarian woman confronts her family's past in an engrossing quest for a stolen painting When Anika Molnar flees her home country of Hungary not long before the break-up of the Soviet Union, she carries only a small suitcase and a beautiful and much-loved painting of an auburn-haired woman in a cobalt blue dress from her familys hidden collection. Arriving in Australia, Anika moves in with her aunt in Sydney, and the painting hangs in pride of place in her bedroom. But one day it is stolen in what seems to be a carefully planned theft, and Anikas carefree life takes a more ominous turn. Sinister secrets from her familys past and Hungarys fraught history cast suspicion over the paintings provenance, and she embarks on a gripping quest to uncover the truth. Hungarys war-torn past contrasts sharply with Australias bright new world of opportunity in this moving and compelling mystery.