For me, this was a book about hypocrisy and change. How people often project an image of themselves to the world that is very different to their inner selves, and how, despite their expectations, people can change and grow, often in ways they had never anticipated. It isn’t the best “historical” novel I’ve ever read (there were a few glaring anachronisms), but it was beautifully written and I thoroughly enjoyed the story. 

I loved the fact that this book was inspired by an object displayed in the Rijksmuseum and feel like the choice of setting was helpful in exploring some of the themes,  including race, gender and sexuality.