The Swan Thieves

The Swan Thieves (2010), a historical novel by American writer Elizabeth Kostova, follows a psychiatrist who must understand why his patient, a renowned artist, destroyed a painting in the National Gallery of Art; together they expose a tragedy at the center of French Impressionist art. Critics praise the book for its exploration of the power of art, and how art can give society hope when we need it most. Kostova studied fine art at the University of Michigan, and she brings her expertise to her writing. The Swan Thieves is her second novel.

The book begins in Washington, D.C. in 1999. Dr. Andrew Marlowe, a successful psychiatrist, lives a quiet and solitary life. He doesn’t need other people to make him happy. He is passionate about his job, and his hobbies occupy his free time. Marlowe loves to paint; when he’s not working with patients, he is painting or visiting art galleries.

One day, Marlowe receives a call from a fellow psychiatrist about a new patient, Robert Oliver who recently attacked an Impressionist painting at the National Gallery of Art and won’t tell anyone why. He is coming to stay at Marlowe’s psychiatric facility, Goldengrove, until doctors can figure out what is wrong with him. Given Marlowe’s interest in painting, it is unsurprising that Marlowe wants to take over Robert’s care.



At first, Robert refuses to speak with Marlowe. All he says is that he is a painter and that, if Marlowe knew anything about his life, he would understand why he slashed the painting. Marlowe asks Robert why he chose the specific painting “Leda and the Swan” by Gilbert Thomas. Robert says that he did it for a woman, but he won’t reveal her name.

Marlowe doesn’t know how to get through to Robert. He has never had a patient like him before. After going over Robert’s file, Marlowe decides to play to Robert’s strengths. He gives him painting supplies and tells him to draw his feelings. However, all Robert draws every day is a picture of the same beautiful woman. Marlowe isn’t any closer to understanding Robert or the motive behind the vandalism.

One day, Marlowe finds a bundle of old letters in Robert’s belongings. The letters date from the late 19th century and Robert is very protective of them. Marlowe reads some of the letters and discovers the author is a woman called Beatrice. It is possible that Beatrice is the woman from Robert’s paintings, but this still doesn’t explain why Robert destroyed an Impressionist canvas. As the days drag on with no progress, Marlowe decides to change his approach.



Marlowe tracks down Robert’s ex-wife, Kate. She can’t explain Robert’s behavior, but she isn’t surprised by it, either. Robert neglected her and so she doesn’t care what happens to him at Goldengrove. She does, however, let Marlowe look through Robert’s belongings. Here, he finds more information about Beatrice and another woman, Mary. Mary doesn’t know what happened to Robert, either. All she knows is that he is a talented painter, but he cared more about art than having a family.

Marlowe eventually finds out more about Beatrice. Her full name is Beatrice de Clerval Vignot and she is writing to Oliver Vignot, her great-uncle. They are both artists, although Beatrice prefers the Impressionist style to Oliver’s traditional painting techniques. They are very close and there’s an obvious physical attraction between them. Marlowe realizes that understanding Beatrice and Oliver’s story is critical to understanding Robert.

Meanwhile, Mary tells Marlowe more about her complicated relationship with Robert. She always felt guilty for taking Robert away from Kate, especially since they have children together. She is glad that Kate has a new life now and that they’ve both moved on from Robert and his art obsession. She feels that women are nothing more than works of art to Robert and that he will never make a good husband for anyone. Marlowe finds the story fascinating, but it doesn’t bring him any closer to understanding Robert’s motives.



Finally, there is a breakthrough in Marlowe’s investigations. He finds out that Gilbert didn’t paint “Leda and the Swan”; Beatrice did. He took credit for the painting because no one respected female artists at the time. Beatrice didn’t know what to do and so she let Gilbert take credit for the artwork.

In the meantime, Beatrice had an affair with Oliver. They had a baby girl together, but as an unmarried woman, she couldn’t keep her. She gave the baby away and the decision haunted her forever. Marlowe can’t imagine how difficult life was for female artists at the time and he finds himself obsessing over Beatrice the way Robert does.

Robert finds Gilbert’s behavior highly offensive. He stood up for Beatrice the only way he knew how, by destroying the painting. Marlowe realizes that Robert has an unhealthy obsession with Beatrice, seeing himself as her protector. He struggles to separate fantasy from reality. Marlowe prescribes medication to Robert and lets him leave the facility.