** spoiler alert ** 
 I loved this book! Tracy Chevalier is an amazing writer and I have loved all of her novels thus far. I love the character Griet and the relationship that she has with Vermeer. It's not so much sexual as it is familial, although a part of me was rooting for Vermeer to leave his overbearing wife. In the end, she ends up with Pieter, and I'm glad she does, but her relationship with him will never be the same, for me, as it was with Vermeer. They had something that could not be described in words... an understanding of each other that was deep and powerful, which I think was a part of why this book was so compelling and enjoyable to read.