The Masterpiece by Fiona Davis

In 1928, illustrator Clara Darden is teaching at the Grand Central School of Art, but is not taken as seriously as her male colleagues. With only five students, she is worried she might be fired. Still, Clara is confident about her work and dreams of the day she sees commercial success. Forward to 1974, Virginia Clay finds herself working at the information booth at Grand Central Terminal because she needs a job after an acrimonious divorce. One day, she happens upon the long-shuttered school and is intrigued. Her interest is further piqued when she uncovers a painting behind a cabinet. On an impulse she takes it home, figuring no one will miss it and she can hang it in her apartment--but, it turns out, someone does. In addition, with the razing of Grand Central a distinct possibility, Virginia begins to see the terminal in a whole new light. In The Masterpiece, Fiona Davis tells the engaging story of two women against the backdrop of two different decades amid the setting of Grand Central. While the book starts slowly, it picks up as you get to know the characters more, especially Virginia. A great read-alike for the novels of B.A. Shapiro and Beatriz Williams.