Wikipedia:Today's featured article/January 29, 2022
A Beautiful Crime is a 2020 crime fiction novel by the American writer and editor Christopher Bollen (pictured). It was first published in the United States by Harper on January 28, 2020. The story, which is set in Venice, centers on boyfriends Nick and Clay, who sell an inherited collection of forged silver antiques to a wealthy acquaintance from Clay's past. Their deception quickly leads to more serious crimes, as Clay attempts to sell an expensive property that he does not fully own and Nick murders a silver appraiser who threatened to expose their sale of forgeries. The novel explores the overtourism and depopulation of Venice, and the intersection of greed, moral ambiguity, and social inequality. Critics praised Bollen's depictions of Venice and the relationships between the characters but disagreed on the effectiveness of the narrative's pace. A Beautiful Crime has drawn comparisons to novels by Patricia Highsmith, particularly The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955). (Full article...)