The Liar

About this book

Oliver Lyon, a famous portrait artist living in London, is invited to Hertfordshire to the estate of Sir David Ashmore where the grand 90-year-old gentleman will sit for his portrait. Lyon arrives to a dinner party a day before the scheduled sitting. At the table his attention is immediately drawn to the face of a man he thinks is a gallant adventurer, Colonel Capadose, so enterprising and handsome and brave he seems. He listens to his spirited yet unpretentious discourse as he talks of his good fortunes and risky gambles. Lyon also notices a woman, Everina Brant, he had known many years ago who is attending to the exploits of this clever fellow with an expression of warmth and affection which makes Lyon jealous: he had proposed to this woman who had been his lover, but she had kindly refused. Lyon discovers that Everina was Mrs. Capadose. He speaks with them after dinner and is pleased to learn that Mrs. Capadose is still the modest, unassuming lady he remembered. The next day he meets Sir David, and as they sit together and Lyon begins the portrait, he learns from the older man that Colonel Capadose is a "thumping liar." He is no scoundrel and means no harm; he doesn't steal nor cheat: he just can't seem to offer a straightforward response. From this moment on, Lyon hatches many plots to investigate the state of the Capadose marriage, the reason for the lies, the effect of this deceitful man on his wife, the possibilities of different circumstances for Mrs. Capadose, what might have happened had the past gone differently. Lyon's disposition now makes him a manipulator of …

Themes & subjects

About the author

Henry James

15 April 1843 – 28 February 1916

Henry James, was an American writer, regarded as one of the key figures of 19th-century literary realism. He was the son of Henry James, Sr., a clergyman, and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James. ([Source][1].) [1]:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_James