**Paperback edition**
 
On a full moon night in Rotterdam, three Dutch thieves break into a major museum and steal four masterworks—two Monets, one Picasso, and a small, controversial painting, Woman with Eyes Closed. British MI-5 agent Kit Hobbs, at a delicate point in his career, is mystified to find himself assigned to the case. Based on a tip that the missing Monets are in the bunker of a Russian mobster—who lives in a beach house in Sagaponack, New York—Kit is propelled into the insular, glamorous art world of the Hamptons.
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A few houses down from the Russian mobster, beautiful Perrin Clayton is newly married to Jack Triplett, hugely successful fabricator and art star. Perrin and Jack have “everything,” and at the same time, everything is not quite enough. Kit’s connection is Jack’s gallerist, and they all meet at a party at the Russian’s beach house. Kit immediately sees that the Russian is besotted with Perrin and devises a plan to seduce her into helping him infiltrate the Russian’s house.
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Back in the Netherlands, the thieves are squabbling and running from the law while caught in a web of misinformation, most of it from inside their own ranks. As Kit and Perrin begin to realize that what they are feeling for each other is more than an infatuation, a hurricane barrels toward the Atlantic seaboard. Amid rising tensions, switchbacks, revelations, and a major weather event, the fate of the Woman with Eyes Closed stays in play, as well as what the future will be for all. 
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Author Bio:
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Rue Matthiessen is based on the East End of Long Island. Nominated for the Pushcart Prize twice, her essays and short fiction have been published in numerous literary journals. Her memoir, Castles & Ruins, about growing up in Sagaponack, NY, with parents of ardent literary ambition, was published by Latah Books in February 2024. Her art-theft novel, Woman with Eyes Closed, set in Sagaponack, London, and the Netherlands, will be released by Latah Books in June of 2025. Recently, Rue was featured in the Bridgehampton Museum's Distinguished Lecturer Series, and Longhouse Talks in East Hampton. See more at ruematthiessen.com.