4.5 stars

Jessie Burton knows how to write beautiful books with mysterious plots and some wonderful twists and turns! I'd say I loved this one as much as the Miniaturist even though they are very different... And I really loved the Miniaturist.
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The Muse is told through two storylines with narrators Olivia Schloss and Odelle Bastien in 1936 rural Spain and 1967 London respectively. It's a wonderful art-centred mystery! I thought I had the mystery all sussed out but Burton kept me in the dark after all till the end.
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Even if you do figure out all of the secrets, the writing is beautiful enough to make the journey worthwhile! It's a bit flowery, but if you love words then you'll love this. Plus its two main characters are an artist and a writer, what's not to love?
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Burton explores themes of sexism in the art world, immigration, love, family, war, and more, all entwined in a gorgeous tapestry! I was a bit worried as she writes from the POV of an immigrant from Trinidad, but was pleased to see a plentiful bibliography meaning she did research it at least. Secrets, intrigue, drama, even a few thrills if you're a bit of a wimp like me!
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The only tiny pet peeve I had was that dialects and accents were written out phonetically in direct speech, something I never really like in books for some reason. But I can forgive for the wonderfully rich story!