A respectable septuagenarian steals a valuable painting and later tries to return it, with a little help from her friends.
Bored National Trust volunteer, Maureen, steals an obscure still life as a giant up-yours to all those who’ve discounted her. The novice fine art thief is rumbled by some fellow room guides, but snitches get stitches, camaraderie wins out and instead of grassing her up, they decide to help.
Often written off as an insipid old fart, Maureen has a darker side, challenging ingrained ideas of how senior citizens should behave. Her new set of friends make her feel alive again. No longer quite so invisible, can this unlikely pensioner gang return the now infamous painting without being caught by the Feds?
I wrote this after hearing a radio interview in which an art detective revealed how a stolen Titian was dumped at a bus stop outside Richmond station. In a red, white and blue plastic bag! I just couldn’t shake such a compelling image. I volunteered at Ham House for many years, and my passion for this Jacobean gem, together with the volunteers’ indomitable spirit, gave birth to my unlikely anti-hero.
With over five million members, the National Trust is a huge British institution. Yet, next to nothing has been written about it in terms of contemporary fiction. Until now.
While No Oil Painting explores themes of insignificance and loneliness in older age, particularly for women, it is mainly intended to entertain and offer a small haven in dark, uncertain times.
No Oil Painting is a fun and heartfelt book that is very entertaining. I loved the floor plans at the start of the book; it felt like I was actually visiting Ham House and it inspired me to look it up online to make it a more interactive reading experience.
I really liked Maureen and it's heartbreaking how invisible she is to others. It's good to have an older protagonist for a change and I think Genevieve Marenghi has highlighted an important issue of feeling lonely and worthless as you get older; just because your hair goes grey, it doesn't mean you should fade out of existence. I really empathised with Maureen, especially when she hears people talking about her as that is never a pleasant experience.
Maureen has a plan to alleviate her boredom as a National Trust volunteer; she will steal her favourite artwork while Ham House is being used as a film set. When the theft gets discovered quicker than she expected, Maureen finds out that she isn't as invisible as she thought.
Atmospheric, entertaining and authentic, No Oil Painting is a really fun read that reminded me a little of a Carry-On caper mixed with the Scooby Gang but with real issues in a real setting. Even the painting that Maureen steals is really hanging on the wall in Ham House. I enjoyed this one and think it's well worth a read.
I received a gifted paperback for the Rachel's Random Resources blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
My rating:
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About the author:
With a BA in English and Philosophy, Genevieve worked for eleven years at the Weekend FT, where she helped create and launch How To Spend It magazine.
She volunteered for years as a National Trust guide at Ham House. This became the setting for her debut art heist novel, No Oil Painting, which was listed for the inaugural Women’s Prize Trust and Curtis Brown Discoveries, and was published by Burton Mayers Books on 10th October 2025.
Her writing uses dark humour to probe the difference between our perception of people and their true selves. The gulf between what is said and what is meant. She considers people watching an essential skill for any writer; overheard snippets of conversation or a bonkers exchange at a bus stop are like gold nuggets. She’s been known to follow people to catch the end of a juicy conversation or argument. Women aged over fifty are essentially invisible anyhow and she views this as a kind of superpower.
Unlike her protagonist Maureen, she hasn’t used this to commit art theft. Yet.
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Giveaway
Giveaway to Win National Trust chocolate, and a Ham House towel and fridge magnet (Open to UK Only)
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