Title: The Musician's Daughter
Author: Susan Dunlap
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publishing Date: 2009
Length: 317 Pages
Summary: (From book) Amid the glamor of Prince Nicholas Esterhazy's court in eighteenth century Vienna, murder is afoot. Or so fifteen-year old Theresa is convinced when her musician father is found dead on Christmas Eve, his valuable violin missing and the only clue to his death is a mysterious gold pendant found around his neck.
Her father's mentor, the acclaimed composer Franz Joseph Haydn, takes pity on Theresa and makes her his copyist, giving her an income so that her family will not go hungry.
Determined to solve the mystery of her father's death, Theresa is stunned to learn about the secret life he led-along with a trail of blackmail and extortion that extends from the splendor of the imperial halls to the shadowy tents of a Gypsy camp. Yet it's the stirrings of love for a man she only thought she knew that might prove the most astonishing discovery of all.
My Thoughts: Well, for starters, I bought this hard cover book for four dollars at the used book store. I actually put this one aside to devour the last book I just reviewed. It's not that this book isn't good, it was just....hard to get into. Maybe it was the fact that everyone's names are so hard to pronounce and half the time they aren't calling Theresa her real name, but some term of endearment (I think) so it's very confusing. I wouldn't really label this a mystery or historical fiction. I didn't understand any of it.
And this romance they hint at isn't much of a romance at all-it's more like she has this hopeless crush on a guy much older on her. I didn't feel much of it returned on his part.
I like the Gypsies though. I've written a bit of a gypsy before and have always found them fascinating, beautiful people.
Things To Be Cautious Of: Ugh...The Lord's name is taken in vain once, she talks about becoming a woman, she uses her low cut dress to advantage (not willingly), her uncle is a pervert, this old guy thought she was a 'lady of the night' *gag* and light mentioning of prostitution. Someone is shot, not fatally, and a person is to be executed; mentioning of torture and torture methods...
What I learned: I'd much rather be the rockin' cool gypsy girl.
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