Scan barcode
ranforingus's review against another edition
3.0
This was a weird story.
It felt like the author really wanted us to believe that Julia was actually going insane, but then came the backstory of the violin. Overall, I just couldn't concentrate on the story after a while, despite the short length...
I might've been tired, or maybe the writing style just doesn't appeal to me that much...
But that twist ending though! That was the thing that saved the book for me. I must've read the last page at least six times because of it.
Overall the story was pretty good, but I just couldn't get into it until the very end. I'll try another book of this author before giving up on it.
Over and Out!
It felt like the author really wanted us to believe that Julia was actually going insane, but then came the backstory of the violin. Overall, I just couldn't concentrate on the story after a while, despite the short length...
I might've been tired, or maybe the writing style just doesn't appeal to me that much...
But that twist ending though! That was the thing that saved the book for me. I must've read the last page at least six times because of it.
Overall the story was pretty good, but I just couldn't get into it until the very end. I'll try another book of this author before giving up on it.
Over and Out!
theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
I just finished Tess Gerritsen’s latest novel Playing with Fire. It is told from two different perspectives. Julia Ansdell is in Rome, Italy. She was playing a festival nearby (she is a violinist). She is picking up souvenirs for her husband, Rob and her daughter, Lily (a cute, little blonde) before heading home. Julia notices an antique store with old music and books. Julia collects old and unusual music. She picks up a book with gypsy music and a single sheet of music falls out. It is handwritten with the title Incendio by L. Todesco (means fire). The first time Julia plays the music at home while enjoying a day with her daughter, Lily. The next thing she knows is her cat is dead and Lily is holding the garden tool that killed the cat. A few days later Julia is playing the music again (and Lily is home) and she is stabbed in the leg with a piece of broken glass. Lily is saying “hurt Mommy” according to Julia. Multiple tests on run on Lily and the only thing they discover is that the music seems to be familiar to Lily (according to a test they performed). Julia withdraws from her daughter. The ever helpful husband believes the problem must lie with his wife. He wants her to go to a specialist (a psychiatrist that helps fathers get custody of their children). Julia is determined to find out more about the music.
Lorenzo Todesco is an Italian-Jew in Venice, Italy in 1938. A friend of his grandfather’s wants him to perform a duet with his granddaughter, Laura (a lovely, bubbly, strong blonde). While rehearsing the two fall in love. But then they are unable to perform because Lorenzo is Jewish. Laura tries to save Lorenzo and his family, but they refuse to leave or realize how terrible it is going to get for Jews in Italy. Lorenzo ends up in an Italian concentration camp where he is picked to be a musician. Lorenzo plays music with other musicians to cover up the sounds of the poor souls being murdered in the camps. Lorenzo writes a special piece of music that he titled Incendio.
Playing with Fire is an interesting story. I enjoyed reading this novel. I feel that the World War II theme has been overplayed this year, but I did like Tess Gerritsen’s book. It is different from the other novels I have read. It is overall a very well written book. The one thing I did not like was the abrupt ending. The book was going along at a good pace and then someone hit the brakes (whiplash). I enjoyed how the two perspectives tied together, but I was disappointed because it did not contain a great paranormal ending (the book felt like a paranormal book, but it really is not). I give Playing with Fire 4 out of 5 stars (which means I liked it).
I received a complimentary copy of Playing with Fire from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
For additional details, check out my blog: http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogspot.com/2015/10/playing-with-fire.html
Lorenzo Todesco is an Italian-Jew in Venice, Italy in 1938. A friend of his grandfather’s wants him to perform a duet with his granddaughter, Laura (a lovely, bubbly, strong blonde). While rehearsing the two fall in love. But then they are unable to perform because Lorenzo is Jewish. Laura tries to save Lorenzo and his family, but they refuse to leave or realize how terrible it is going to get for Jews in Italy. Lorenzo ends up in an Italian concentration camp where he is picked to be a musician. Lorenzo plays music with other musicians to cover up the sounds of the poor souls being murdered in the camps. Lorenzo writes a special piece of music that he titled Incendio.
Playing with Fire is an interesting story. I enjoyed reading this novel. I feel that the World War II theme has been overplayed this year, but I did like Tess Gerritsen’s book. It is different from the other novels I have read. It is overall a very well written book. The one thing I did not like was the abrupt ending. The book was going along at a good pace and then someone hit the brakes (whiplash). I enjoyed how the two perspectives tied together, but I was disappointed because it did not contain a great paranormal ending (the book felt like a paranormal book, but it really is not). I give Playing with Fire 4 out of 5 stars (which means I liked it).
I received a complimentary copy of Playing with Fire from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
For additional details, check out my blog: http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogspot.com/2015/10/playing-with-fire.html
shorthannah's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime and Antisemitism
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Forced institutionalization, Cancer, and Gaslighting
mellomorissa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lurker_stalker's review against another edition
5.0
Ok, I really nearly loved this book. Maybe my expectations were too low and that made it better for me. There were twists and turns and a tragic love story and WWII and a possibly murderous little kid. I couldn't stop reading and I very much enjoyed the resolution.
It's not out until the end of October but if you like mysteries and thrillers, you may want to put it on your list.
I'd give it 4.5 if I could.
It's not out until the end of October but if you like mysteries and thrillers, you may want to put it on your list.
I'd give it 4.5 if I could.
paulabrandon's review against another edition
4.0
I was hesitant to read this standalone book by Tess Gerritsen, since The Shape Of Night was so terrible. However, since the new Rizzoli & Isles is coming out later this week, I decided to give this one a try. So long as it wasn't a Mummy porn ghost story, I figured it couldn't be that bad, right?
And indeed, this one surpassed my expectations. It's biggest drawback is the fact that it feels like two separate stories that don't connect together as well as they should. In the present day, Julia Ansdell is a violinist who discovers a musical piece called Incendio in an antique store in Italy, and brings it home. When she plays it, however, it ends with her daughter seemingly committing violent acts, first killing the pet cat, and then stabbing Julia in the leg with a shard of broken glass.
Julia is convinced there's something sinister going on behind the piece of music, and wonders who wrote it. Which is how we're introduced to Lorenzo Todesco, a young Jewish man living in Italy in the late 1930s, early 1940s, when Mussolini's fascist regime was coming into full effect. Italian Jews were progressively having their rights stripped away from them, leading to them being rounded up and transported to death camps. Lorenzo escapes this fate because of his prodigious violin skills. Julia's investigation into the music's origins puts her life in danger.
The present day narrative to frame the story wasn't thought out well enough. The suspense genre's over-reliance on unreliable narrators means we have the tiresome trope of Julia perhaps being "crazy" because her mother was once sent to an institution. Note: the plot raises the possibility that all is not as it seems with Julia's mother being placed in an instution and subsequently dying, but this is abandoned and never mentioned again.
The mystery of why Julia's daughter is apparently behaving violently was too silly and didn't match the tone of the rest of the book. There should have been a more realistic, believable reason for Julia to want to learn more about Incendio's origins. Because the whole mystery of Julia and her daughter gets resolved in a silly, convenient manner that still leaves plenty of unanswered questions.
However, there is no doubt that this is well written and draws you into the story. I'm not into history at all, but Lorenzo's chapters dealing with the horrors of the persecution of Jews in WW2 were horrifying, suspenseful and tragic. I actually wound up more involved in this story than the present day one. Nonetheless, although the present day narrative was predictable and too reliant on today's thriller tropes, it wasn't boring.
I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. If only the present day framing story was more naturally and believably linked to the historical story.
And indeed, this one surpassed my expectations. It's biggest drawback is the fact that it feels like two separate stories that don't connect together as well as they should. In the present day, Julia Ansdell is a violinist who discovers a musical piece called Incendio in an antique store in Italy, and brings it home. When she plays it, however, it ends with her daughter seemingly committing violent acts, first killing the pet cat, and then stabbing Julia in the leg with a shard of broken glass.
Julia is convinced there's something sinister going on behind the piece of music, and wonders who wrote it. Which is how we're introduced to Lorenzo Todesco, a young Jewish man living in Italy in the late 1930s, early 1940s, when Mussolini's fascist regime was coming into full effect. Italian Jews were progressively having their rights stripped away from them, leading to them being rounded up and transported to death camps. Lorenzo escapes this fate because of his prodigious violin skills. Julia's investigation into the music's origins puts her life in danger.
The present day narrative to frame the story wasn't thought out well enough. The suspense genre's over-reliance on unreliable narrators means we have the tiresome trope of Julia perhaps being "crazy" because her mother was once sent to an institution. Note: the plot raises the possibility that all is not as it seems with Julia's mother being placed in an instution and subsequently dying, but this is abandoned and never mentioned again.
The mystery of why Julia's daughter is apparently behaving violently was too silly and didn't match the tone of the rest of the book. There should have been a more realistic, believable reason for Julia to want to learn more about Incendio's origins. Because the whole mystery of Julia and her daughter gets resolved in a silly, convenient manner that still leaves plenty of unanswered questions.
Spoiler
Why does Lily have some sort of ingrained memory of the music? This is never explained. I think the book is hinting that Laura was Lily in a past life, but that's just silly.However, there is no doubt that this is well written and draws you into the story. I'm not into history at all, but Lorenzo's chapters dealing with the horrors of the persecution of Jews in WW2 were horrifying, suspenseful and tragic. I actually wound up more involved in this story than the present day one. Nonetheless, although the present day narrative was predictable and too reliant on today's thriller tropes, it wasn't boring.
I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. If only the present day framing story was more naturally and believably linked to the historical story.
joemac4455's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
timna_wyckoff's review against another edition
3.0
Read at the airport. Perfect :) Took about as long as watching a movie, and felt the same. Good ending!
rose_ann_leest's review against another edition
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
songwind's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of those books I picked up kind of at random because it was $3 on Audible's daily deal. I'm very glad I did.
The book interweaves two narratives. First is that of Julia, a violinist who happens upon a handwritten copy of a waltz called "Incendio" by L. Todesco while in Rome. After she returns home and begins to work on learning the piece (never recorded as far as she can tell), bizarre things start to happen with her three year old daughter.
The other is the story of Lorenzo Todesco, an Italian Jew living in Venice before the beginning of WWII. Also a violinist. The story of his family, and that of his cellist partner Laura, forms the backdrop of "Incendio."
The book manages to weave aspects of supernatural horror, historical romance, mystery and thriller together in a very satisfying package.
The book interweaves two narratives. First is that of Julia, a violinist who happens upon a handwritten copy of a waltz called "Incendio" by L. Todesco while in Rome. After she returns home and begins to work on learning the piece (never recorded as far as she can tell), bizarre things start to happen with her three year old daughter.
The other is the story of Lorenzo Todesco, an Italian Jew living in Venice before the beginning of WWII. Also a violinist. The story of his family, and that of his cellist partner Laura, forms the backdrop of "Incendio."
The book manages to weave aspects of supernatural horror, historical romance, mystery and thriller together in a very satisfying package.