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zutsie's review against another edition
4.0
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was so stoked to get approval for this novel, I always enjoy reading something from Gerritsen. What I did not expect was how well this whole book was going to come together. It started innocuously enough, trundling along, nothing special or amazing. Then it got interesting when Julia plays this handwritten piece of music and her three year old daughter kills the family cat. I mean whoa, things escalated quickly. It has this horror/supernatural vibe going for it, and it works for the story. Out of nowhere, the story flips to a character named Lorenzo, and his part of the story is set in Venice in the 1940s. The story takes on a whole new feel altogether, and tells us about a young Italian Jew who is a phenomenal violinist, who is tasked to work with a young woman named Laura to compete in a musical competition. The tone is totally different in Lorenzo's sections, and the book has another feel altogether when reading Julia's sections. I was far more engrossed when reading about Lorenzo, his family, his Jewish roots, the Nazis occupying so many of the countries around them and moving in on the Jews, the steadfast Italian belief that they were safe, and would be fine. Having Italy as the backdrop for the Holocaust is something different, a lot of novels concentrate on other areas of that time in history. It gives a different outlook altogether. Reading about Lorenzo and Laura was wonderful - it was not painful, in your face and soppy, but there was such a beautiful relationship that blossomed between them, birthed by music. Being wrenched back into Julia's present problems of her daughter going scary and insane and violent, it was always a heavy transition to make, but you slip back into it quickly enough. I was enthralled pretty much from the beginning - while Julia and her situation interested me, it was Lorenzo and Venice in the 1940s that enchanted me. The books flows nicely and puts out a beautiful story, interspersed with thrills when you see how the past and the present become woven together. The two differing times really have two totally different feelings, but for me the past side was far more influential, and most of this review refers to that section. The book is chilling, strange, intoxicating, thrilling, romantic. Granted, neither story really needs the other, and Lorenzo's was definitely the more captivating story (I could have read just about him and his affairs), but the two stories ultimately do come together. The ending was not something I saw coming, and it worked so well. I enjoyed this book far more than I was expecting, and I cannot recommend it enough. It is Gerritsen's first standalone novel in ages, and definitely her best work in quite some time.
I was so stoked to get approval for this novel, I always enjoy reading something from Gerritsen. What I did not expect was how well this whole book was going to come together. It started innocuously enough, trundling along, nothing special or amazing. Then it got interesting when Julia plays this handwritten piece of music and her three year old daughter kills the family cat. I mean whoa, things escalated quickly. It has this horror/supernatural vibe going for it, and it works for the story. Out of nowhere, the story flips to a character named Lorenzo, and his part of the story is set in Venice in the 1940s. The story takes on a whole new feel altogether, and tells us about a young Italian Jew who is a phenomenal violinist, who is tasked to work with a young woman named Laura to compete in a musical competition. The tone is totally different in Lorenzo's sections, and the book has another feel altogether when reading Julia's sections. I was far more engrossed when reading about Lorenzo, his family, his Jewish roots, the Nazis occupying so many of the countries around them and moving in on the Jews, the steadfast Italian belief that they were safe, and would be fine. Having Italy as the backdrop for the Holocaust is something different, a lot of novels concentrate on other areas of that time in history. It gives a different outlook altogether. Reading about Lorenzo and Laura was wonderful - it was not painful, in your face and soppy, but there was such a beautiful relationship that blossomed between them, birthed by music. Being wrenched back into Julia's present problems of her daughter going scary and insane and violent, it was always a heavy transition to make, but you slip back into it quickly enough. I was enthralled pretty much from the beginning - while Julia and her situation interested me, it was Lorenzo and Venice in the 1940s that enchanted me. The books flows nicely and puts out a beautiful story, interspersed with thrills when you see how the past and the present become woven together. The two differing times really have two totally different feelings, but for me the past side was far more influential, and most of this review refers to that section. The book is chilling, strange, intoxicating, thrilling, romantic. Granted, neither story really needs the other, and Lorenzo's was definitely the more captivating story (I could have read just about him and his affairs), but the two stories ultimately do come together. The ending was not something I saw coming, and it worked so well. I enjoyed this book far more than I was expecting, and I cannot recommend it enough. It is Gerritsen's first standalone novel in ages, and definitely her best work in quite some time.
burningupasun's review against another edition
3.0
Book trigger warnings: Gaslighting, attempts to convince the main character she is mentally unstable, violent Holocaust scenes, related antisemitism.
This is really more like 2 1/2 stars but I didn't want to knock it down too much when the truth is it's not at all a BAD book, it just happens to have content that I, personally, am very uncomfortable with.
I found this book on the "seven day quick reads" shelf at my library, and it was certainly a fast-paced read. (Forget seven days, I read it in just a couple hours!). The book was incredibly suspenseful and in general, well written. It alternates between two perspectives; that of Julia, a wife and mother in "modern" times, and Lorenzo, an Italian Jew during the Holocaust era. That's important to mention because the summary on the inside cover of the book makes no mention of that, so the flashbacks (and their content, which is very intense, especially for me to read as a Jewish person) came with no warning.
I would overall say I liked this book, but there were some things that bothered me. For one, there was the trope where something mysterious begins to happen, and the logical, rational husband instantly doubts his more intuitive, emotional wife. It's a trope I'm not really a fan of, tbh. In this book it brought on some uncomfortable feelings for me, as her husband turns against her (sort of), and his attempts to convince her to get help come dangerously close to gaslighting. Reading it made me feel incredibly anxious. But what made it all worse in the end, was:
But regardless of that, it WAS pretty well-written, the story was suspenseful and riveting, and despite the really violent aspects of Lorenzo's sections, his love story with Laura really wrenched at my heart.
This is really more like 2 1/2 stars but I didn't want to knock it down too much when the truth is it's not at all a BAD book, it just happens to have content that I, personally, am very uncomfortable with.
I found this book on the "seven day quick reads" shelf at my library, and it was certainly a fast-paced read. (Forget seven days, I read it in just a couple hours!). The book was incredibly suspenseful and in general, well written. It alternates between two perspectives; that of Julia, a wife and mother in "modern" times, and Lorenzo, an Italian Jew during the Holocaust era. That's important to mention because the summary on the inside cover of the book makes no mention of that, so the flashbacks (and their content, which is very intense, especially for me to read as a Jewish person) came with no warning.
I would overall say I liked this book, but there were some things that bothered me. For one, there was the trope where something mysterious begins to happen, and the logical, rational husband instantly doubts his more intuitive, emotional wife. It's a trope I'm not really a fan of, tbh. In this book it brought on some uncomfortable feelings for me, as her husband turns against her (sort of), and his attempts to convince her to get help come dangerously close to gaslighting. Reading it made me feel incredibly anxious. But what made it all worse in the end, was:
Spoiler
The husband is right! Well, in a way. Out of nowhere at the end of the book (literally like bam, at the very end, with no real hints about it), it turns out that Laura has a brain tumor and she really has been hallucinating everything so basically her husband was (mostly) right all along. The husband was just pretty awful to her for most of the book, so to have his lack of trust and support proved "right" in the end really made me hate the ending.But regardless of that, it WAS pretty well-written, the story was suspenseful and riveting, and despite the really violent aspects of Lorenzo's sections, his love story with Laura really wrenched at my heart.
shailydc's review against another edition
4.0
*NetGalley ARC*
I didn't want to stop reading Playing with Fire, a theme that is consistent for me and all the Rizzoli & Isles Tess Gerritsen books I've read. Although this was not a R&I book, it was just as interesting. My only complaint is that the ending felt a little too easy and wrapped up too quickly. I think there was more story left to explore.
I didn't want to stop reading Playing with Fire, a theme that is consistent for me and all the Rizzoli & Isles Tess Gerritsen books I've read. Although this was not a R&I book, it was just as interesting. My only complaint is that the ending felt a little too easy and wrapped up too quickly. I think there was more story left to explore.
wyvernfriend's review against another edition
3.0
hints at paranormal Intellectually I knew that there had been Jewish people in Italy during the Second World War and that the Nazi's had taken over, for all intents and purposes, but it never really occurred to me that Italian Jews were sent to death camps, of course they were, I had just never truly realised it.
I'm not normally a huge fan of audiobooks but this was perfect as an audiobook. There was music intertwined in the story, as there was in the story being told, when there's musicians and mystery pieces of music, audio is a useful medium.
The story starts with a violinist, Julia Ansdell, discovering a piece of music in a book she finds in a small Roman antiquities shop. As she starts to play the piece she realises that it has layers. However strange things seem to be happening around her daughter after she starts to play. She's afraid that the piece is affecting her daughter. Haunted by her mother's insanity she has to try to keep herself together to find the truth behind the piece. At the same time there's a story of a lutier family and a gifted magician and the tragedy of being Jewish in Italy during World War II.
There are some suggestions of paranormal during the story but most of it is simply explained in ways that somewhat left me feeling cheated.
I'm not normally a huge fan of audiobooks but this was perfect as an audiobook. There was music intertwined in the story, as there was in the story being told, when there's musicians and mystery pieces of music, audio is a useful medium.
The story starts with a violinist, Julia Ansdell, discovering a piece of music in a book she finds in a small Roman antiquities shop. As she starts to play the piece she realises that it has layers. However strange things seem to be happening around her daughter after she starts to play. She's afraid that the piece is affecting her daughter. Haunted by her mother's insanity she has to try to keep herself together to find the truth behind the piece. At the same time there's a story of a lutier family and a gifted magician and the tragedy of being Jewish in Italy during World War II.
There are some suggestions of paranormal during the story but most of it is simply explained in ways that somewhat left me feeling cheated.
whovian223's review against another edition
4.0
This was going to be a 3.5 star review, because the modern day main character I found really annoying.
However, the finale of the book totally changed that, and it made me cry, which is the sign of a great writer. I should always trust Gerritsen; she hasn't steered me wrong yet.
I devoured this book in two days, a rarity for me these days. It was that hard to put down.
Warning: If you start to lose faith that there's no way the book can end appropriately in as few pages as are left, keep that trust in mind.
The ending is phenomenal.
However, the finale of the book totally changed that, and it made me cry, which is the sign of a great writer. I should always trust Gerritsen; she hasn't steered me wrong yet.
I devoured this book in two days, a rarity for me these days. It was that hard to put down.
Warning: If you start to lose faith that there's no way the book can end appropriately in as few pages as are left, keep that trust in mind.
The ending is phenomenal.
dovesfalling's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
4.5 stars
Honestly? You had me at Tess Gerritsen.
I love Gerritsen's writing. Her talent for crafting strong, relatable, complex female characters is outstanding for the genre, and she writes a lovely, layered mystery too.
Playing with Fire is a departure for Gerritsen, and I could really feel that she took so much pleasure in writing the tale. In the book, we meet Julia Ansdell, a professional violinist, who stumbles upon a dusty piece of music in a lonely shop in Rome. Back home, Ansdell plays the piece - the Incendio waltz, and it is shatteringly beautiful. It also appears to trigger her three-year-old daughter Lily into brutal violence.
Frightened for her life and disassembled by the escalating madness encroaching on her life, Julia travels to Venice, Italy, in an attempt to discover the truth about the waltz and its origins.
The novel flips back and forth between Julia's story and that of Lorenzo Todesco, a young man growing up in the horrors of the Second World War. At the beginning, I thought these transitions would annoy me, but they were extremely well done, and the differences in tone / perspective / voice were so vivid and well captured. Bravo to Gerritsen for pulling that off so well.
Another note that I feel I should mention is how well Gerritsen portrays Julia. In the beginning, I was annoyed on her behalf. Like, her daughter and no one seems to bat an eyelid? But as the novel progressed, I realized that Julia herself was Really wonderfully done.
In the crescendo of the novel, all is revealed, and I just couldn't put it down. It's at times so sad that it feels heartbreaking, but there is a sweet element of hope that rivers through the piece - and that is heartbreaking too.
Loved it. Would recommend to anyone who loves a good thriller (the bits with Lily and Julia are genuinely horrifying) and anyone who enjoys their mystery with a side of history. You'll be enthralled.
4.5 stars
Honestly? You had me at Tess Gerritsen.
I love Gerritsen's writing. Her talent for crafting strong, relatable, complex female characters is outstanding for the genre, and she writes a lovely, layered mystery too.
Playing with Fire is a departure for Gerritsen, and I could really feel that she took so much pleasure in writing the tale. In the book, we meet Julia Ansdell, a professional violinist, who stumbles upon a dusty piece of music in a lonely shop in Rome. Back home, Ansdell plays the piece - the Incendio waltz, and it is shatteringly beautiful. It also appears to trigger her three-year-old daughter Lily into brutal violence.
Frightened for her life and disassembled by the escalating madness encroaching on her life, Julia travels to Venice, Italy, in an attempt to discover the truth about the waltz and its origins.
The novel flips back and forth between Julia's story and that of Lorenzo Todesco, a young man growing up in the horrors of the Second World War. At the beginning, I thought these transitions would annoy me, but they were extremely well done, and the differences in tone / perspective / voice were so vivid and well captured. Bravo to Gerritsen for pulling that off so well.
Another note that I feel I should mention is how well Gerritsen portrays Julia. In the beginning, I was annoyed on her behalf. Like, her daughter
Spoiler
kills their cat and stabs her in the legSpoiler
unreliable, due to her illness.In the crescendo of the novel, all is revealed, and I just couldn't put it down. It's at times so sad that it feels heartbreaking, but there is a sweet element of hope that rivers through the piece - and that is heartbreaking too.
Loved it. Would recommend to anyone who loves a good thriller (the bits with Lily and Julia are genuinely horrifying) and anyone who enjoys their mystery with a side of history. You'll be enthralled.
sonyaf77's review against another edition
5.0
I received a free copy of this book through a give away.
I loved the book! It was a quick read, wished it was longer. I will seek out my novels by this author.
I loved the book! It was a quick read, wished it was longer. I will seek out my novels by this author.
semjl's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting story about music and the holocaust- easy to digest.
liesbouckaert's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
infi85's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
informative
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0