Broken Strings

by Maria Farrer

Love, mystery, secrets and burning ambition - this book has it all...Jess's only dream is to be a violinist, but when stage fright causes her to fail an audition for a place at music school, she cannot afford to keep playing. She is devastated, until the grandmother she didn't know existed shows up at her family's doorstep and promises six months of tuition in exchange for Jess moving to live with her in London and abiding by all her rules. Jess's life there changes more than she'd ever imagined. Not only is her musical training nearly impossible to keep up with, but she also finds herself caught between the boy who is her only lifeline in London, and the boy she thought had abandoned her for ever. And at the climax of her mysterious stay in London, Jess uncovers her grandmother's devastating secret, which tore her family apart and links directly to Jess's own musical dream.

• ISBN13: 9781407138169
• Publish Date: 6 March 2014
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 20 February 2017
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Scholastic
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[Kelly]

3½ Stars.
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2014/07/broken-strings-by-maria-farrer.html
Broken Strings was a surprise read. I prepared myself for the inevitable cliched contemporary, but it was engaging and entertaining. Aside from the musical inaccuracies, I found I was unable to tear myself away from Jess's story. Jess is an overachiever and seen as a musical prodigy, but sadly only caters to her own needs, as evidence of leaving after her parents had specifically forbid her and left them only a note. Her father then gives Jess an ultimatum, to either come home or she won't be welcomed again. It was frustrating and I can't imagine parents that supported and nurtured her talent for eight years would suddenly disown her so blatantly. But rather than worry about their parental distress, she pines for Stefan.

She hasn't seen on heard from Stefan since she fled the stage during their audition and with her phone in ruin, she has no idea how her career ending stage fright impacted on her accompanist. Jess is self absorbed and her only interest in Stefan is only to her own benefit, believing she may very well be in love with him. But when her grandmother's driver Charlie shows an interest, she's reluctant but still crosses the line into dangerous territory. Charlie is willing to risk his job for a girl who is only interested in a distraction. But even with it's discrepancies, the storyline was still entertaining and surprisingly a quick read for it's length.

None of the characters were relatable or too in depth, and only the elderly piano virtuoso Mr Richie had any likability. If Jess hadn't been so self indulgent, more readers may have been able to connect with her passion. For a girl who supposedly understands the discipline and hard work it takes to reach her goals, she does an awful lot of complaining when her grandmother instills the same values in her education. If you're looking for a purely entertaining read, then definitely give it a go. The overall storyline and uncovered secrets will keep you guessing until the very end and despite it's flaws, I quite enjoyed it.