Item: Playing with Fire
Rating: 5.00
Author: kimbacaffeinate

by Tess Gerritsen

A gripping standalone thriller by the New York Times bestselling author of the Rizzoli & Isles series

INTERNATIONAL THRILLER WRITERS AWARD FINALIST • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY LOS ANGELES TIMES AND SUSPENSE MAGAZINE

In a shadowy antiques shop in Rome, violinist Julia Ansdell happens upon a curious piece of music—the Incendio waltz—and is immediately entranced by its unusual composition. Full of passion, torment, and chilling beauty, and seemingly unknown to the world, the waltz, its mournful minor key, its feverish arpeggios, appear to dance with a strange life of their own. Julia is determined to master the complex work and make its melody heard.

Back home in Boston, from the moment Julia’s bow moves across the strings, drawing the waltz’s fiery notes into the air, something strange is stirred—and Julia’s world comes under threat. The music has a terrifying and inexplicable effect on her young daughter, who seems violently transformed. Convinced that the hypnotic strains of Incendio are weaving a malevolent spell, Julia sets out to discover the man and the meaning behind the score.

Her quest beckons Julia to the ancient city of Venice, where she uncovers a dark, decades-old secret involving a dangerously powerful family that will stop at nothing to keep Julia from bringing the truth to light.

Praise for Playing with Fire

“Compelling . . . I defy you to read the first chapter and not singe your fingers reading the rest.”—David Baldacci

“One of the best and most original thrillers of the year.”—Providence Journal

“[A] novel brimming with emotion, literary description, and psychological suspense.”—The Huffington Post

“Will make readers drop everything to immerse themselves in its propulsive dual narrative.”—Los Angeles Times

I am going to be purposely vague as the story is best left for the reader to discover. The story begins when Julia Ansdell discovers a piece of composition called the Incendio Waltz in a little antique shop in Rome. Julia is a violinist and loves collecting old music.

She returns home to her doting husband and three-year-old daughter. Mother and daughter spend their first day home together and while her daughter plays, Julia picks up the piece and begins playing it on her violin. As she becomes caught up in this haunting piece, something happens and she is pulled from the music to find blood on her daughter’s hands. From here, the tale is chilling as Gerritsen leads us on a tale to discover the music’s origin and save her daughter. Julia soon finds herself in danger, not only from those around her but also from an even bigger more powerful threat.

Gerritsen's tale is dark, beautiful and suspenseful. She held me completely spellbound. as the outside world slipped away. I tried to determine if our unreliable narrator was losing her mind or the only one who grasps what is happening. In between our riveting present day story, we learn about a young Jewish violinist living in Venice during WW II. Beautifully researched with characters I came to care about this aspect of the story was powerful giving the reader insight into this troubled time and the atrocities this young man and his family faced.

Playing with Fire was brilliant from the suspense to the story that unfolds. The way in which Gerritsen tied these stories together. The reveal on the origin of the composition itself and answers to our present day mystery raised the hair on the back of my neck and made me shiver. It is the type of story I will remember a year from now and ten year from now.

Playing with Fire was brilliant from the suspense to the story that unfolds. The way in which Gerritsen tied these stories together, and the reveal on the composition itself and answers to our present day mystery raised the hair on the back of my neck and made me shiver.

Playing with Fire is a must read for fans of mystery thrillers, unreliable narrators and Word War II history. Tess Gerritsen is an auto-buy for me and never disappoints. Her stories are fresh, chilling and beautifully executed.

Copy provided by publisher. This review was originally posted on Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Playing with Fire

by Tess Gerritsen

Reviewed by kimbacaffeinate on Oct 11, 2015

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