Customer Reviews

The Rainaldi Quartet

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Picking up this book is like picking up a beautiful bouquet of flowers that are intricately mixed, or biting into a layered cake, each layer more exquisite than the last. It's difficult to know where to start to review this book. The plot of a quartet of men who play classical music together in Italy, makes our American cultural tendency of men getting together to play golf once a week look extremely shallow, is a good place to start. Four men with different lives, different jobs but an enjoyment of good music is extraordinary enough to draw attention today (though I remember my father spending time from work and family to play the trombone in a local symphony)...which may explain some of my feelings for this book.

One man is killed for no obvious reason, and two of the other men, one a luther (a person who creates violins)like the man who was murdered, and the other, a detective are determined to find who murdered their beloved friend. With each page turning another layer of an intricately woven story comes with exquisite descriptions of the violin 'creating' industry--they do not make them, they are a creation as grand as any master's painting. This alone makes the book worth the read, in introducing the reader to a unique life with a uniquely-chosen career. Men and women who take wood and shape it into the curves of a musical instrument who must have an ear to finely tune the wood through sanding, through the varnishing, all the different techniques used to do this job...yet they themselves are not concert violinists...they merely make the job of a concert violinist easier.

Adam writes beautifully of the Italy I would like to see someday. Not the crowded plazas of Vienna, but the back roads and little museums devoted to long forgotten artisans (though Stradivarius will probably never be forgoten). The author allows us as readers to see, to feel, to touch, to hear, to taste so much through words that I've rarely seen the skill in one author before...let alone one who writes a mystery. Not usually a genre one expects to find such a beautiful work in.

This book is sheer elegance in everything; in the relationships between the four men and their families, the work they do which all require different but the same abilities (they all do types of research in different ways)...I cannot simply praise this book enough!

Karen Sadler

When Gianni Castiglione, a 63-year-old violin-maker from Cremona, meets the three friends with whom he has played string quartets for fifteen years, he has no way of knowing that within hours one of them, violin-maker Tomaso Rainaldi, will be found stabbed to death in his workshop. Tomaso has been searching for a missing Stradivari, "The Messiah's Sister," supposedly a twin to "Le Messie" ("The Messiah"), the most famous and most valuable violin on earth, now in the Ashmolean Museum in England and worth over ten million dollars. Castiglione tells Antonio Guastafeste, a detective with the Questura, who is another member of Rainaldi's quartet, that if "another perfect, untouched Stradivari," such as "The Messiah's Sister" were to come onto the open market, that it would be "an opportunity that comes once in a lifetime, maybe once in several lifetimes, if ever."

As Castiglione and Guastafeste search for Rainaldi's killer by recreating Rainaldi's search for "The Messiah's Sister," they delve into all facets of violin history, craftsmanship, and ownership; the nature of collectors and their motivations; fakes and how they are created; and the importance of documentation and provenance. Investigating several competing collectors, Castiglione and Guastafeste eventually travel to Venice, the moors of rural England, a small town on the Po River, London, and various locations in and around Cremona. The concert debut of Rainaldi's young granddaughter and a London auction of rare violins are full of breathtakingly exciting moments, adding color and insight into the lives of serious violinists and collectors.

Though the stories of the various violins are complex, the author's insights into the hidden world of violin collecting keep the reader on tenterhooks. The dramatic tension is enhanced through the character of the narrator, Gianni Castiglione, a man with whom the reader empathizes, and whose interior monologues and musings about Tomaso Rainaldi and his own deceased loved ones make his personal reactions to the unfolding events particularly moving. When this kind and sensitive man confesses to a crime committed when he was young, the reader is all the more shocked by the revelation.

Additional deaths, mysterious strangers, a dotty old woman surrounded by cats, a cruelly jealous violin teacher, ancient and crumbling letters, a portrait containing secrets, a visit to a graveyard at night, and a life or death confrontation and race inject romantic elements into this challenging mystery and keep the action and excitement at a high pitch. Music lovers will thrill at this unusual mystery with its insights into the society of serious violin collectors, a novel that is carefully plotted and constructed, filled with a high level of unusual detail, and great fun to read. n Mary Whipple

In Italy, aging violin makers Castiglione and Rainaldi, Father Arrighi and police detective Guastafeste are players in a string quartet. The four men enjoy playing together as they respect one another though they can be quite caustic with one another; still they try to make as much time available to practice and perform. Rainaldi tells his friends especially Castiglione that he is on the trail of a great find, a priceless violin.

However, instead of the glory and euphoria of a great find, someone kills Rainaldi. Father Arrighi performs the funeral attended by the other two men of their musical group as well as family and friends. Guastafeste investigates the homicide though he knows he has a personal stake that should probably exclude him from looking into the murder that he believes is tied to the rare violin. Castiglione assists him as a violin maker expert especially with his insight into construction. Clues soon lead the two men from their rural section of Italy to England, but uncovering the identity of the killing genius remains seemingly impossible even as the duet makes progress towards their objective.

Though the whodunit is terrific it plays base to the rich textured musical perspective. The story line harmoniously blends the music with the murder mayhem without slowing down or neglecting either. Castiglione and Guastafeste are a wonderful pair, who at times are quite cutting with each other, as they follow clues in an effort to uncover the culprit who changed their quartet to a trio. Paul Adam provides a virtuoso performance.

Harriet Klausner

If you loved Da Vinci Code, and have an interest in the nefarious ways of collectors of anything, but particularly violins, you will love this book. Otherwise give it a pass. The hero is a 63-year old luthier (violin maker) and potentially an engaging hero. The detective with whom he searches for a lost violin is flat and undeveloped although he is on nearly every page of the book. There are sketches of interesting characters...a charming but batty English woman, a wealthy, insane collector, a nearly too perfect love interest, a shadowy villain whose purpose is merely to illustrate collectors' lust and, in the only comic moment, a stereotypical librarian. The writing is nearly as bad as Da Vinci Code, breaking his own narrative flow and much in need of a strong editor. Peeks into the Italian and English countryside are much better developed by other writers (Donna Leon for one, but many others). The mystery is a side note, forgotten for most of the book, almost completely subsumed to the history of violin making and collecting and uncovering the trail of a lost violin. Happily, the history is interesting which is the only reason I put the second star in my rating. Recommended only for desperate moments in airports when you need a book before the flight leaves.

The reader is introduced to a pleasant man in his early 60's. This man is Gianni Castiglione, a luthier (violin maker,) living in Cremona, Italy. He is a widow that loves his work and once a week, joining with three others to play quartets of the classics, such as Brahms etc.

Joining him is a Priest, a Policeman, and another Luthier, Tomaso. After an enjoyable evening, the policeman, Guastafeste and Gianni share a glass of whiskey and chat. The telephone rings...it is the wife of fellow luthier, Tomaso...where is he?

These are the dire words that sends Gianni and Guastafeste off on a search for a killer and his quarry, a precious violin...The Messiah's Sister.

Mr. Adam is deft in his storytelling. The murder quickly retreats to the rear as I became engrossed in the history of the violin itself. The scenery moves from Cremona to the U.K. to Venice and back to Cremona. Is there such a violin in existence and why was Tomaso so enamored with it. We learn the world of violin forgeries and even art.

This book was simply astonishing. If you enjoy historical mysteries, Please meet Paul Adam and his debut book "The Rainaldi Quartet."

This book is the first in a series of 2 (so far, anyway. The other is Paganini's Ghost which is equally enjoyable.) You learn a lot about violins, violinists and classical music. The books are fun and are a great airplane or beach read. Very enjoyable. Wish that there were more in the series.

This is a very nice read. Entertaining mystery and particularly enjoyable for anyone who loves classical music and is interested in violins, history of violins and violin-making. I learned a great deal about violins while enjoying the plot and characters at the same time. Highly recommended this book

The story begins as four men in Italy meet as they have many times before to play music as a string quartet. One is a priest, 2 make violins and one is a detective. When one of the violin makers is murdered in his shop, the detective (Antonio) seeks the aid of the other violin maker (Gianni) to help determine if anything has been stolen from his shop. They discover that the murdered man had been in search of an undiscovered Stradavarius called the "Messiah's Sister". We follow along as they investigate both the murder and the search for the violin. The author does a magnificient job of interweaving the history and mystique of these violins, as well as the subculture surrounding them and determining their historical provenence. The author also goies into a detailed discussion about fakes and how they are made. The two travel to Venice and England in order to discover the truth. I enjoyed both the mystery and the musical subculture explored by the book.

Paul Adam's "The Rainaldi Quartet" eloquently melds his knowledge of Italian culture and violins into a contemporary mystery revolving around the heinous murder of an aging luthier. His lead characters - Gianni and Guastafeste - are tireless in their efforts to find out what their dear departed friend had discovered just prior to his demise. It's a quest that takes them across breathtaking cityscapes and is written with such skill that you can practically smell the food they're eating and the wine they're tasting! For lovers of classical music and history, "The Rainaldi Quartet" is a splendid read. My only criticism - and it's minor - is that the segues into historical explanations periodically detract from the mystery that is being unfolded. I came away from the read, however, with a deeper appreciation of a violin maker's extraordinary craft. Bravo!

Christina Hamlett
Author of "The Spellbox" and "Heaven Only Knows"

Chalk up another profession in the bourgeoning list of those that count sleuths who solve murder mysteries among their membership. Paul Adam proves himself a worthy successor to Dick Francis and Tony Hillerman in creating Gianni Castiglione, a luthier, (violin maker) of Cremona, the Italian city where Stradivari, Guarneri and Amati once plied their trade.

When Gianni's best friend, another luthier name Rainaldi, is murdered he feels honor-bound to track down the killer. In the process of following Castiglione about as he unravels the mystery, the reader learns a great deal about the history of violins, the craft of making them, and the unsavory business of counterfeiting valuable ones. Recommended.