The Instrumentalist
A Novel
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For fans of The Queen's Gambit and The Handmaid's Tale, award-winning journalist Harriet Constable's unforgettable novel tells the story of classical music as it has never been told before.
Inspired by true events, The Instrumentalist tells the story of Anna Maria della Pietà--orphan, musical prodigy and favourite student of Antonio Vivaldi. Anna Maria is on a mission: to become Venice's greatest violinist and composer. In her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems as if nothing can stop her. But it is 1704 and she is, after all, a girl. The pursuit of her ambition will test everything Anna Maria holds dear.
With echoes of internationally renowned historical fiction such as Tuscan Daughter by Lisa Rochon, Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell and Perfume by Patrick Süskind, The Instrumentalist brings to life the remarkable story of one of classical music's most important yet overlooked figures. It is guaranteed to transport even the most unmusical of readers into a whole other realm.
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Reviews
"An intriguing tale. A fascinating story of music, ambition, and womanhood in eighteenth-century Venice. Much of the music in The Instrumentalist can be found in the rhythm of Harriet Constable's writing. In The Instrumentalist, the Venetian Republic is a character in its own right, amid the glory and decadence of its final century." -- Charmaine Wilkerson, the New York Times-bestselling author of Black Cake
"I was swept away by this searing portrait of ambition and betrayal. Occasionally a book arrives which not only moves but performs a vital function: and The Instrumentalist restores Anna Maria's name as she deserves, removing her from the forgotten annals of history." -- Elizabeth MacNeal, the Sunday Times-bestselling author of The Doll Factory
"Enthralling, passionate, vivid. The Instrumentalist is a marvel." -- Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Mercies
"With a heroine at once so very fierce and yet so vulnerable, The Instrumentalist is an insightful study of female talent and ambition - and how easily they can be hi-jacked or undermined by men." -- Annie Garthwaite, author of Cecily
"A stunning story written in prose as vibrant as the music it depicts. The Instrumentalist is a beautiful tale of resilience and survival in the face of impossible odds, and brings a much needed voice to a lost part of musical history." -- Isabelle Schuler, author of Lady MacBethad
"An immersive, impassioned tale full of color and sound that depicts Anna Maria as a driven prodigy whose talent will empower and imperil her." -- The Guardian
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