Liszt's Kiss: A Novel
by Susanne Dunlap
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Book Summary Information
Author: Susanne DunlapEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-04-10
ISBN: 0743289404
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Touchstone
Book Reviews of Liszt's Kiss: A Novel
Book Review: (3.5) "I was foolish to think he had forgiven me."
Summary: 3 Stars
In this Victorian mystery, composer Franz Liszt is the titular protagonist, although, in reality, he is part of an ensemble, his fame serving as a catalyst to draw the disparate story elements together. At the heart of the novel is the very sheltered Countess Anne de Barbier-Chouant, whose mother has recently succumbed to the cholera epidemic that rages through Paris in 1832. Having not yet attained her majority, the marquis, Anne's father, rules her life, continuing his dead wife's excessive control over their daughter's social contacts. A trained pianist, Anne chafes under his restrictions, especially after he padlocks the music room, shutting the girl off from her only solace, the piano.
Through somewhat devious measures, Anne undertakes to escape her father's scrutiny, using her new friendship with a cousin, Armand de Barbier, for cover. Although her father intends for Anne to marry her cousin, neither has any intention of doing so. Ostensibly escorted around the city by Armand, Anne is able to visit the home of Marie d' Agoult, a former friend of her mother's who hosts musical salons and has graciously engaged the services of Liszt to prepare Anne for her musical debut in society. Anne, in her youthful impetuosity, easily falls for the musical lothario, although he only has eyes for the beautiful, accomplished Marie. The result is a comedy of errors as the three engage in romantic confusion and expectations run amok.
On the darker side, Pierre Talon, a physician in training, tends to the growing number of patients struck down by cholera. Purely by chance, Talon meets Anne when she faints at a concert after watching the genius performance of Franz Liszt. Hopelessly enthralled with Anne, Talon harbors no hope until he performs a life-saving operation on Armand, who has been volunteering his time at the hospital while Anne attends her lessons. Suddenly, Pierre is afforded an opportunity to see his beloved while Armand is in his care, slyly encouraged by Marie d' Agoult, who has her own agenda.
Meanwhile, Anne's home life turns tempestuous, her father in the throes of some unspeakable dilemma. The musical salons converge with reality, Anne caught in the midst of events she cannot fathom. With Armand's very survival at stake and menace lurking in her home, Anne is nearly stupefied with confusion. It is this maddening inability to take action, a Scarlet O'Hara tendency to think about it tomorrow, that renders this reluctant heroine a somewhat unappealing protagonist, her incapacity too often a plot device. A product of nineteenth century society, Anne is a hothouse flower depending on the kindness of gentlemen to solve her problems. In the end, the threat surfaces in a confrontation that leaves all the characters stunned. This Victorian drama, sometimes farcical, redeems itself in the novel's denouement, while Paris quakes in the deathly embrace of the cholera epidemic. Luan Gaines/ 2007.
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