The Brand New Book from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Lost Bookshop! Hewn by a master and passed down through generations, one violin charts its own course through history…

Baggage claim agent Devlin, retired teacher Walter, and appraiser Gabrielle should have nothing in common, but when a single choice sets in motion a new chapter in the violin’s story, they finally feel a part of something – something that matters, and which makes them matter.

Because as their search for the violin’s origins unlocks a mystery stretching back decades, the instrument teaches them a melody they never expected.

My Review

Baggage handler Devlin’s life is drifting. His girlfriend Melissa wants to get married so when he turns up on her birthday with a violin he found in the Lost and Found, she is devastated. She expected a diamond engagement ring.

But the violin has history. Little did Devlin expect that their flat would be broken into to recover it, while his new found friend and retired history teacher Walter has also been targeted. For Walter though it was worth it. Helping Devlin find the violin’s provenance has given his lonely life meaning. Unfortunately, Melissa doesn’t feel the same. She kicks him out and he ends up living in Helga, his old camper van.

Walter takes Devlin to meet an old friend who appraises violins, but he has died and his daughter Gabrielle has taken over the business. From here on it becomes a race to track the violin’s maker, while someone called Verity is after them to get it back. And she is ruthless.

Throughout the book, we go back in time to the story of William and Clara, starting in the early 19th century in Ireland. William has gone to London to train as a luthier with the promise to come back for Clara so they can be married. But tragedy strikes, Clara drowns and her spirit is locked inside the violin. We revisit the violin told from Clara’s spirit’s point of view as the violin passes from hand to hand in some fascinating and tragic stories. This was very original and I loved these parts, some even made me cry.

I adored this book and was sad when it finished. I listened once again on Audible (because I love the Irish narrators though this is only used for the Violin chapters) and look forward to more from this author.

About the Author

Evie Woods is the pseudonym of Evie Gaughan, bestselling author of The Story Collector, The Heirloom and The Mysterious Bakery On Rue De Paris. Living on the West Coast of Ireland, Evie escapes the inclement weather by writing her stories in a converted attic, where she dreams of underfloor heating. Her books tread the intriguing line between the everyday and the otherworldly, revealing the magic that exists in our ordinary lives.