It is crustal clear that the author has carried out a huge amount of research to write such a compelling book. For me, however, there were far too many concerts and it made the storey drag on a little bit too much.
I could have skipped a few chapters and still caught up with the gist of what was going on.
I was also left with more questions than answers. I was surprised that there was not another pregnancy considering that Anna Maria was out of it for 3 days. I must have missed who the father of Paulina's baby was as well and why there was no investigation as to who he was and why he was allowed to carry out such behaviour in the orphanage.
It was predictable at times.
The history behind the scenes was interesting to read where women did not allowed to compose and it was surprising to see that this carried on throughout the decades for many years - even Charlotte Bronte used a mans name for her books hundreds of years later.
The swearing I felt was not in keeping with the rest of the text as it was not a school where the girls would have heard or used such language and when it was used it was very out of character for those that did swear.
I also felt that it was too much of a character change for Anna Maria to suddenly become miss nice when she herself had trodden on so many others to get her place.

What I was attracted to when picking up the book: location (Venice), period - 1700s, music being one of the main themes in the story.
All of this kept me going through the book. Also, sound-colour synesthesia – what a lovely way to enrich the feelings, and the musicality of the theme! Loved that bit. That’s the sort of interpretation or fictionalisation that I like.

I do enjoy female protagonist revival, which is so trendy these days, the feminist underline, the urge to show women – for them to be seen and heard no matter the status and the great things they’ve done in the past.

This, however, can go a little over the top, giving them more of the of modern thought, than realistically they would have had. And while I understand a wish to give that determination, colours, and vivacity of the character to the real person that lived once upon a time, using the fact that there is not so much known about her in comparison… It kind of takes that scrupulously built reality and realistic everyday life and makes it a bit fantastical, where it probably should not. Why you ask? So that current and future generations wouldn’t have an illusion of a kingdom of crooked mirrors…

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy good historical interpretation and take the fictional part with a pinch of salt in all of this genre’s books, but there are things I’d rather keep to it. Makes it more believable, too. And no, not every modern reader has to relate to the characters because of that very different period they lived in. Because it was different times, indeed.

Overall, a very decent book. Easy to read and well-written, involving a couple of well-known personalities of the time.

Anna Maria's story starts when she is posted into a slot at the Venetian convent, Ospedale della Pietà , with a token from her mother who cannot look after her. Based on the actual life of a virtuoso violinist who was taught by Vivaldi and was appointed master of music, the book explores ambition, drive, power, recognition and having a voice.

I'm sorry but this is my least favourite kind of historical fiction which just puts modern women with all our twenty first century attitudes and assumptions back into a historical setting, here eighteenth century Venice.

Anna Maria della Pieta was a real person, a virtuosic violinist and composer, but I bet she never went storming into the office demanding to be made Master of Music because 'I make the Pieta a lot of gold. If you want the famous Anna Maria della Pieta to keep smiling and playing, you'll give me the role. You need me more than I need you.'

There has clearly been research into the daily life in eighteenth century Venice but the plot feels almost cartoon-like and the reality is that eighteenth century Venetian women, let alone orphans in convents, simply didn't think, speak and act as we do. With its triumphant narrative, this makes a feminist fairy tale out of history.

With the lush setting and foregrounding of female friendship rather than a romance, there's a lot going for this as commercial fiction - but just not the book for me, sorry!

This was an interesting story about a fascinating woman and her life as she worked towards her goal of becoming a Maestro. From the opening pages I was invested in Anna Maria's story, and the atmosphere that the author created brought the orphanage and the city to life beautifully. The book focusses heavily on Anna Maria and it's only through her actions that we see the workings of the orphanage. I would have liked to have explored this world further. Anna Maria was incredibly talented and ambitious, but I didn't find her a particularly likeable character even as the book progressed. Her trajectory from picking up the violin to achieving her goals was pretty unhindered and because she was so focussed on her goals we didn't really get a rounded picture of her and see how vulnerable and naive she was. The characters around her were well drawn, particularly her teacher and her friends but also side characters such as the charming violin maker.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy for review.

‘The Instrumentalist’ by @harriconstable is set in early C18th Venice around the fascinating (and real) Ospedale della Pietà: an austere girls’ orphanage, whose saving grace is that its inmates are given music lessons and the chance to become members of one of the city’s most famous orchestras - if they have what it takes.

We follow musical prodigy Anna Maria from the age of 8 as she strives to become the greatest violinist Venice has ever known. She’s up against poverty and patriarchy, but is blessed with monumental determination and extraordinary talent. Her orphanage also boasts wealthy, influential patrons, and a brilliant musical director, who could be the key to her success. But, as Anna Maria soon finds out, nothing is as simple as it seems, and she must ask herself just how much she is prepared to sacrifice.

For the first two-thirds, Anna Maria’s determination is all-consuming. It smoulders darkly on every page, her violin providing almost the only colour and joy. Then in the final section the book blossoms wonderfully, and Venice and its people, their pain and their pride, become as vivid and multi-hued as the music.

The subject could easily have lent itself to a cheesy ending, but, with skill worthy of Anna Maria, Constable lifts her composition clear of clichés to strike a beautifully resonant final chord.

For me, it has strong Jane Eyre vibes (but Venetian flavoured) and strikes some similar notes to Elizabeth Fremantle’s ‘Disobedient’. It definitely makes me want to learn more about the real Anna Maria and these extraordinary orphanage orchestras.

Out this August.

Big gratitude to @bloomsburypublishing & @netgalley for the eARC.

I am really pleased I read this novel. I was unaware of the true story connected to music and Catholic orphanages in Venice and the life of Anna Maria, delivered to the Sisters for safekeeping rather the drowning. This was a normal practice of the time. The fictional story based on a real character is not easy to pull off and there are some sections that are a little repetitive and slow, but I was gripped enough to read it it two sessions. The colourful descriptions of life in Venice, including smells, sights and sounds are excellent and really evocative. This is not just a historical representation of events though. It gives us multiple emotions of
love, friendship, inequality, injustice, anger and determination to survive, all in the words of a remarkable individual. A very good read.

Set in Venice this is one of those books that the author has found a real person and then woven a story around them. I loved the Pieta setting and the sense of desperation to succeed as the consequences of failure were so dire Anna Maria's synesthesia is an interesting addition to her character but after so many descriptions of brown, green and gold flying through her vision I did want more pace and plot. But then that is the trouble with tying your flag to a real character, you can't say they packed it all in and ran off with the circus if in reality she stayed in the Pieta til she was over 80. A fascinating read that perhaps needs a bit of editing to tighten up the descriptive sections.

Eighteenth-century Venice was a harsh place for working-class girls, If they got pregnant by mistake and could not keep the baby, they had two options: throw it it in canal or (for the luckier baby girls) post it through a gap in the wall of the Ospedale della Pieta, a convent. This is the story of one of those babies, Anna Maria della Pieta. Her gift for music saved her and made her a celebrity in Venice and beyond. Her teacher was the celebrated Antonio Vivaldi. Anna Maria saw musical notes as colours, which was perhaps her way of brightening up her harsh and dreary life. The watery, cultured city of Venice is beautifully depicted. You see the sharp contrast between the wealthy people who come to hear concerts at the convent and those who live there. A great read with interesting characters.

I am indebted to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC of this book.
A fictionalised account of the life of Anna Maria del Pietá, a discarded orphan who grew up in the Ospedale to become the foremost violinist of her age. Under the tutelage of Antonio Vivaldi.
The book is very well written and captures the hothouse atmosphere of a music school where only perfection will suffice; the driving ambition which excludes any consideration other than musical improvement and performance; the harshness of the regime run by the nuns; and the single minded determination necessary to succeed.
Antonio Vivaldi is portrayed as an inspired genius, happy to take the credit for the work of his charges, fragile, insecure and flawed.
It is also a story of friendship, loss and redemption..
The story concentrates a little too much on Anna Maria’s childhood: I would like to have seen more on her adult life. Perhaps that is to come?
A little proofreading is needed: on two occasions the writer says ‘bare’ for ‘bear’ when the sense is ‘undergo, tolerate’

Anna Maria del Pieta was a virtuoso violinist whose amazing ability was matched by an outstanding composer who wrote at least 26 concertos with her specifically in mind. If this fascinating novel is to be believed, some of those very concertos may actually have even been written by Anna Maria herself, but the credit taken by none other than Antonio Vivaldi.
This novel weaves a story round the bare facts of the lives of the real Anna Maria and Vivaldi and is so well presented that it is hard to believe that it isn't all true!
The third stand out character in this historical drama is Venice herself!
Harriet Constable describes the city so vividly that one is immersed in it's sights, sounds and even smells.
Neither Anna Maria nor Vivaldi come out of this retelling covered in glory as people, but their musical genius is absolutely front and centre.
A mark of how good a novel this is, is the fact that I immediately looked up Anna Maria and the orphanage orchestra and was all the more fascinated as I learned more and more about the subject.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for such an enjoyable experience in reading!

I was really interested in this book because of the subject matter. I’m always especially taken with/affected by stories that focus on the small tragedies and furies and joys of childhood, and this is a book that generally avoids the sentimentality of some fiction with this focus (like Frances Hodgson Burnett's A Little Princess). However, I found the pacing rather slow and the narrative tension a little lacking. The challenges on Anna Maria's journey seem relatively minor, or too quickly overcome, especially in the middle sections; she will dazzle everyone as a young performer, Vivaldi will get her her own violin, he will of course make her first chair, etc.

There is some really great historical fiction craft in this book once one gets over the hurdle of a rather schmaltzy first paragraph, and the story of the female musicians and composers working really is worth telling. The book has some lovely detailing early on around the friendships between the young orphans and their aspirations, and with a little more tightening I think this could have been a stand-out.

I had heard of Anna Maria della Pietà, an 18th century musical prodigy, a Venetian orphan, who was taught by Antono Vivaldi (the orphanage’s musical director) and for whom Vivaldi wrote many pieces.
This is delicious storytelling, capturing the atmosphere of an orphanage as well as a luthier’s workshop with attention to minute detail: “He writes his name, tiny pieces of chalk dust drifting to the ground as he underlines it twice.”
No gimmicks, no multiple POVs, no odd or pretentious prose, just a straightforward historical yarn. In this overwhelming landscape of “look how clever I am”, this is a soothing balm for the soul.

Historical fiction at its best. This beautifully constructed novel by Harriet Constable takes us to an orphanage in Venice in the early 18th century. The heroine of our story is Anna Maria who, from the age of 8, is insistent that both her names are used, not just "Anna". as she is convinced she is destined for great things. It is this same determination that drives her to acquire all the skills necessary to become a supreme violinist A maestro indeed!

But to get there she is forced to take decisions that cause her real heartbreak and, as a result, finds herself left alone to fight her demons in the recurring nightmare that haunts her over the years. To find peace she must resolve the mystery of the half playing card and short message that were left alongside her when she was left in that small hole in the orphanage wall as a tiny baby.

The reality of life in an orphanage, the hardship Anna Maria endures bringing her dream of becoming a maestro to reality, and, the societal prejudice that prevents women being recognised in a music world utterly dominated by men, makes for an utterly compelling story.

But what shall stay long in the memory of the reader is how Anna Maria sees and feels music. Not as notes on the page, but as sequences of colour. It is this unique characteristic that make her violin sing and so enraptures her audiences.

Constable, bearing in mind this novel is based in fact, has done a great service in bringing Anna Maria's story out from the closeted world of the orphanage for us all to enjoy. If you love music this is the novel for you.

The Instrumentalist is a tale spanning from the birth of Anna Maria’s life, to her rise as a maestro. The descriptions of the music are what shines in this book, with music taking on colours and whole landscapes. Anna Maria is ambitious, at times ruthlessly so, in pursuit suit of her goals after first picking up a violin.

A tale of girlhood, poverty, splendour, gender, and complex lives are woven across the backdrop of Venice at a time when a talented woman with dreams comes up against the patriarchy. An insight into the often unrecorded lives of women.

A passionate love story. Historical fiction. Rags to riches. Musical interpretation. How best to describe this book? I was enthralled by Anna Maria della Pieta's passion for music and in particular, her all -consuming love for the violin. The book races along, taking in Anna Maria's upbringing in the orphanage by the nuns (of whom there seem to be only two or three), her music lessons with the real-life maestro composer, and her relationships and deep friendships with 2 other orphans in particular. Is her love for the violin and all-consuming desire to be the best violinist worth the hurt and pain it causes both her and her friends? And will she succeed in her life's ambition?

A beautifully written and well-constructed book, which takes the reader back into the world of 18th century Venice and in particular to the Ospedale della Pieta, the convent for orphan girls. Many of the girls were disfigured and disabled in some way, particularly after suffering small pox. Yet many of the girls formed a wonderful orchestra that performed in many spectacular settings; and some became muses and confidantes of Antonio Vivaldi. In the novel, Anna Maria is on "a mission to become Venice’s greatest violinist and composer, and in her remarkable world of colour and sound, it seems like nothing can stop her. But it is 1704 and she is, after all, a girl. The pursuit of her ambition will test everything she holds dear". The story grabs the reader's attention and suddenly I was immersed in this wonderful world of music, of unfortunate girls, of a passionate and compelling love for music and its performance.

I absolutely loved the book and am about to reread it as I found it such a wonderful book to read. Even if Italy, music or history are not what one enjoys most, the way this story is told is certain to grip the reader and have them longing to know what happened to Anna Maria and how she did indeed become a renowned and famous violinist.

With thanks to the publishers and to Netgalley for the ARC copy.

I did enjoy this book to start with, but unfortunately, I gave it up halfway through.  I think it was very skillfully written. The author put into words the beauty of music and captured Anna Maria passion for violin.

But I found the story too slow, and there were not enough events to keep my interest.
Definitely, this book will appeal to readers who like slow paced atmospheric historical fiction. Sadly, it just wasn't for me.

Anna Maria sees music as colours and this is her story. An orphan who becomes a maestro in eighteenth Century Venice.
A beautiful story and I couldn't put it down until I had finished it. The description of colours, sights and smells are all vivid and the tale is brilliant. Highly recommended.