The Fire Concerto

A Novel

By: Sarah Landenwich

Narrated by: Katrina Lenk

A beautifully written, evocative literary page-turner about a brilliant nineteenth-century female pianist from Poland lost to history and another woman’s quest to ensure she is not forgotten—with a shocking twist of a finale.

Clara Bishop hasn’t touched a piano since a concert hall fire nearly took her life a decade ago, ending her career as a rising star in the world of classical music. Significantly scarred and unable to play, she has turned away from everything and everyone associated with music, especially her ruthless mentor Madame, whom Clara blames for her injuries.
​Her life is upended when Madame dies, leaving Clara an unexpected inheritance: an ornate nineteenth-century metronome with a cryptic message hidden inside. Convinced this is not a gift but a puzzle Madame wants her to solve, Clara comes to suspect that the unusual bequest is the long-lost metronome of the composer Aleksander Starza—a priceless object missing since 1885, when Starza was murdered by the brilliant female pianist Constantia Pleyel.
​ ​As Clara works to uncover the metronome’s haunted past and protect it—and herself—from those who wish to obtain it, she discovers that nothing about Starza and his murder are what they seem. History has remembered Constantia Pleyel as an unstable artist who killed Starza in a fit of madness. The truth could rewrite the history of music—and give Clara the second chance she has been longing for.

This moving tale is perfect for fans of Brendan Slocumb's The Violin Conspiracy.

Critic reviews

"Landenwich makes her debut with a captivating novel...a vibrant storytelling experience, with well-developed characters and a thrilling pace that leads to a dramatic conclusion."
—Booklist—Booklist

Such a compelling and surprisingly relatable story with a wonderful reader.

Absolutely loved this. The book kept me jumping between “who done it” to heart filling and breaking emotion. I must note how wonderfully the reader, Ms. Lenk, found the ability to bring to life such a compelling story and so many believable individual and interesting characters. With so many accents!!!! Well done all.

great story

the voices of the Polish characters are annoying as is the pronunciation of polish words

A clever and unique mystery

The author has created characters that I immediately connected with. And even though I am not a musician I was drawn into the fascinating mystery surrounding an ordinary metronome and the complex individuals that orbited this object. The narrator does a masterful job with the various European accents which lends even more realism to this clever mystery. This is a wonderful first novel. I look forward to reading her future books.