As I said in my first pre-party post, I'm not much of a horror reader, and the ghost stories I like almost all either feature a ghost who is the author's messenger for some larger point, or they're chiefly characters who have had such an impact on another character's life, or on a given place, that their "ghostly" presence is in effect like a lasting shadow of their living presence.  Or, of course, we're really just talking fairy tale -- or satire / parody.

It goes without saying that this definition includes Dickens's A Christmas Carol, The Chimes and The Signalman; as well as the likes of:

* Aladdin from 1001 Nights (the genie is at least a kind of ghost, right?)

* A.S. Byatt: The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye

* Wilkie Collins: Mrs. Zant and the Ghost

* Henry James: The Turn of the Screw

* Naguib Mahfouz: Voices from the Other World: Ancient Egyptian Tales 

* Toni Morrison: Beloved

* Terry Pratchett: Wyrd Sisters

* Otfried Preußler: The Little Ghost (a wonderful children's story about not fearing "the other")

* Anne Rice: Violin (the last book by her that I read before she turned BBA)

* Theodor Storm: Der Schimmelreiter (The Dykemaster)

* The ghost stories of Edith Wharton (wonderfully atmospheric)

... and of course ...

* Oscar Wilde: The Canterville Ghost

Plenty of people are choosing to learn how to play the piano by themselves. Among the reasons why they decide to do this is because it is less expensive than working with an instructor to teach them. But be careful though, as the majority of individuals who opted to train themselves how to play often surrender on account of frustration with no professional guidance. That said, taking piano lessons Derby located and looking for a great instructor is always a better choice for easy and swift learning.

Once you have a piano instructor, your undesirable habits and other troubles when it comes to playing will vanish. Additionally, your piano lessons will be less discouraging and even more advanced. Definitely, getting a good coach and starting your piano lessons Derby can be so exciting. But prior to getting started, there are several important matters that you must look at first. Here are they:

1. Your willingness to master the piano

Remember that learning how to play the piano can be an interesting but quite strenuous job to complete. With that said, having a good enthusiasm can absolutely help you move through each and every lesson. Thus, if you want to pursue piano playing as a profession, then you must prepare yourself not just for the classes but also a few formal assessments afterwards. And regardless if you want to be a conductor, a performer or perhaps a piano trainer, take into account that you need to be motivated in mastering the instrument.

2. The genre you’re enthusiastic about

Although it’s broadly considered that playing the piano is similar to classical music, understand that your choices for music types do not end there. In fact, you've got a number of styles to choose from like jazz, pop, and blues. But do not forget that learning such genres, particularly pop, calls for great knowledge and skills in cadence or interval, in addition to the sense of improvisation. And although expertise will allow you to become more detailed and focused, learning additional genres is likewise essential. With that being said, locate a piano trainer who could teach you to play various music styles you’re enthusiastic about.

3. The capability of the piano instructor

Needless to say, if you’re planning to take piano lessons, it's important to consider the skill of your potential instructor. That being said, take the time to learn about their educational background, teaching methods and most significantly, their overall experience as a pianist or instructor. How many years they’ve been teaching or playing the piano? Can they assure enjoyable but productive piano classes? Have they got wide experience in teaching students of various abilities and levels? By responding to this type of queries, you can identify if they’re the ideal piano trainer for you.

Understanding how to play the piano can be a tiring and long procedure. Even so, having a good mindset and the best piano coach, there can be no constraint to what you can learn or attain. Therefore, make sure to pay attention to the things mentioned previously before you even consider taking piano lessons Derby based. Good luck!

I had read Gallacher’s Self-Publishing Steps to Successful Sales (you can check my review here) a while back and had several of his books waiting to be read but had not managed yet. But when his first novel, The Violin Man’s Legacy became available in audiobook format, I knew I had no excuse.

Although I tend to use the text-to-speech facility on my e-reader, I haven’t listened to many audiobooks (mostly my own) so I was intrigued by the experience. I found the narrator, C.C. Hogan, engaging, able to hold my attention, and very good at keeping the characters separate (and there are quite a few!) and individual. He is also very good at accents and managed the international locations and names without faltering. Unfortunately, my Kindle is quite old by now and could not accommodate the Whispersync option, that would have made it easier to check some things (like names and details), as I also had a copy of the Kindle version of the book.

I’m not a huge reader of spy novels, and although this book is classified within the crime and suspense thriller category, this international action-thriller reminded me in style of many spy/international conspiracy novel, although with a more European feel, and less frantic in pace than many American spy thrillers. There is plenty of action, and even some sex (and yes, the main character is incredibly skilled, can fight like the best of them, and outwit his opponents, although the brains behind the operation is his boss), but there are also slower moments when we learn the back story, not only of the main characters, like Jack and his teammates, but also of some of the people they collaborate with, and even some of their enemies. This allows us to get to know more about the players and to understand how they got to where they are. (The story behind the title and the way it relates to Jack’s past is particularly touching).

The book is narrated in the third person, from a variety of points of view. We mostly follow Jack Calder (as it should be, as this is his series), but we also are party to the thoughts of many other characters, although there is no confusing head-hopping, and even in the narrated version, it is clear which point of view we are being privy to at any given moment. This helps create a more complex story, with layers of information and to get a better grasp of what the different players have at stake. There are those who are only interested in money, others involved in power games and politics, and others for whom reputation and loyalty are the main objects.

The story takes us from London to Amsterdam, Hong-Kong, and South America, and the author is meticulous and well-informed, providing credible settings and a detailed exposition of the procedures and operations that brings to mind the best police procedural novels. But although we follow each detail of the investigations and the operations, there are always surprises to keep us on our toes.

Jack Calder, the central character, is a breath of fresh air in a genre where heroes are almost superhuman and can fight entire wars single-handedly. Although Jack, an ex-SAS captain, is indeed great at his job, he is traumatised by a family tragedy; he is self-deprecating and knows when to give credit where credit is due. He can follow orders and acknowledges his bosses’ superior planning skills. He is also a friend of his friends, and a loyal team-player and the novel highlights how important good relationships and contacts are in the world of international security firms and businesses.

I loved the fact that the characters talk like real people talk (yes, they use clichés sometimes, make bad jokes, and sometimes are lost for words), and, although there is violence and terrible things happen (justice and law are not always on the same side of the divide), there are also very funny moments.

The writing style is fluid and the pace ebbs and flows, with moments that are fast-paced and others that allow us to catch a breath and learn more about the ins and outs of the businesses and the characters involved. Readers need to remain alert, as there are many characters, locations, and plot threads, and, it is important to pay attention to the details.

I recommend this book to those who love spy and international intrigue thrillers, especially to readers who like complex situations and stories with plenty of twists and turns, but who don’t mind stopping to take a breath every so often. A great first book in the series and many great characters I hope to meet again.

I’m writing this review on behalf of Rosie’s Book Review Team. I was given an ARC copy of this book and I voluntarily chose to review it.

I enjoy reading in a variety of genres but have recently realised that I really enjoy historical fiction, as it offers me both, great stories and a background that’s interesting in its own right and that often offers me insight into eras and situations I know little about.

When I read the description of this novel I thought it sounded very different to what I usually read, but fascinating at the same time. A mystery surrounding a piece of music (a violin concerto) by a famous composer (Robert Schuman) that has been hidden for a long time. I love music but I’m not a deep connoisseur, and I didn’t realise when I read about the novel that the story was based on facts (it follows quite closely the events that took place in the 1930s, involving Hungarian (later nationalised British) violinist Jelly d’Arányi, and a concert Schuman wrote whilst already interned in an asylum) and included an element of the paranormal. It’s one of those cases when reality upstages fiction.

Despite the incredible story, that’s fascinating in its own right, Jessica Duchen does a great job of bringing all the characters to life. The story is told in the third person mostly from Jelly’s point of view, although later in the book we also get to hear about Ully, a character that although not based on a real person brings much to the equation, as it offers us a German perspective on the story. Jelly, who lives with her sister, brother-in-law, niece and their dog, despite her many admirers and some failed romances, is single and dedicated heart and soul to her music. I easily identified with Jelly, although our vocations and personal circumstances are very different, but I appreciated her dedication and love for music and for her family, her horror at the social and historical circumstances she was living through, her difficulties fitting in, as a foreigner living abroad, and her awareness of the challenges and limitations she was facing due to her age. There are very touching moments, for example when Jelly goes to visit her secretary and friend at the hospital and gives an impromptu concert there, when she organises a tour of concerts in cathedrals, free for everybody, not matter their social class, to collect funds for the poor, and when she becomes plagued by self-doubt, due to her personal circumstances and to her failing health. Jelly is not perfect, and she appears naïve at times, showing little understanding of issues like race or politics, limited insight into her own beliefs about the spirit world, her feelings and hesitating about what to do in her personal life, but she is a credible and passionate human being, and she gets to confront many of her fears by the end of the book.

Apart from the gripping story and the background behind the discovery of the concert, there is the historical context of the 1930s. As Schuman was a German composer, somehow it became a matter of national importance to recover the concert and claim it as a German work. The changes in Germany, the atmosphere of menace and threat, the rise of dangerous nationalism, and how that was also reflected in Britain, where the sisters lived, was well reflected and built into the book, especially when, at first sight, it seems to be only marginally relevant to the central mystery. As several characters observe in the novel, a piece of music is not ‘just a piece of music’ any longer and everything becomes vested with particular significance, thanks to manipulation and propaganda, no matter what the original intention of the composer might have been. I suspect most people who read this book won’t be able to resist comparing the historical situation then to our current times and worry.

This novel is a joy to read, one of these cases when the story and the writing style are perfectly matched and one can almost hear the music flowing from the pages. A wonderful novel that I recommend to anybody interested in the period and in good writing. I’ll be closely watching this author in the future.