Everything suddenly changes for Triana when a violin playing ghost, Stefan Stefanovsky, appears out of nowhere. Stefan accuses Triana of butchering the music with her lack of talent. He plays Svengali and manipulates her with his own brilliant musical abilities. Eventually, he manages to transport Triana to his time and place, nineteenth century Vienna where she meets Beethoven and other musical greats. After witnessing in person the genius of Beethoven, Paginnini, and others, Triana returns to her home in contemporary New Orleans. She now believes that her deceased daughter has been reincarnated and lives in Rio. Is Triana losing her mind due to the deaths of her loved ones a situation which brings home her own mortality? Or is her music (and that of the past masters) showing Triana that immortality lies in what she leaves behind for future generations?

VIOLIN is a brilliant but strange novel that demonstrates just how talented Anne Rice truly is as she blend s a hauntingly poignant ghost story with what seems like an autobiography. The novel may be the great Ms. Rice's best book in years as she cleverly pulls off a coup with her trifecta of lead protagonists linked by their love of music. Fans of Ms. Rice and anyone who enjoys a top rate romantic-supernatural tale needs to read VIOLIN as the master has provided a virtuoso performance with this Stradivarius of novels.