A love of classical music was the catalyst for Napur Tustin to create a mystery series based on the composer Joseph Haydn, and the first novel in the series is A Minor Deception. Kapellmeister Joseph Haydn is furiously working on the music planned for the upcoming Empress Maria Theresa’s visit. Things are not going well, mostly because Haydn was practically forced to hire a disagreeable, bad-tempered principal violinist, Bartó Dabocz, who is causing havoc not only in the Princess’ court but also throughout the town. Because the performance is scheduled for three weeks, Haydn can’t get rid of him; Haydn’s job and reputation are at stake, and he wants to give the best performance possible. However, it seems everything is going wrong, including the discovery of a dead body that closely resembles Bartó. There are also political forces at work, and the Hungarians are pitted against the Empress. Haydn is stuck in the middle.

Anyone who enjoys historical fiction will welcome this fascinating novel. Tustin is an excellent storyteller, and has done enough research that the story, while fictional, rings true to history. Haydn is a respected and beloved composer, and the novel gives insight into his life outside of composing. Tustin has also developed the characters so that they are believable, and while reading the novel, readers will feel like they are actually living in the time. There is plenty of building suspense as well, and the novel will keep readers glued to their seats.

A Minor Deceptionis an excellent novel, and is suitable for all ages. It’s fun to gain a knowledge of historical facts while reading an enjoyable novel. This is the first in the Joseph Haydn series, and readers will definitely want to pick up the subsequent novels.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

I liked the setting and the use of Haydn as the "detective" of the story. This was a musically and politically rich era but I found the mysteries to be a bit dull and underwhelming. I would have liked more character development, but perhaps this will happen in forthcoming books -- this volume had a large cast of flat characters and even Haydn was difficult to connect to despite being the main character. Overall, a diverting read for musicians; perhaps not so much for general mystery/historical fiction fans.