I learned of this book from NetGalley months before it was published however it was an NPR interview by Harriet Constable that put it on the top of my reading list. I was kicking myself for waiting so long. For me this novel is everything a good book should be: characters that are relatable and well-developed, a plot that keeps you engrossed from beginning to the end, and a history lesson. I've recommended it a dozen of my reader friends.

A beautifully written historical novel that transports readers to 18th century Venice. The novel sheds light on the gender dynamics of the time, making it a thought provoking read. It is a compelling story of ambition, resilience, and the pursuit of one’s dreams against all odds I admired Anna Maria and enjoyed her moments of triumph.
Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Some years ago, I ran across the story about Antonio Vivaldi (he of one of *the* most recognizable pieces of classical music in existence) leading an extraordinary orchestra of abandoned orphan girls in early 18th century Venice and thought it would make an excellent jumping off point for a novel. I never wrote that book, but Harriet Constable has found a way to bring that story to vivid life, though the eyes of Anna Maria della Pietà, a real young woman who came up through the figlie and became a celebrated violinist, composer and teacher.

There is some historical evidence the girls Vivaldi directed aided in composition. Constable takes that idea and runs with it, imagining Anna Maria not only helping their instructor but surpassing him. She paints the great composer (without explicitly naming him) with an unflattering brush: vain, petty and with little compunction for essentially stealing the ideas of his students (implying Anna Maria was instrumental, if not the primary author, of The Four Seasons.

Whether any of this is based in fact is almost beside the point. It’s certainly believable that a man of great talent would both appreciate and resent a girl whose genius outstrips his. Anna Maria is imagined a synesthete (she sees colors from music) and an instant prodigy, who rose from the lowest of origins to the height of Venetian society through raw talent and single-minded ambition. Constable imagines the ospedale as a place of deep pain and loneliness, but also refuge and opportunity. But for the orphanage and the chance to make music, these girls would be destined for lives of backbreaking poverty or worse. In The Instrumentalist, Anna Maria (and Vivaldi) are not heroes; they’re grimy, grubbing, driven, brilliant, and an absolute gift to music. I wouldn’t have wanted to spend time with either of them in reality, but here, as characters? They make a worthy study.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A Harmonious Blend of History and Romance
The Instrumentalist is a captivating historical romance that transports readers to the vibrant world of 19th-century London. Harriet Constable skillfully weaves a tale of love, loss, and the power of music.
The novel follows the story of a young woman, Charlotte, who is forced to confront her past and embrace her future. Her journey is intertwined with the enigmatic figure of a renowned musician, whose secrets and passions leave her yearning for more.
Constable's vivid descriptions of 19th-century London bring the era to life. The historical details are well-researched and seamlessly integrated into the narrative. The characters are well-developed, with complex emotions and motivations.
While the plot may be somewhat predictable at times, the author's elegant prose and the emotional depth of the characters make The Instrumentalist a truly enjoyable read.

This historical fiction novel is based on the life of the real Anna Maria. Constable draws Venice so well that you can hear the gulls calling over the dirty canals as the music wafts down from the windows of the convent. The writing also brings Anna Maria to life, casting her as someone with synesthesia; for her, musical notes are linked with colors. She struggles to balance her personal ambition with friendship and fill the gaping hole of a missing mother. I had never heard of this music school and found it fascinating that in the early 1700s, these young women were given so much education and freedom. The audiobook, narrated by actress Emilia Clarke, was a pleasure to listen to.

An enjoyable work of historical fiction with a creative niche, this book sparks curiosity about the ornate baroque period of art and music. A story of a tenacious woman in a time when women had little power, The Instrumentalist is a story of obsession, grit, and sacrifice.

Taking place in 18th century Venice, the story imagines the life of classical musician and composer Anna Maria della Pietà. The story follows a young Anna Maria, who was abandoned at an orphanage in infancy. The institution, La Pieta, accepts children so long as they are small enough to fit through a hole in the wall, and provides them with a home and an education. Based on the true Ospedale della Pietà (famous in part for its connection to composer Antonio Vivaldi) the fictional La Pieta is well-known for its charity and the "Figlie di Choro " - its all female orchestra comprised of the children who grew up there.

Anna Maria is a force to be reckoned with, described in infancy as "a raging firestorm of a thing." From a young age, her interest in music is obvious; but it's not until she picks up the violin that her natural ability is evident. She is - annoyingly- immediately talented at what is known to be one of the most intricate and difficult instruments to master. Her talent is noticed, but not celebrated, by the instructors at the institution; leading her to become severely single-minded in her pursuit of learning, performing, and even composing on the violin. Through hours of practice, and eventually, one-on-one sessions with a private teacher, she has an uninhibited and rapid rise to first violinist of one of the most famous orchestras in 18th century Venice. Outside of her innate talent, her struggles are more evident. She is a victim of circumstance as she comes of age in a time where females were second class citizens. She sacrifices friendships, faces disappointment, and experiences betrayal; a trifecta illustrative of the "lonely at the top" aphorism.

Throughout the book, Anna Maria's relationship with music is illustrated through her synesthesia - a perceptual phenomenon where an experience in one sensory pathway crosses wires with another; for example, experiencing a sound as a certain color. This was a unique creative choice by the writer and really allows the reader to be immersed in the story and become enveloped by Anna Maria's passion.

An empowering story, told creatively and from a unique perspective. Despite the grim and rough setting, this was an enjoyable read that I will be recommending for historical fiction lovers and music enthusiasts.

I have such mixed feelings on this one.

I was fascinated by the description. Anna Maria della Pieta is someone I was not familiar with . However, being a fan of various pieces by Vivaldi, I wanted to read this story.

The author has potential, but this book was a huge miss for me. I initially was intrigued but as I did some research on mg own about the facts, I feel like the author took a lot of liberties. I feel like the story could have been better had the story taken more of the actual events into account.

As a huge fan of historical fiction, I know that that things will not always be true to actual events. This book went a little too far into the fiction for me.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for the copy of this book. All views are my honest opinion.

Thanks to Simon Books for my #gifted copy in addition to NetGalley access in exchange for my honest opinion. This historical fiction novel is set in 18th century Venice, at the Pieta orphanage. Little is known about Anna Maria della Pieta, an orphan violin prodigy who studied under Vivaldi, and this book attempts to build from the limited historical research.
I started by reading a few chapters, then I switched to the audiobook to become a bit more invested in the story. After listening to a big chunk of the plot, I switched back to my physical copy, and I finished the book in just a few hours. I was swept away in the story, although that could be because of its novelty. I think this book would interest people who are strongly musical.

I really enjoyed this historical fiction that is based on a true story. It centers around Anna Maria de la Pieta, a Venetian orphan in the 18th century who becomes a violin prodigy.

Anna Maria grows up in an orphanage and is incredibly dedicated to her art. She is ambitious and wants to carve out a different life for herself.

I am glad that it shone light on an important woman in history during a time when it was dominated by men.

I found the story to be captivating & was invested in how it would end. It was beautifully written. Highly recommend if you enjoy historical fiction!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review!

In The Instrumentalist, Harriet Constable offers a vivid reimagining of the life of Anna Maria della Pietà, an orphan and violin prodigy who studied under Antonio Vivaldi in 18th-century Venice. The novel captures the intense ambition of a young woman striving to carve her place in a world dominated by men. In particular, I appreciated how the book also revealed the complexities of power dynamics between teacher and student.

The author does a great job balancing historical authenticity with compelling storytelling. The character of Anna Maria is richly developed, though at times her modern sensibilities seemed a bit of a stretch for the restrictive era she was in. The pacing is engaging, especially in the early sections, though the ending felt a little rushed. Constable’s portrayal of Vivaldi as both mentor and exploiter is a necessary challenge to the traditional narrative, and her exploration of how women’s contributions to art are often overshadowed resonated strongly with me. The Instrumentalist is a wonderful story of artistic ambition, sacrifice, and hidden history.

A young orphaned girl discovers her love of the violin and becomes obsessed with becoming a world-renowned maestro. She sees the music as colors and as she learns to master the violin she learns the hard lessons of being a poor, orphaned girl.

A beautiful, yet sad story of the struggles for those born less fortunate no matter what their talents are.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this ARC.

The premise of this book is fascinating- the true story of an 18th century orphan and her journey into the history books as one of the most prolific violinists trained under the famous Vivaldi. The author did an incredible job of building Anna Maria’s world and circumstances, and if you are a music lover I think this book would be extremely fascinating to you! My only complaint is that the plot felt a bit repetitive as she grows. Scenes with Vivaldi and the matriarchs of her orphanage were very similar from the beginning to the end of the story, but her internal thoughts and a couple plot points in between kept me invested despite that.

I am so grateful to the author for writing the story of a girl who overcame so much so long ago. Without this book, she would have remained unknown to me! Books are magical like that.

The synopsis had me hooked and it only got better from there!

This book is wonderful. It's dense and heartbreaking and horrifying and beautiful and unique and hopeful. It feels true. While it is a work of fiction, so much of it is based in historical fact. There's an air of authenticity woven through the whole narrative. Nothing felt anachronistic.

The characters are fantastically done. The plot is perfectly paced. The twists and turns keep you going, searching, hoping Anna Maria will achieve the impossible. Her synesthesia is a lovely, scary addition to the story. In the early 1700s, she would've been deemed crazy. And that only heightened the stakes, and Anna Maria's ambition, her need to succeed.

I learned so much with this book. I love listening to Vivaldi's works but I had no idea of his personal history. The likelihood that he stole inspiration or music or compositions from these girls . . . I wish I was surprised. Even if it's fictional, I'm glad someone told their story. That their voices and talent live on somewhere. That they weren't forgotten.

<i>Many thanks to NetGalley, Bloomsbury, and the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

This novel offers a fictionalized account of Anna Maria, a historical figure who was an orphan with remarkable musical talent, trained under the guidance of Vivaldi at an orphanage. The author aims to provide her with the historical recognition she deserves, but despite the good intentions, I thought the narrative was weak. Anna Maria comes across more to me like a contemporary character dropped into a historical setting, I appreciate the author's effort but it didn't work for me. I am grateful to NetGalley for the ARC which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

This did not live up to my expectations, especially in how it handles historical accuracy and character development. The writing was vague and repetitive.

This book had me enthralled. Because how the prostitutes In Venice. Would either drown the children or put them in an ORPH Ana G. E! Run by the catholic church. The nuns were teaching them music and singing and educate them. ANNAMRI.A was a young girl but she could play the violin really well and she would give concerts to the wealthy patrons of the city. Things were very hard for them.And they kept going as best they could. One of the girls became pregnant and she had to leave. A n n a was also targeted by the man who was teaching her V I o l I n. One of the girls was very hard on her and she tried to break her hand. She became.
Famous overnight.But she had a lot of things to think about. It was an interesting book. How people would use people? But there was some good to this because they could be put in an O RPH Ana G. E! Could learn a trade in music. Some were forced to marry. A very interesting book about this time in history. The seventeen hundreds

There was a lot to love about this historical fiction novel about a real-life female violin virtuoso in the 1700s. I loved the vivid descriptions of what it feels like to create and play music, and the characters (especially the characters of the orphans) were all really detailed and heart-wrenching. The problem for me is that some of the aspects of it felt like it didn't fit exactly into the time period. There were also a few times when the speech just sounded way too modern. I also would have loved a little bit of an epilogue at the end to update on what happened after some time had passed. I did enjoy the author's note at the end that described what aspects of the novel were true to life. Constable is a talented writer (especially as this is just her debut novel), so I'd be interested to see what topic she takes on in her next book.

A lovely piece of Historical Fiction about the largely forgotten Anna Maria della Pieta, orphan and Vivaldi protege.

This is beautifully written and moves remarkably well despite having little true action, and I thought the tone was perfectly suited to the story. I wish we’d gotten more lush description of Venice, but the sense of place overall is really pretty good.

I struggle a bit to imagine that Anna Maria would have been able be so casually forthright at this time and place and would have preferred the author work a bit harder to show the subtlety with which women had to operate to achieve any modicum of power or freedom in Anna Maria’s time. She’s got the attitude of a modern 21st century heroine, which is no doubt more relatable to readers and fine for an inner monologue or in an exchange with female peers, but I sort of hate when books pretend that the position of women at the time and place where the book is set was somehow better than it actually was.

Otherwise no complaints about this beautifully written story with a lovely heroine. This doesn’t cast Vivaldi himself in a particularly good light, but I think it’s important to stress where he may really have been getting his material from, and that he owes his posterity at least in part to someone (and probably quite a few someones) other than himself.

In 1704 Venice an orphanage run by nuns existed where women could, though a small hole in the wall, deposit newly born, unwanted baby girls. Those girls would be taught music and the girls that excelled could expect to have a fairly bright future. The non-musical girls were still given an education and were taught household jobs to again insure they had some way to make a living. Amongst the musical prodigies was Anna Maria della Pieta who saw music as colors and who was tutored on the violin by a man referred to as maestro. Based on records, there was a young girl who was musically amazing and who may have indeed written, or helped to write, Vivaldi’s “Four Season” symphony.
While a bit melodramatic at times, this read is none-the-less fascinating. And, as a side note, I recently heard about a jazz musician who said he could see colors in music so guess it’s an actual thing 🤷🏻‍♀️

It's been a hot minute since I've read any historical fiction and <i>The Instrumentalist</i> made me wonder why. Based on the real life story of 17th century violinist Anna Maria Pieta, this is the fictionalized version of her life. Born to a prostitute and given to an orphanage run by nuns, she is identified early on as a prodigy with amazing talent. Her instructor, based on the composer Antonio Vivaldi, guides her blossoming skill. I was completely engrossed by this book and found it difficult to put down. My only quibble is the one-time use of a curse word that felt very 21st century and completely out of context for the setting of this story. Not sure why the editor let that slide by. Otherwise, it was a wonderful interpretation of someone I knew nothing about!