Name: Vivaldi's Virgins
ISBN: 9780060890520

Barbara Quick

A tale set in Vivaldi's decadent Venice during a six-month period in which the city gave itself over to the masked celebrations of Carnival finds elite Ospedale ella Piet musician Anna Maria dal Violin embarking on a quest of self-discovery in Venetian society and the Jewish Ghetto. 40,000 first printing.

A Novel

Vivaldi's Virgins

Jennifer

This book is meh - it's as if the molecular cluster of Anna Maria Dal Violin is writing the fictional more like ficticious lmao letters in place of Anna Maria Dal Violin herself. This novel, like Hidden Harmonies, is well researched and provides plenty of insight on Ospedale Della Pieta but packing a lot of well researched facts doesn't automatically convert into an intriguing novel.

So here's a list of what I like:

- The amount of research that Barbara has put into the novel. It provides plenty of information about the Pieta and various corners of Republic of Venice in the 18th Century.

- A few scenes are interesting e.g. Handel vs Scarlatti, and Vivaldi playing with the figlie (not super realistic but nevertheless gave me a few laughs)

- The symbolisms. 

- The glossary of words and discography was decently made. Quite useful for someone who doesn't understand Italian and to refer to the context in which Vivaldi wrote the pieces.

What's not my tea:

- It lacks the oomph of what a novel should be doing. Instead of being a page turner, it lost its spark and excitement around 1/3 in because it lacked a cohesive thematic and character development. When factual research bogged down the story line. It would have been much better if the research gets further condensed so it would be less rambling and have more space for imagination.

- So it felt as if after that point Barbara was literally just padding out stuff and rambling rehashes of monotonic life as a figlie, like a headless chicken running around.

- The letters are not only convoluting to follow up but also gets repetitive over time.

(view spoiler)[

- Biggest issue: Of how Vivaldi is portrayed in the novel. It's worse than a flying ice cube painted in red that his personality is portrayed unrealistically and seriously?!?!? saying such vilifying stuff to figlie?!? When he was quite likely in fact a feminist back in those days, deep down knowing that girls should have the opportunity to choose their own livelihoods.

- Adding to that, the bodily stuff is absolutely not appropriate. Perhaps Barbara could had worded it differently. Instead of vomiting all these she could had gently showed it instead?

- WTF with the end of the book? It felt so anticlimatic and I honestly have no idea why Barbara would just drop the bomb about Anna Giro all the way to the end??? Surely she could had threaded those developments throughout the book.
 (hide spoiler)]

I recommend this book, if you want to learn about foundling hospital in the 18th Century Venice and learn about (like, very briefly and shallowly) of Vivaldi's role at the Pieta and the pieces which he produced there.

However, I do not recommend this novel beyond other reasons. It padded way too much, it's monotonic, and it gave insufficient food for thoughts when you finish the book.

(2 stars out of 5)

Vivaldi's Virgins A Novel

Reviews

Highlights