TITLE: The Piano Room
AUTHOR: Clio Velentza
PUBLISHER: Fairlight Books
ISBN: 9781912054893
PODCAST EPISODE: Book Club 20
REVIEWER: Bethan Briggs-Millar
Clio Velentza's debut novel breathes new life into the familiar Faust myth where a deal with the Devil is not all it seems. We follow Sandor Esterhazy on the precipice between childhood and adulthood, desperate to break free from his family’s expectations of musical excellence; expectations that he is failing to meet. With the departure of his closest friend Sandor finds himself adrift in a dark and lonely world. In desperation to find some escape he turns to ancient magics to conjure the Devil in order to sell his soul for an answer to his plight. Rather unexpectedly his clumsy attempt at the ritual works, albeit delayed. The familiar saying of “be careful what you wish for” comes to mind, however a little too late for Sandor. Even the Devil himself is quick to point out that he is answering his call and what exactly did he expect?
He is left in charge of his own double, a puppet for him to mould into a perfect version of himself so that he can live the life he wants. However as this new “Sandor” grows and finds his own identity as Ferdi we see Sandor losing more than just his soul. Skip ahead twenty years and Ferdi is living his own life with Sandor left a shadow stalking his creation.
Clio has managed to pose some of life’s big questions on what it is that makes us who we are by making such believable characters with flaws we can relate too. The burden of making your parents proud whilst following your own dreams, the responsibility of living with your choices and how far are you willing to go to get what you want.
The descriptions are rich and immersive without falling into the trap of slowing the story down. I found myself pulling a blanket closer and hugging my cup of tea tighter as Clio described the setting of where Sandor marks the frosted ground with symbols needed for the ritual. As with any multiple timeline story it takes a while to pull together the different threads that form the tale but it is worth persevering. I look forward to rereading this story with the benefit of knowing from the start what is going on.
AUTHOR: Clio Velentza
PUBLISHER: Fairlight Books
ISBN: 9781912054893
PODCAST EPISODE: Book Club 20
REVIEWER: Bethan Briggs-Millar
Clio Velentza's debut novel breathes new life into the familiar Faust myth where a deal with the Devil is not all it seems. We follow Sandor Esterhazy on the precipice between childhood and adulthood, desperate to break free from his family’s expectations of musical excellence; expectations that he is failing to meet. With the departure of his closest friend Sandor finds himself adrift in a dark and lonely world. In desperation to find some escape he turns to ancient magics to conjure the Devil in order to sell his soul for an answer to his plight. Rather unexpectedly his clumsy attempt at the ritual works, albeit delayed. The familiar saying of “be careful what you wish for” comes to mind, however a little too late for Sandor. Even the Devil himself is quick to point out that he is answering his call and what exactly did he expect?
He is left in charge of his own double, a puppet for him to mould into a perfect version of himself so that he can live the life he wants. However as this new “Sandor” grows and finds his own identity as Ferdi we see Sandor losing more than just his soul. Skip ahead twenty years and Ferdi is living his own life with Sandor left a shadow stalking his creation.
Clio has managed to pose some of life’s big questions on what it is that makes us who we are by making such believable characters with flaws we can relate too. The burden of making your parents proud whilst following your own dreams, the responsibility of living with your choices and how far are you willing to go to get what you want.
The descriptions are rich and immersive without falling into the trap of slowing the story down. I found myself pulling a blanket closer and hugging my cup of tea tighter as Clio described the setting of where Sandor marks the frosted ground with symbols needed for the ritual. As with any multiple timeline story it takes a while to pull together the different threads that form the tale but it is worth persevering. I look forward to rereading this story with the benefit of knowing from the start what is going on.