Book guide
Playing with Fire
A haunting piece of music seems to turn a child violent—and its secret trail leads back to wartime Venice.
Genre and trope pairingsThrillerUnreliable narratorThrillerSecret pastCrimeUnreliable narratorMysteryUnreliable narratorMysterySecret past
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About Playing with Fire
Violinist Julia Ansdell finds an old composition called Incendio while travelling in Italy. Back home, playing the music appears to trigger frightening behaviour in her young daughter, Lily, but no one believes Julia’s explanation. Searching for the piece’s origins takes her to Venice and a buried story from the Second World War, where the truth proves both tragic and dangerous.
Reading signals
- Spice
- Light
- Darkness
- Dark
- Pacing
- Fast
Content warnings
- Holocaust
- antisemitism
- animal death
- child violence
- war
- forced institutionalization
