Deborah de Lille is an opera singer-in the least grand sense. Debbie doesn't foresee a future beyond Handel Messiahs and low-budget tours ... until her agent finagles her a minor role with a small-town company. The artists assembled for this production of Offenbach's spooky opera, Tales of Hoffmann, have more than opera on their minds. Their games of love are not for the faint of heart, and the cutthroat atmosphere may have become literal. How far are they willing to go to advance their careers and even the score? The singer Debbie replaced died under suspicious circumstances, and after another minor player bows out suddenly, she is also given her role. Now she has two small roles that no one in their right mind would kill for. So, either someone isn't in their right mind, or the close calls threatening Debbie's safety are all unlucky coincidences. Add to the mix three preening tenors, a sexy lesbian director, a vengeful conductor, an obscenely rich and Hollywood-handsome general director, a fading Italian pop star, a trio of bitchy leading sopranos, an ambitious understudy, countless attention-starved underlings, an anti-opera terrorist group, a resident ghost, and Debbie's kooky and dysfunctional friends and family, and you have an opening night that promises to genuinely thrill and chill.
Goodreads Summary
Debbie is the main character of this novel, she finds herself in an opera house where things are not as they seem and everything is a little bit...off. There is a lot going on in this novel, the reader will not be bored. The main character was funny, somewhat dramatic, and a little bit insane herself. The reader will connect with her easily, she is very likable.
The secondary characters pull the novel together. Some are hysterical, others are slightly creepy, and still others will make the reader think twice. They each have individual characteristic quirks that make them stand out to the reader. They are hard to forget.
The plot was different and interesting, the reader will likely not be able to compare this novel too closely to one he/she has read in the past. The events are fast-paced, many are very exciting and dramatic. This book is recommended to adult readers.
4 Stars
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Krystal, thanks for the review! I like how you said that the secondary characters are well-developed and memorable. I always like a strong supporting cast. And it's a great compliment to say that it stands in a class all its own as a type of novel most readers have probably not encountered before.
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