The Lost Melody By Joanna Davidson Politano

Summary

When concert pianist Vivienne Mourdant's father dies, he leaves to her the care of an adult ward she knew nothing about. The woman is supposedly a patient at Hurstwell Asylum. The woman's portrait is shockingly familiar to Vivienne, so when the asylum claims she was never a patient there, Vivienne is compelled to discover what happened to the figure she remembers from childhood dreams.

The longer she lingers in the deep shadows and forgotten towers at Hurstwell, the fuzzier the line between sanity and madness becomes. She hears music no one else does, receives strange missives with rose petals between the pages, and untangles far more than is safe for her to know. But can she uncover the truth about the mysterious woman she seeks? And is there anyone at Hurstwell she can trust with her suspicions?

Positives

I have never had the privilege of reading a Joanna Davidson Politano book, but she’s been on my to-be-read list for a while. So when my library got this one in, I pounced on it immediately.

It was nothing at all like I’d imagined.

This book is a mind trip hidden in a pink flowery cover. The best comparison I’ve got is if you’ve seen the Marvel show Moon Knight, specifically episode four. I hit this certain point where I was like, Is she actually just making this all up and believing it’s true? Did any of this ever happen? Can I trust any of these people? Is this real? Am I real? That was the best thing about this book to me.

This is one of the most solid books I’ve read in Christian fiction when it comes to mental health, in the same category as Coral by Sara Ella. The author sensitively portrays a spectrum of mental illnesses, as well as the pros and cons of mental care in the Victorian era.

Round it out with a vibrant character voice, a unique writing style, the right dash of mystery, and a very subtle romance, and there you have The Lost Melody.

Negatives

None.

Conclusion

The Lost Melody may look pink and flowery, but there’s a lot more lost between those pages.