The Composer's Legacy
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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781640826212 |
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| Publisher: | Page Publishing, Inc. |
| Publication date: | 10/04/2017 |
| Pages: | 378 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.84(d) |
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
The Composer's Legacy
4.8 out of 5
based on
0 ratings.
5 reviews.
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THE COMPOSER'S LEGACY is a winding tale that walks the line between mystery and historical fiction. The story follows David Whealy, a music professor on the west coast, as he searches for the history behind an unexpected inheritance on the east coast. Professor Whealy discovers that he has inherited more than a home, he's discovered a full body of music that turns out to be quite important. THE COMPOSER'S LEGACY follows the main character's search through history, slowly unveiling more and more of the story while incorporating a detailed amount of historically accurate facts to tie everything together. The pace is not fast, but is consistent, and does not take away from the read. The most compelling element of the story is the author's inclusion of musical elements and his ability to include it within the written word without it feeling out of place. A feat I would have not thought possible before reading this book. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed THE COMPOSER'S LEGACY and will check out more from author Michael DeStefano. If you like highly detailed and involved mysteries with historical overtones or are a music buff, you'll love this book. (I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review)
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The Composer’s Legacy by Michael DeStefano was a very intriguing book. The author did a great job of telling the story through the use of well- formed characters, major and minor conflicts, historical references, and interesting storylines.
Dr. David Whealy’s character was intriguing because of his commitment to excellence as a professor, colleague, and conductor. Dr. Whealy also displayed tenacity and drive to share Jim West’s musical scores with the world and to solve the mysteries behind Jim’s past. The conflict he faced with the dean of music at UC-Davis provided more insight into Whealy’s character, as he battled it out with Dr. Cobbett regarding the difference in how one approaches their responsibilities to their students, their department, their college and the community.
Another interesting storyline with Dr. Whealy, was the friendship and work relationship with colleague Dr. Carla Macklin. The author provided comic relief and romance to the story, with Carla and David at the center. At first, I found Carla’s character a bit pushy and patronizing, but her personality and tactfulness were instrumental in pushing characters to face challenges and make smart and brave decisions in uncomfortable, tough situations.
Besides appreciating the use of many other different characters to the story and enjoying having the main character Dr. David Whealy spend time between California and Delaware ( due to work and his inheritance from Jim West), I also give much praise to this book for how well the author described musical performances, scores and different composers. I also felt that the author did a convincing job of what it could be like to be a composer, professor and colleague in a prestigious music department of a university. I have no experience or knowledge of instruments, symphonies and orchestras but Mr. DeStefano, in his very first paragraph of the story, introduced us to this musical world with open arms. The Composer’s Legacy was a delightful and well written book.
( I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.)
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Reviewed by Divine Zape for Readers' Favorite
The Composer's Legacy by Michael DeStefano is a beautiful work of fiction, based on a historical personage, that combines the arts with the great skill of storytelling to offer readers an amazing treat. David Whealy is a renowned California music professor who tumbles on an unexpected inheritance. It all starts with a simple, short letter that reads: “You have been named sole beneficiary to the estate of Mr. James Burton West. Further instructions will be forthcoming in accordance with the wishes of the benefactor.”
David’s life changes suddenly as he finds himself catapulted to the other side of the country, digging into the significance of his inheritance from one of the world’s best music composers. He finds more than unpublished music, and it seems to David that his benefactor didn’t even know the extent of his own wealth, guarded in the family from one generation to another since 1724. Now, he’ll find out about his colonial ancestor and an iron key that opens to a secret that could even change the destiny of the entire nation.
The Composer's Legacy is a great work, brilliantly plotted and intelligently written. The reader will enjoy the appreciation of fine music, the excellent writing, and the gripping plot. Michael DeStefano is a great storyteller and his writing features some of the finest literary styles, including a masterful use of the epistolary, great dialogues, and an engaging narrative style that will have the reader gripped from the beginning to the end. The cast of compelling characters, the well-handled themes, and the strong storyline are elements that set this novel apart as a work of great entertainment.
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An intricate, well-informed fictional account of a west-coast professor of music researching historical records of the colonial era to identify the lineage of his benefactor, a stranger from whom he has inherited not only a home and its contents on the east coast but also a body of musical compositions, which turn out to be exceedingly valuable. A link to online recordings allows the reader access to actual musical works composed by the author. Cleverly negotiating terrain of various types--the academy, music, and history—DeStefano covers also a broad swath of romance among the characters and a bit of the esoteric in Asian language and culture. A mystery worth following to its resolution.
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A very intriguing story from start to finish with some most interesting characters and relationships . The author did an excellent job of keeping my interest to the end..it was hard to put down. I look forward to reading Mr. DeStefanos' next book.
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