Chords of Deception
You’d think a youth orchestra would be a harmonious place.
You’d be wrong. . .
After a parent is killed during a rehearsal of the Greater Orlando Youth Orchestra, Lily scrambles to unmask the killer before the orchestra falls apart.
Lily’s daughter and granddaughter have come to stay with them while Shannon gets back on her feet after divorce. Granddaughter Chloe is having a hard time until she joins the youth orchestra and starts making friends. Then in the middle of rehearsal, Lily finds one of the parents battered and dying off in a side room.
Lily is horrified, because the victim was a genuinely kind and helpful person, not someone who’d have enemies. Who would do this to her, of all people? And how would it affect Chloe, who was happy at orchestra? After the president of the orchestra board suggests disbanding, Lily realizes she needs to identify the killer before the orchestra falls apart and her granddaughter has even more stress in her life.
This is a cozy mystery with notes of family drama and a bit of an edge.
Paperback: $17.99
Ebook: $4.99
Also available to read for free with a subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
Here’s what readers are saying. . .
I love the realism of Lily’s character. She speaks to me. I’m not quite at her venerated age, but I can tell her reactions are genuine. Lily doesn’t sugarcoat her feelings and this adds so much to the telling.
As for the investigation, Lily was true to herself. She’s not a forensic expert, but she knows people and she utilises that talent spectacularly. Without giving anything away, I can tell you that the motive failed to resonate with Lily, leaving her with red herrings and a broad amount of nothing. This pushed the suspense and heightened the feeling of danger. Superior mystery telling!
– Lise
Another visit with Lily Gallagher, with her relaxed retirement still apparently far away! I loved meeting her family and learning more about the reluctant detective. This book depicts a realistic look at family dynamics, along with the generational juggling act that comes with modern life, as well as an intriguing mystery.
This one’s a real page-turner: I plowed straight through, ignoring my chores – I was having too much fun! If you liked Drowning in Deception, you’ll love Chords of Deception!
– Jeannine
As a band booster mom and the chair for the fundraising committee for two kids from Middle School through High School, I identified and sympathized with many of the events. And it brought back so many band parent memories! Many of the tensions in the book were all too familiar – auditions, competition for first chair, perceived unfair decisions, hurt feelings, and parents with agendas – I remember them all.
Susanna Sullivan does an excellent job of painting the spaces. The awful music library essentially stuck in a closet, backstage in the auditorium, the hallways with the kids mobbing them – I could almost smell the herds of adolescents.
This is a good story, well told, with an excellent surprise twist or two. I am already looking forward to the third Lily Gallagher book!
– Rebecca