The Luthier's Apprentice
by Mayra Calvani
Violinist Detective Series #1
Publication Date: May 15, 2014
Synopsis
Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840), one of the greatest violinists who ever lived and rumored to have made a pact with the devil, has somehow transferred unique powers to another… When violinists around the world mysteriously vanish, 16-year-old Emma Braun takes notice. But when her beloved violin teacher disappears… Emma takes charge. With Sherlock Holmes fanatic, not to mention gorgeous Corey Fletcher, Emma discovers a parallel world ruled by an ex-violinist turned evil sorceress who wants to rule the music world on her own terms. But why are only men violinists captured and not women? What is the connection between Emma’s family, the sorceress, and the infamous Niccolò Paganini? Emma must unravel the mystery in order to save her teacher from the fatal destiny that awaits him. And undo the curse that torments her family—before evil wins and she becomes the next luthier’s apprentice…
EXCERPT
Emma opened her eyes.
She felt as though she had slept for a long time.
Drowsy, limbs heavy, she
propped up on her elbow and stared in awe at her new surroundings. Clearly she
was in another world, another dimension. Everything here shimmered with an
alien purplish glow: the trees, the grass, even the sky. To her right was a
huge clearing that ended at the edge of a forest. To her left, a massive lake
stretched as far as the horizon, its still waters purple. Beyond the lake she saw
yet another forest and also a strange-looking object—a building?—but it was too
far away to make out any details. The strangest thing of all was a small purple
airplane stationed about thirty meters from the edge of the lake.
Corey lay by her side.
He seemed profoundly asleep. For a moment she could only stare. Washed in the
soft purple light, he looked almost painfully handsome, his hair a splash of
dark ink on the grass.
She shook him. “Corey?
Corey, wake up.”
She had to shake him
several times before he stirred. Finally, he opened his eyes. He was soon on
his feet, slowly turning to look at this strange, new place. He nodded thoughtfully.
A bizarre expression covered his face, as if he had, somehow, been expecting
this.
“Are you okay?” she
asked, rising as well. “You don’t seem too surprised.”
“Of course I’m
surprised,” Corey said quickly, looking away. “Are you okay?”
Emma nodded. “I’m fine.”
“What is this
place?” Corey asked, more to himself than to her.
“It seems some sort of
parallel world, some other dimension,” she said. “The problem is, the portal’s gone.”
They looked at each
other. They knew what that meant. No portal, no way back.
“No sign of Annika or
Blackie either,” Emma said. “Where are they? Do you think they could have ended
up in a different place?”
“That’s always a
possibility. Or maybe Annika went into the forest.” He gestured to the woods.
“It’s either that or the lake, but I don’t see a boat. And I don’t see how she
could have crossed the lake. It’s huge.” He stared at the distant object beyond
the lake. “What’s that?”
“I don’t know. Looks
like a building or a monument of some sort,” she replied uneasily. She cupped
her hands and shouted, “Annika! Annika!”
Corey joined her. “Annika!”
After a moment they
stopped.
“Oh wait,” Emma said,
digging into her pocket. “Let me try my cell phone.” But it was completely
dead.
They tried Corey’s phone
next, but it, too, was dead. “I guess cell phones don’t work around here.
Somehow I’m not surprised.”
Emma sighed. She squinted
across the lake. “Do you hear that? There’s some sort of resonance.”
Corey stood motionless.
“Sounds like music. Very distant.”
She pointed. “It seems
to come from the woods on the other side of the lake. And it’s not just music.
It’s violin music.”
“So it seems…” Corey
seemed mesmerized by the plane. “That looks like a Cessna 150,” he said,
walking over to it. Emma followed him. It was a tiny, toy-like plane. Inside
the cockpit, there were only two seats.
“Did I tell you my
father was a pilot?” Corey asked, opening the door.
“No,” Emma said softly.
“He died in a plane
crash. I’m wearing his jacket.”
“I’m sorry,” Emma
murmured, feeling her heart contracting. “I lost my dad, too. I don’t remember
him. I was too young.”
He stared at her for a
moment, his face serious, intense. “I’m sorry, too.” He climbed into the plane.
“It’s warmer inside. Come. Jump in.”
Emma grasped his hand
and hopped inside the cockpit. They settled side by side with Corey at the
controls.
Corey ran a hand across
the instrument panel, inspecting the gauges and switches. “My dad left me
dozens of books on aviation and airplanes. Once, when I was little, he even
gave me a flying lesson. I still remember his every word, the exact pitch and
tone of his voice.”
Watching his beautiful
profile, Emma was overcome with a strong emotion she wasn’t able to identify.
She admired his intelligence and inner strength. She had to admit it...she was
irresistibly drawn to him.
“I’ve been studying
flying manuals for so long I’ve memorized the lines from cover to cover,” he
went on.
Keeping in mind the way
he effortlessly remembered lines from Holmes, she believed him.
“You should fasten your
seatbelt,” he said, fastening his own.
She looked at him
sharply. “You’re not flying this thing, are you?”
“Why not?”
“But—but you’ve never
flown a plane before!”
“I told you, I’ve been
studying how to fly planes for years. These over here are the airspeed and attitude
indicators; this one is the altimeter; that’s the vertical airspeed indicator
over there; these are the throttle and mixture controls; and this here is the
ignition switch.” He pointed as he talked. “This will be a piece of cake.”
“Studying how to fly a
plane and actually flying a plane are two completely different things.”
Ignoring her protests,
he played with a couple of flaps and turned on the ignition.
“That does it. I’m
getting off. You can stay and play pilot if you want to,” Emma scoffed, jumping
off the plane.
“Hey! Where do you think
you’re going?”
She turned around to
face him. “I’m not flying a plane
with you, Corey. I’m going to check out the woods and call Annika. Maybe she’s
in there somewhere and she’ll hear me.”
Without waiting to hear
his reply, Emma headed in the direction of the forest. “Annika!” she called. “Annika!”
When she was midway
between the plane and the edge of the woods, a long mournful cry cut through
the stillness. Emma froze in mid step.
Wolf.
Okay. Maybe it was just
one wolf.
Before she could follow
that thought another howl broke through the air. And then another. And another.
Worst of all, the yowls and yelps seemed to be getting closer.
Emma glanced behind her
shoulder and saw Corey hop off the plane. “Um... Emma? I think you’d better get
back.”
She looked back to the
woods just in time to see a pack of wolves emerge from the trees and bound in
her direction.
“RUUUUNNN!” Corey
shouted.
She felt the blood drain
from her face. She spun around and ran as fast as her legs would carry her.
“Start that plane!” she
screamed.
Corey climbed back into
the cockpit and a moment later the propeller started turning.
“Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God...” Emma chanted, leaping into the
plane and rummaging for the seatbelt with shaky hands.
“Ready?” he asked over
the roar of the engine as the propeller began to turn faster and faster.
Emma looked at the vast
expanse of lake before them. “You better know what you’re doing or we’ll end up
kibble for whatever creatures or purple monsters live under these waters.”
“Either that or the
wolves.” Suddenly his serious face broke into a cocky smile. “Trust me.”
About the Author
Mayra Calvani’s
Playlist
Moonlight Sonata
Figlio Perduto
Snow White soundtrack
The Village soundtrack
Interview with the Vampire soundtrack
Dracula soundtrack
And last but not least—in fact, currently my personal
favorite: the Revenge (series) soundtrack
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave comment or suggestion