The Fifth Beethoven
Author: Melanie Jackson
Publisher: Crwth Press., MG
Genre: Humor, Contemporary
Piano-playing Nate loves to rock out Beethoven in a style characterized more by enthusiasm than training. Nate is gazing up at Vancouver’s newest luxury building, the Keynote, when a thief in a Beethoven costume mugs him and two other victims. But the day turns up-tempo when the Keynote’s owner, Mike Dante, offers Nate a gig playing piano in the courtyard. This is big-time opportunity knocking for a self-taught musician.
Nate thinks there’s no better way to thank his real-estate-tycoon boss than by sleuthing out the thief’s identity. But Nate soon finds himself in a mystery that grows more discordant with each beat. In his search for the thief, Nate learns about the harsh realities of those facing renovictions and about how thoughtless people in power can be. Nate’s big dreams and folly are sure to delight readers of The Fifth Beethoven. And his belief in standing up for what is right is sure to inspire them.
What I like best about this novel is the dialogue and the crackling prose. The two teens Nate and Zandi sling great barbs back and forth throughout the book, which itself is laced with acerbic humor. “
The kids caught my excitement. I grinned at them. They were cute. Wait. There were cute kids?”
“I tucked back two hot dogs. Between the ketchup and relish, I got my vegetable requirements for the evening.”
“You going to play that middle C till you collect your old-age pension?”
“It must be exhausting to be you.”
“You’re thinking. That’s never good.”
It was a bit of a stretch to accept a teen boy getting a crush on a married woman who hires him to entertain her little kid. And a stretch to accept that a teen, even one with amazing piano skills for his age, would be hired on the spot to play in a fancy lounge. And again, to be offered a special training spot at the local symphony. Also, I guessed the ending halfway through, but then again, I’m not a preteen. Overall, it’s a fun, breezy read with a fast tempo and entertaining characters.
- PW