It is 1936 when orphaned thirteen-year-old Evalina Toussaint is admitted to Highland Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, a mental institution known for its innovative treatments for nervous disorders and addictions. Taken under the wing of the hospital s most notable patient, Zelda Fitzgerald, Evalina witnesses the cascading events leading up to the tragic fire of 1948 that killed nine women in a locked ward, Zelda among them.

This saga of a son of the working class who grows into a piano prodigy is "hypnotically readable . . . the best story I know of in a long, long time" (Vanity Fair). As a boy, Claude Rawlings looks up through the grated window of his basement apartment to watch the world go by. Poor, lonely, supported by a taxi-driver mother whose eccentricities spin more and more out of control, he faces the terrible task of growing up on the margins of life, destined...

Gillian Hodge goes to Rainbow's End Resort for some R&R after her promising career as a concert pianist is crushed, along with her right hand, after an encounter with a man on a motorcycle. Now she finds herself the reluctant rescuer to another one. TJ Benjamin finds himself stranded with a busted bike after wandering the country on his motorcycle for the past year after the death of his wife and the loss of his faith.

In 1945, an Austrian girl discovers a priceless Nazi treasure near a remote alpine lake and sets in motion a decades-old secret that will change lives for generations to come. Many years later, classical pianist Maggie O'Shea is preparing her return to the world of music. Instead, a nightmare of a haunting rhapsody and hundreds of roses from a deranged stalker propel her into a world of terror. Forces drive her to revisit the mystery of her mother's...

"It's been twelve years, but very little in Hyattown, Maryland has changed. Vanessa Sexton, a successful concert pianist, has finally come home to the small town after having her heart shattered all those years ago. In some ways her high school sweetheart, Brady Tucker, hasn't changed much either - he is still lean, athletic, rugged . . . But the once reckless boy has become a solid, dependable man. He'd stood her up on the most important night of...

"Nineteen-year-old Nell Hallam lives in a modest corner of Mayfair with her brother Matthew, an inspector at Scotland Yard. An exceptionally talented pianist, she aspires to attend the Royal Academy; but with tuition beyond their means, Nell sets out to earn the money herself--by playing piano in a popular Soho music hall. And the fact that she will have to disguise herself as a man and slip out at night to do it doesn't deter her. Spending evenings...

"Sophie Roseingrave hates nothing more than a swindler. After her family lost their piano shop to a con man in London, they're trying to start fresh in a new town. Her father is convinced Carrisford is an upright and honest place, but Sophie is not so sure. She has grave suspicions about silk-weaver Madeline Crewe, whose stunning beauty doesn't hide the fact that she's up to something. All Maddie Crewe needs is one big score, one grand heist to properly...

"Gifted pianist Valentine Windham, youngest son of the Duke of Moreland, pours all his passion into his music. But when injury prevents him from playing the piano, he flees to the country, alone and tormented by what he has lost. Ellen Markham has hidden herself away, looking for safety in solitude. Her curious new neighbor offers a kindred lonely soul whose desperation is matched only by his desire, but Ellen's devastating secret could destroy them...

"Sparkly and charming Natalie Fincher has it all - a handsome new husband, a fixer-upper cottage of her dreams, and the opportunity to tour with the musical she's spent years writing. But when her husband suddenly dies, all her hopes and dreams instantly disappear. Two and a half years later, Natalie is still lost. She works, sleeps (well, as much as the sexually frustrated village foxes will allow), and sees friends just often enough to allay their...