The Butterfly and the Violin and A Sparrow in Terezin
Kristy Cambron's Hidden Masterpiece novels are now available as an e-collection!
The Butterfly and the Violin
A mysterious painting breathes hope and beauty into the darkest corners of Auschwitz—and the loneliest hearts of Manhattan.
A Sparrow in Terezin
Bound together across time, two women will discover a powerful connection through one survivor's story of hope in the darkest days of a war-torn world.
May 19, 2014
In Vienna in 1940, Adele von Bron is a gifted young violinist, coddled by her Viennese parents, as the Third Reich exerts its power over Austria shortly after the Anschluss. They disapprove of the young musician who calls her “Butterfly” because he is of the merchant class and—worse—sympathizes with Jews. By 1943, both young people are conscripts at Auschwitz-Birkenau, forced to play in camp orchestras for the daily death march. Seventy years later, New York gallery owner Sera James buries herself in work to avoid the memory of her wedding-day betrayal. She is obsessed with finding a painting that she saw as a child of a beautiful Auschwitz prisoner holding a violin. Learning that a copy of the artwork hangs in a California business magnate’s home, Sera is unwillingly drawn out of her reserve by William Hanover. Prickly at first for his own reasons, Hanover hires Sera to find the painting. They combine forces to discover their respective connections to the haunting image. In chapters alternating between past and present, debut novelist Cambron vividly recounts interwoven sagas of heartache and recovery through courage, love, art, and faith. Agent: Joyce Hart, Hartline Literary Agency.
Starred review from June 15, 2014
Art historian Sera James searches for a painting that has haunted her since childhood. Having been jilted by her fiance, Sera vows never to trust another man again, until she meets William Hanover, who is seeking the same artwork but for a very different reason. The subject of the piece is Adele Von Bron, an Austrian violinist with a promising musical career and a father who is a general in the Third Reich. When Adele is caught helping Jews escape the Nazis, she is sent to the Auchwitz-Birkenau concentration camp where she joins the women's orchestra, giving her a chance at survival. VERDICT In her historical series debut, Cambron expertly weaves together multiple plotlines, time lines, and perspectives to produce a poignant tale of the power of love and faith in difficult circumstances. Those interested in stories of survival and the Holocaust, such as Eli Weisel's Night, will want to read.
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