MOZART’S BLOOD
Octavia Voss is an ethereal singer whose poise and talent belie her young age. In truth, she is a centuries-old vampire who once “shared the tooth” with Mozart himself. To protect her secret, Octavia’s even more ancient friend Ugo stalks the streets to find the elixir that feeds his muse’s soul.
With Mozart’s musical prowess coursing through her veins, the ageless Octavia reinvents herself with each new generation. But just as she prepares to take the stage at La Scala, Ugo inexplicably disappears, leaving Octavia alone—and dangerously unprotected…
Octavia vows to find Ugo,
Octavia Voss is an ethereal singer whose poise and talent belie her young age. In truth, she is a centuries-old vampire who once “shared the tooth” with Mozart himself. To protect her secret, Octavia’s even more ancient friend Ugo stalks the streets to find the elixir that feeds his muse’s soul.
With Mozart’s musical prowess coursing through her veins, the ageless Octavia reinvents herself with each new generation. But just as she prepares to take the stage at La Scala, Ugo inexplicably disappears, leaving Octavia alone—and dangerously unprotected…
Octavia vows to find Ugo, but his fate is in the hands of forces much darker than she could ever imagine. And when she learns the truth behind his disappearance, Octavia realizes too late that the life hanging most in the balance is her own…
- Kensington Books
- Paperback
- June 2010
- 400 Pages
- 9780758242129
Buy the Book
$15.00
About Louise Marley
Louise Marley is a former opera singer with the Seattle Opera and the Seattle Symphony among her many credits. Her fantasy novels have garnered her critical acclaim, and she has twice won the Endeavour Award, and has been shortlisted for the Nebula, the Campbell, and the Tiptree awards. She is in demand as a teacher of writing workshops for adults and young adults. She lives in the Seattle area with her family.
Praise
“Riveting, original…filled with the emotional power and intricate twists and turns of a Mozart opera.” —Tracy Grant, author of Beneath a Silent Moon
“Marley, a musician and writer, has produced a stunning drama inspired by the life of Teresa Saporiti, the first Donna Anna. Teresa, an aspiring singer, was turned into a vampire by a Czech aristocrat. As bad as the need for blood are the memories of the victims, which remain with the taker. Teresa has learned to deal with them, but Mozart, whom the baroness bit at the same time, never did and died painfully because he could not bring himself to satisfy the unnatural thirst. In San Francisco in 1906, Teresa meets Ugo, a Silician werewolf with a very curious past of his own. They become partners, guarding each other’s backs. In twenty-first-century Milan, an egoistic baritone thinks he has figured out Teresa’s secret and abducts Ugo to obtain the blood that holds Mozart’s memories. The story covers four centuries, but the shifts between the past and the present are seamlessly handled, and the development of Teresa and Ugo over those centuries is impressive. An engrossing piece, from overture to final chord.”—Frieda Murray, Booklist
Discussion Questions
Ugo and Octavia have a deep bond that has lasted for more than a century. What do you think drew them together and has kept them close all those years? What is the greatest difference between them?
What is it about Teresa’s character that made her strong enough to withstand the demands of her nature after the bite of Zdenka Milosch? Why was Mozart not able to do the same?
Why did Teresa, in the end, decide not to share the tooth with Vincenzo dal Prato, the castrato who befriended her when she was a young girl in Milan?
The opera Don Giovanni, which is the framing device for the novel, is both drama and comedy, romance and tragedy. Do you find these elements in Ugo’s and Teresa’s stories? In Mozart’s?
Can the attraction between Massimo and Octavia survive what happened between them?
Massimo wants a great singing career just as much as Teresa did. Do you think he has the same strength?
Who do you think will take over the leadership of La Società after the Countess?
Ughetto was sensitive and affectionate as a young boy at the scuola. How is Ugo different now, and why did he change?
Vampire stories have been popular since Bram Stoker’s Dracula was published in 1897, and they have experienced a resurgence in recent years. Do you think the appeal of vampires is about sex? Power? Long life? Or is it something indefinable?
The elders are so ancient that nothing gives them joy any more except music. What is the appeal of music that it can outlast every other pleasure?