The Violin Maker's Secret by Evie Woods ~ A Review

by Susan Roberts

On any given day, there are thousands of items slowly gathering dust in the Lost and Found of Heathrow Airport. Unknown to anyone, hidden among the clutter, is a very special object that can change the fortunes of those who possess it – a violin of rare beauty and power.

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February 2026; HarperCollins; 978-0008777678
ebook, print (416 pages); magical realism

A rare violin shows up in lost and found at Heathrow airport.  Devlin, a baggage handler, is looking for a special gift for his girlfriend and thinks that she'll love the violin.  Just the opposite happens, and Devlin and the violin start spending their days in a camper.  He goes to Walter, who used to be his teacher, to try to get some help, and then they end up going to a violin shop, run by Gabrielle, to find out about the history of the violin.

Soon, the trio of strangers starts working together to find out the history of the violin.  They all feel like the instrument has special powers and they finally feel a part of something – something that matters, and which makes them matter.  Soon, all of their flats are robbed and torn apart by the person who wants possession of the violin.  As the bond between the three of them gets stronger, they work together to not only find out about the history and the luthier who made the violin, but also to keep the people threatening them away from the violin.

The mystery behind the violin is gradually told by the violin, and we learn all about the special people who had owned the violin in the years since it was first made in the early 1800s, and more importantly, about the woman whose voice was trapped in the violin, which causes it to make such beautiful music.   

I don't usually enjoy magical realism unless it's used well as part of the story.  This book did a very good job of using magic subtly as part of the plot line.  I really enjoyed it and am glad that I gave it a chance.  I enjoyed the modern-day characters more than the historical characters.  I enjoyed seeing Devlin, Walter, and Gabrielle become a team that depended on each other and actually liked each other after all of them being loners most of their lives.  The author did a lot of research on music and the history of violins, and I learned a lot.  Overall, this was a great read.

Buy The Violin Maker's Secret at Amazon

Susan Roberts grew up in Michigan but loves the laid-back life at her home in the Piedmont area of North Carolina where she is three hours from the beach to the east and the mountains in the west.  She reads almost anything but her favorite genres are Southern Fiction and Historical Fiction.

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