Appassionata

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Rivals, now a major series on Disney+

'Delicious ... I could not put the damned thing down' Sunday Express
'A boisterous tale of sex and Chopin' Tatler
'Sexy, dazzling protagonists... the humour comes thick and fast' Daily Express

The most fun you can have under a Tenor...

Abigail Rosen, nicknamed Appassionata, was the sexiest, most flamboyant violinist in classical music, but she was also the loneliest and the most exploited girl in the world. When a dramatic suicide attempt destroyed her violin career, she set her sights on the male-dominated heights of the conductor's rostrum.

Given the chance to take over the Rutminster Symphony Orchestra, Abby is ecstatic, not realising the RSO is in hock up to its neck and is composed of the wildest bunch of musicians ever to blow a horn or caress a fiddle.

Abby finds it increasingly difficult to control her undisciplined rabble and pretend she is not madly attracted to the fatally glamorous horn player, Viking O'Neill, who claims droit de seigneur over every pretty woman joining the orchestra. And then Rannaldini, arch-fiend and international maestro, rolls up with Machiavellian plans of his own to sabotage the RSO.

Effervescent as champagne, Jilly Cooper's novel brings back old favourites like Rupert and Taggie Campbell-Black, but also ends triumphantly with a rampageous orchestral tour of Spain and the high drama of an international piano competition.

Readers LOVE the Rutshire Chronicles:

‘Fun, sexy and unputdownable – a classic’ - Marian Keyes
'Pure, unadulterated joy' - Sophie Kinsella
'Hilarious, witty, wise, astute [and] flawlessly entertaining' - Helen Fielding
‘Joyful and mischievous. I know of no woman my age who won't admit that Rupert Campbell-Black nearly ruined them for other men for life . . .’ - Jojo Moyes
‘Jilly Cooper is the funniest and the sharpest writer there is’ - Jenny Colgan
'A combination of drama, sex, and good social comedy ... unputdownable' The Sunday Times
'Jilly Cooper is the very best ... elegant, glamourous, wonderful fun' Daily Mail

Jilly Cooper, Sunday Times bestseller, May 2024