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The Fallen One: A Mystery
When renowned opera singer Marta Hendriks sees her dead husband in a Paris street, she fears she's losing her mind -or did she actually see him? Back home in Toronto, she decides she must find out exactly where the truth lies.
385 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2012
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35 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
November 8, 2012
I have read all of Mr. Blechta's novels, and I have to say, this is his best one by long and far. This time out, we've got Marta Hendriks, an Opera Singer poised on the Cusp of stardom, when... Tragedy! Her husband has died in a house fire. Two years later while in France singing an opera, she swears she sees him on the street. (It's a mystery involving Opera and Opera singers, What? You were expecting them to start quoting Macbeth?)
As the story progresses, we learn that her husband has come from a Shady Past, and things start to Heat Up when she gets suspicious and starts poking about...
I've read one review that complains that this book is basically one mystery cliché after another. See here's the thing, ALL mysteries follow a certain patter, after a person reads one or two mysteries, they can generally figure out how the mystery will unfold. Maybe not who the villain is, but that there will be one, and that there will BE deception, betrayal, and SOME elements of unreality.
I would also like to point out one element of truth to the Lili-Marta Shrink relationship. Take a moment and think about the Societal Stigma attached to Mental Illness. Seeing a shrink as is can be an INCREDIBLY difficult experience, couple that with being a celebrity, and all the paparazzi that invariably follow. You've got a recipe for Career Suicide. People then (for the most part) then incorrectly assume you're unstable. In that case, this would be an ideal (if not all together professional) solution. Also in the case of this book, it would have meant adding a new character, and making the book longer.
That's a critical point, and what differentiates Rick Blechta, He spins a Great Yarn, but know that you don't need a tome to tell it. That a problem with a lot of authors, they just grow too found of themselves, and write pages and chapter WAY after they should've finished the story. It's very refreshing to have found an author that strays off the typical Beaten Path of Mysteries, and leads us into a New kind of Crime Frontier, One where it isn't your typical cop (ex or not), and certainly NOT your cliché Private Eye, but Musicians!
And if you think about it (and know musician), you know that's exactly what Music IS sometimes, a Mystery!
As the story progresses, we learn that her husband has come from a Shady Past, and things start to Heat Up when she gets suspicious and starts poking about...
I've read one review that complains that this book is basically one mystery cliché after another. See here's the thing, ALL mysteries follow a certain patter, after a person reads one or two mysteries, they can generally figure out how the mystery will unfold. Maybe not who the villain is, but that there will be one, and that there will BE deception, betrayal, and SOME elements of unreality.
I would also like to point out one element of truth to the Lili-Marta Shrink relationship. Take a moment and think about the Societal Stigma attached to Mental Illness. Seeing a shrink as is can be an INCREDIBLY difficult experience, couple that with being a celebrity, and all the paparazzi that invariably follow. You've got a recipe for Career Suicide. People then (for the most part) then incorrectly assume you're unstable. In that case, this would be an ideal (if not all together professional) solution. Also in the case of this book, it would have meant adding a new character, and making the book longer.
That's a critical point, and what differentiates Rick Blechta, He spins a Great Yarn, but know that you don't need a tome to tell it. That a problem with a lot of authors, they just grow too found of themselves, and write pages and chapter WAY after they should've finished the story. It's very refreshing to have found an author that strays off the typical Beaten Path of Mysteries, and leads us into a New kind of Crime Frontier, One where it isn't your typical cop (ex or not), and certainly NOT your cliché Private Eye, but Musicians!
And if you think about it (and know musician), you know that's exactly what Music IS sometimes, a Mystery!
Want to read
February 8, 2019Synopsis: Marta Hendriks was singing opera when she learned of her husband's death. But later, did she see him alive in Paris?
July 14, 2019
Biker dude falls for Opera Singer and dies in a fire. Or does he? Meh. Only in Canada. My nightmare is that some decides it plot works well enough to get a Canada government grant and pitches it as a series for the CBC under Canadian Content rules. The use of regional colloquialisms, which add no value to the characters or furthers the plot-line, cries out for a serious editor.
November 7, 2021
Great travel log.
Refreshingly 'clean' vocabulary, for the most part.
Moves a bit slowly and has LOTS of reflection and play-by-play details.
Great if you're a music lover.
Proofreaders needed to go through it one more time.
A few holes here and there, esp concerning cellphones and mindlessness.
This was my first Blechta book and am looking forward to the next one.
Refreshingly 'clean' vocabulary, for the most part.
Moves a bit slowly and has LOTS of reflection and play-by-play details.
Great if you're a music lover.
Proofreaders needed to go through it one more time.
A few holes here and there, esp concerning cellphones and mindlessness.
This was my first Blechta book and am looking forward to the next one.
January 21, 2026
It was good but, it was a little confusing about what was actually happening at times. But not a bad story
October 12, 2012
I can't say i overly enjoyed this book. A mystery taking place with a character who's an opera singer. She lost her husband suddenly in a fire 2 years ago and after a breakdown, she's ready to sing again. While in Paris she thinks she sees her dead husband on a rainy street and again a few days later outside the opera house. Is he really dead? Is she losing her mind?
October 26, 2012
I take friends’ recommendations seriously and when two of them mention the same author, I really listen. That’s the situation with mystery author Rick Blechta. After reading a couple of his novels, and seeing that he had a new one out – and that it’s about an opera singer (I love opera!), I just had to check it out. The Fallen One did not disappoint – on so many levels. The opera “bits” were exceptionally well done and not too “involved” (which would have slowed the story down too much), but the author gives you a real look inside what it’s like to be one of these elite singers.
First of all, the characters are extremely well-drawn and real. Considering his narrator/protagonist is female, I was impressed with this. Marta Hendriks is a very real and complex person. The author made me understand what she is going through, and with no “eye-rolling” moments when it was obvious the author is male. Second, he uses locations very well. Being from Toronto, I loved the parts set here. But the parts in Paris were equally well-done, and having lived in that city for two years, I can be picky!
Last, the book really isn’t a mystery. I thought it more as a thriller by the time I was partway through. I don’t read thrillers as a rule, but he kept me reading, and the book really gallops along at the end, forcing me to stay up late to finish it (a very good sign in a book). The ending was sort of sad, which also worked very well, since opera can be very tragic, can’t it?
If I can make one negative observation, I found the “bad guy” a little bit wooden. The author doesn’t spend a lot of time on him (probably to keep the story moving along since it so much Marta’s story), but maybe more background on this character would have helped. I LOVED the piano accompanist/therapist character. What a clever way to handle this need of the story line. He made me see Lili so clearly!
I enjoyed this book very much. It's the author's best book so far. As they say in the opera house: Bravo!
First of all, the characters are extremely well-drawn and real. Considering his narrator/protagonist is female, I was impressed with this. Marta Hendriks is a very real and complex person. The author made me understand what she is going through, and with no “eye-rolling” moments when it was obvious the author is male. Second, he uses locations very well. Being from Toronto, I loved the parts set here. But the parts in Paris were equally well-done, and having lived in that city for two years, I can be picky!
Last, the book really isn’t a mystery. I thought it more as a thriller by the time I was partway through. I don’t read thrillers as a rule, but he kept me reading, and the book really gallops along at the end, forcing me to stay up late to finish it (a very good sign in a book). The ending was sort of sad, which also worked very well, since opera can be very tragic, can’t it?
If I can make one negative observation, I found the “bad guy” a little bit wooden. The author doesn’t spend a lot of time on him (probably to keep the story moving along since it so much Marta’s story), but maybe more background on this character would have helped. I LOVED the piano accompanist/therapist character. What a clever way to handle this need of the story line. He made me see Lili so clearly!
I enjoyed this book very much. It's the author's best book so far. As they say in the opera house: Bravo!
June 16, 2015
I started to read Roses for a Diva but stopped because I felt I should read this book first. I have to say I am very glad I did.
Marta Hendricks is singing Violetta at the Met when her world comes crashing down. The love of her life, her husband, Marc, has been killed in a horrible fire. Two years later, after finally getting herself back on track, she is singing at the Paris Opera when she sees Marc getting ontoo the Metro.
Reeling from this she decides to delve into Marc's life, one he had told her precious little about. Big mistake, Marc was a RCMP information against biker gangs in Montreal (we all know where that leads). There is more to his story but I don't want to spoil it completely.
The only good thing to come out of this is Marta meeting Tony, a thoroughly decent guy who loves opera.
Considering that a couple of my favourite authors have disappointed me lately, I am very happy to have found a new one to add to my list of "I want to read more of his books". Bravo, Rick, a story and characters I absolutely loved.
Marta Hendricks is singing Violetta at the Met when her world comes crashing down. The love of her life, her husband, Marc, has been killed in a horrible fire. Two years later, after finally getting herself back on track, she is singing at the Paris Opera when she sees Marc getting ontoo the Metro.
Reeling from this she decides to delve into Marc's life, one he had told her precious little about. Big mistake, Marc was a RCMP information against biker gangs in Montreal (we all know where that leads). There is more to his story but I don't want to spoil it completely.
The only good thing to come out of this is Marta meeting Tony, a thoroughly decent guy who loves opera.
Considering that a couple of my favourite authors have disappointed me lately, I am very happy to have found a new one to add to my list of "I want to read more of his books". Bravo, Rick, a story and characters I absolutely loved.
October 27, 2012
I met the author of this novel at a book-signing in a Chapters store last week. I bought it because he presented his book very well, but having never heard of him before, I wasn't expecting much. Was I wrong. While not a "book of the year" for me, I found I thoroughly enjoyed it. This author knows how to write dialogue that moves the plot forward, expands the reader's knowledge of the characters -- and is intelligent. There's also a sly bit of humor here. Since my brother is a musician, I know some of the digs the author takes with his fellow musicians, and they're quite funny (best part: "Chicks with Sticks", the name of a female percussion group). The main character (Marta Hendriks) is quite a good invention and very vulnerable, something I wouldn't have expected for a high-powered opera singer, and he makes me believe it.
An earlier novel is about a former rock star (When Hell Freezes Over), more up my alley in musical interest. I think I'll read that next.
An earlier novel is about a former rock star (When Hell Freezes Over), more up my alley in musical interest. I think I'll read that next.
July 18, 2017
This book was great! I haven't read many mystery books but this one pulled me in right from the start!
Marta is an opera singer whose life falls apart onstage when she learns that her husband has been killed in a house fire. Fast forward two years later, she's finally ready to get her career back on track, however while she's in Paris starring in a show she thinks she's seen a ghost; surely she didn't just see her dead husband? That sighting leads to questions she doesn't have the answers to and takes Marta from her home in Toronto to Montreal and back to Paris in her search for answers.
This book drew me in right from the start, there was never a dull moment. I will definitely be checking out more of Rick Blechta's books!
Marta is an opera singer whose life falls apart onstage when she learns that her husband has been killed in a house fire. Fast forward two years later, she's finally ready to get her career back on track, however while she's in Paris starring in a show she thinks she's seen a ghost; surely she didn't just see her dead husband? That sighting leads to questions she doesn't have the answers to and takes Marta from her home in Toronto to Montreal and back to Paris in her search for answers.
This book drew me in right from the start, there was never a dull moment. I will definitely be checking out more of Rick Blechta's books!
March 7, 2019
The Fallen One, by Canadian author Rick Blechta, is a mystery following an opera singer as she delves into the life of her dead husband, while trying to rebuild her reputation as an operatic diva. I’ve never read anything by Blechta before, but I get the sense that he knows his way around the Canadian music industry and beyond. It was interesting to get a peek into the world of opera, something I know absolutely nothing about. The mystery itself is centred around Canadian biker gangs in Montreal, so the two subjects could not be any further from each other, making for an interesting juxtaposition. It was an entertaining read.
January 5, 2013
Up-and-coming opera singer Marta Hendriks is in the midst of a performance of La Traviata when she learns her husband is dead. But after two difficult years dealing with her grief, she's just about to restart her career in Paris when she sees her dead husband. She feels that she must find out the truth of his death or go through the rest of her life wondering if she's going crazy. But the truth is more sinister than she could have dreamt.
May 10, 2013
I don't read a lot of stand-alones, but this was very good. It's more a novel than a mystery in my opinion, but it kept my interest nonetheless. There's good information about the opera - something that is not in my repertoire (ha, ha) normally. It's not overdone and I really enjoyed what I learned about the different operas and a little about that world in general. I liked the characters and would probably read something else by Blechta.
February 17, 2013
It's a well paced mystery with a wonderfully flawed and neurotic main character. Rick gives us a wonderful look into the often mysterious International world of Opera. It's always interesting when the insular artistic world and the criminal element meet. International travel, the music world, murder and mayhem make for a great mystery read.
October 5, 2014
Better than the only other book that I've ever read by Blechta, perhaps coz it was longer and had more time to play itself out. I'm not a fan of American mystery writers generally but it helped that there was lots of opera/Europe interspersed in this book.
July 7, 2013
A nice, light mystery. The author does quite a good job of evoking the setting -- particularly Toronto.
February 13, 2013
Really like this book...love that much of the story happens inCanada .I was hooked from the first page the story line is very good...it is a great suspense book...has many twists and turns...love it!
February 26, 2013
An interesting mix of romance and mystery. Opera and bikers. Can't say that I'm tempted to read another book by this author.
March 4, 2013
Slightly better than ho-hum.
January 7, 2016
Badly written. Unsympathetic main character. 1.5 stars
April 3, 2016
Only okay. Stretched credulity. Opera and bike gangs, dead husbands who aren't really dead. Liked some of the locales but couldn't buy into the characters.
February 12, 2013
Harlequin romance level character development.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews