The Tsimbalist

by Sasha Margolis

At once a thrilling whodunnit, a maddening romance, and a satisfying plunge into history, The Tsimbalist is a tale of Jews and Russians, depicting their complicated friendships, their dangerous enmities, and their illicit loves, all seen through the eyes of Avrom, a barber, musician, all-around mensch, and born detective.

The year is 1871. The inhabitants of Balativke live in delicate balance – until a young Russian aristocrat is found murdered near the home of Koppel, a poor Jew. With the police unable to unravel the mystery of the aristocrat’s murder, and blame falling upon Koppel amid a rising tide of anti-Jewish feeling, a desperate Avrom attempts to prevent disaster for his community by searching out the truth himself.

Learning as much about the people he lives among as he does about the slain Arkady Olegovich Efimovski, Avrom finds that few are who they seem. But could one of his neighbors really be a murderer?

305 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 29, 2016

About the author

Sasha Margolis's love for connecting with audiences of all kinds has led to a unique and dynamic career combining writing with performances as a violinist, singer, and actor. Author of The Tsimbalist, he has also written theatrical works (including the Tale of Monish, recently performed at The National Yiddish Book Center), short stories (including The Fallen Cone, recognized by the Sean O'Faolain International Competition), songs, and nonfiction pieces on music (for Opera America Magazine, among others.) He has recited Shakespeare on CBS Sunday Morning, portrayed a strolling violinist on ABC's Lost, and played the violin for real at the wedding of NBA star Grant Hill. As a classical violinist he has performed throughout the United States and in Italy and Japan, and has earned plaudits from the Washington Post for his "incisive, vibrato-rich tone." He is also fiddler, singer, and chief talker for the eclectic Jewish music band, Big Galute (http://www.biggalute.com.) It was his excitement about the Eastern European Klezmer music the band often plays that led him to write The Tsimbalist. His blogging and writing can be found on his blog here at Goodreads, or at http://www.TheTsimbalist.com.

Reviews

[Kerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting for it’s setting/time period. (A Jewish musician/barber solves a murder mystery in Pre Revolutionary Russia). But in the end it more reminded me of an episode of Colombo (where the underestimated Columbo puts all the pieces together and confronts the crook at the end). It was an enjoyable read.

[Alan Steinfeld · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not your everyday murder mystery, The Tsimbalist brings us back to pre-Revolution Russia where an unlikely duo form an uneasy alliance to solve a series of robberies and two murders. Are the events connected? Can justice prevail in a background of class distinctions and religious oppression? Will Dovid and Blume's love survive the threats it faces? Margolis has re-created a bygone world stocked with very real characters. The sights, sounds and smells of the towns and villages of 19th century Russia are lovingly brought to life. A terrific read that left me engaaged with the lives of these characters and ready for the next installment.

[Umbra · Rating 5 out of 5]

After you read it please visit the author's blog: http://www.thetsimbalist.com
Sasha Margolis shared some great insights there on characters. Which by the way are quite colorful. Partly because they are from a different century, partly because they are so relatable.
(After reading the blog added Leskov -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai... in my authors to look for).

In the future would love to see a series being developed.
Some characters definitely have more stories to tell: Rivke, Bloom, and Avram.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I WANTED to love it, but in the end it felt lackluster. That said, I loved the characters so much. I need more Jewish-culture novels in my life, so feel free to recommend. I realized with this novel that I have a big gap of background.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the characters and learning about another culture but for the most part this book is about people walking around town bumping into each other and talking about stuff that has happened.

[Ami Kopstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Shtetle's Sherlock Holmes

A satiric tale about a great heist, a couple of murders, a day time robbery, a love story, romance and a Jewish klezmer cum detective.
All told well written, not a word wasted.
And I couldn't put it down.