Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer

One of The Wall Street Journal's Best fiction books of 2011

England, 1923. A gentleman critic named Leslie Shepherd tells the macabre story of a gifted young composer, Charles Jessold. On the eve of his revolutionary new opera's premiere, Jessold murders his wife and her lover, and then commits suicide in a scenario that strangely echoes the plot of his opera---which Shepherd has helped to write. The opera will never be performed.

Shepherd first shares his police testimony, then recalls his relationship with Jessold in his role as critic, biographer, and friend. And with each retelling of the story, significant new details cast light on the identity of the real victim in Jessold's tragedy.

This ambitiously intricate novel is set against a turbulent moment in music history, when atonal sounds first reverberated through the concert halls of Europe, just as the continent readied itself for war. What if Jessold's opera was not only a betrayal of Shepherd, but of England as well?

Wesley Stace has crafted a dazzling story of counter-melodies and counter-narratives that will keep you guessing to the end.

Author: Wesley Stace
Publisher: Picador USA
Published: 02/01/2011
Pages: 400
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.82lbs
Size: 8.27h x 5.63w x 1.06d
ISBN: 9780312680107

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 02/15/2011 pg. 53
New Yorker (The) 03/28/2011 pg. 107
Library Journal 11/01/2010 pg. 58
Publishers Weekly 12/06/2010
Kirkus Reviews 01/15/2011
BookPage 02/01/2011

About the Author

Wesley Stace is the author of the international bestseller Misfortune and by George. He has released fifteen albums under the name John Wesley Harding, and he lives in Philadelphia.

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