{"product_id":"the-rasumovsky-quartets-mark-paffard-9781797408101","title":"The Rasumovsky Quartets","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e1809. Vienna.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNapoleon's troops occupy the city.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLudwig van Beethoven is composing his masterworks.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCount Rasumovsky, the wealthy and well-connected Russian ambassador, appears more interested in aristocratic friendships and patronage of the arts than in his duties as a statesman.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInto his life comes Sophie. Although she is only the wife of lowly musician Franz Weiss, Sophie turns out to be a jealous and un-compliant mistress.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs Franz and his colleagues rehearse Beethoven's string quartets their problems, like the chords they play, overlap and intertwine.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRasumovsky and Beethoven clash on a personal and professional level too, against a backdrop of a city and continent at odds with itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe campaign of 1812 leads to Napoleon's downfall, but at the subsequent Congress of Vienna pressure mounts on Rasumovsky. Private passions, and political intrigue, lead inexorably towards tragedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Rasumovsky Quartets\u003c\/i\u003e is a deft and dramatic novel, which captures the turmoil of complex characters and the colourful society they inhabit. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMark Paffard\u003c\/b\u003e has worked in teaching, housing and social care. He lives in Pembrokeshire. This is his first novel.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Mark Paffard\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1797408100\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781797408101\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/20\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 184\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.45lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.00w x 0.42d\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mark Paffard","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48486133367039,"sku":"9781797408101","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_7d35f0f2-a689-4cfd-b5f4-ba250e6e7b5a.jpg?v=1778053894","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-rasumovsky-quartets-mark-paffard-9781797408101","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}