The Hardanger Riddle

The third book in the murder-mystery series about Cremona violin maker, Gianni Castiglione, and his detective friend, Antonio Guastafeste. A captivating tale of betrayal and long-lost love sees Gianni and Antonio leave the warmth of Italy for the inhospitable wilds of Scandinavia. Rikard Olsen, a successful violin maker from Norway, is found dead in the canal in Cremona – and it wasn’t an accident. A mysterious, exquisitely-decorated Hardanger fiddle that he brought with him to Italy has disappeared. Rikard was a former pupil of Gianni Castiglione, and Gianni and his detective friend, Antonio Guastafeste, travel to Norway to investigate the murder – a journey that takes them to Grieg’s home at Troldhaugen, to Lysøen, the tranquil island retreat of Norway’s Paganini, Ole Bull, and high into the remote mountains where memories are long and secrets easy to conceal. The missing Hardanger fiddle had a carving of a hauntingly-beautiful young woman on the scroll. Gianni and Guastafeste believe that the woman may hold the key to the whole puzzle. But who was she and what made her so special that Rikard Olsen had to die?