Marley Z and the Bloodstained Violin

by Jim Fusilli

After her best friend is wrongly accused for stealing a valuable violin from the display case at The Julliard School, stylish and strong-willed Marley Z. is determined to set the record straight and heads out onto the streets of New York City to find the real culprit using her super-sleuthing skills.

Genres: Mystery, Music

208 pages, Hardcover

First published June 12, 2008

About the author

Jim Fusilli is the author of nine novels including “The Mayor of Polk Street” and “Narrows Gate,” which George Pelecanos called “equal parts Ellroy, Puzo and Scorsese” and Mystery Scene magazine said “must be ranked among the half-dozen most memorable novels about the Mob.”

Jim’s debut novel “Closing Time” was the last work of fiction set in New York City published prior to the 9/11 attacks. The following year, his novel, “A Well-Known Secret” addressed the impact of 9/11 on the residents of lower Manhattan. Subsequent novels include “Tribeca Blues” and “Hard, Hard City,” which Mystery Ink magazine named its Novel of the Year. “Closing Time,” “A Well-Known Secret” and “Tribeca Blues” were reissued by Open Road Media in October 2018. Lawrence Block provided a new foreword for “Closing Time.”
Jim has published short stories that have appeared in a variety of magazines as well as anthologies edited by Lee Child, Dennis Lehane, Laura Lippman and other masters of the mystery genre. He edited and contributed to the anthologies “The Chopin Manuscript” and “The Copper Bracelet.” His “Chellini’s Solution” was included in an edition of the Best American Mystery Stories and his “Digby, Attorney at Law” was nominated for the Edgar and Macavity awards. The novel “Narrows Gate” was nominated for a Macavity in the Best Historical Fiction category.
The former Rock & Pop Critic of The Wall Street Journal and an occasional contributor to National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,” Jim is the author of two books of non-fiction, both related to popular music. “Pet Sounds” is his tribute to Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys’ classic album. It was translated for a Japanese language edition by Haruki Murakami Combining his interests, Jim edited and contributed a chapter to “Crime Plus Music: Twenty Stories of Music-Themed Noir,” published in 2017.
His novel for young adults “Marley Z and the Bloodstained Violin” was published by Dutton Juvenile.
Jim is married to the former Diane Holuk, a global communications executive. They currently reside just north of New York City. Find out more about them at https://jimfusilli.com/.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a little bit of a slog - the writing wasn't great and the plot strained credulity. Marley Z is 14 and wandering around New York unattended and she is able to convince several authority figures, with not much more than her opinion, that her friend Marisol is innocent. There are other better mysteries out there.

[Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

My kid didn't want to finish it. After reading it, I can understand why. Like others have said, the plot strains credulity. Give the kids some credit.

[Sue Berg]

Marley Z and the Bloodstained Violin (Unabridged)

Author: Jim Fusilli
Date:
06-AUG-2008
Narrator:
Khristine Hvam
Provider:
Penguin Group USA and Audible
Running Time:
4 h 11 min


A smart, sophisticated mystery involving theft and bizarre characters, set in New York City. Marley Z. is a hip, outgoing, and confident New York City kid just starting eighth grade. When her best friend is accused of stealing a priceless violin on display at The Julliard School, Marley steps in to prove her friend's innocence. So begins her mad dash around the city - from the Metropolitan Museum, to stately doormen buildings, to a violin teacher's artsy brownstone, to her favorite neighborhood Italian restaurant. Suspects and motives appear and vanish, but intrepid Marley won't stop until she has the right answers. Smart, quick, and lively, this book introduces a great new detective and the city she loves.


Doesn't that description of the book make it sound like there will be more Marley Z stories to come? So far -- nada. Bummer. Because this was an enjoyable book to listen to. Yes, listen to. The steps to solve the mystery are, thankfully, nothing like I've found in "educational" stories that require math or other school-type related skills to solve. This mystery is straight-forward and complicated enough to be interesting.
The group of friends, in make up and interests, is similar to the grouping in the Red Blazer girls mysteries. But, unlike the Red Blazer girls, there is no need to dig out a calculator or dig through the encyclopedia to follow Marley and friends through New York City -- a city that overwhelms this gal originally from a semi-rural area of southern New Jersey and now in the middle of cow pastures and corn fields in Wisconsin -- but a place that both Marley and her creator, Jim Fusilli, find wonderful.

Hint, hint, Jim --> More Marley Z, please :D


[I did chuckle, a little louder, at one point when a character was reading the art pages of the Wall Street journal ... Jim is arts editor for the WSJ! Next Marley Z book, though, the kids should be reading the arts pages, not one of the suspects. LOL!]

[WCPL Teens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marley Zimmerman gets pulled out of her math class with her friend Marisol to discover that the police are waiting for Marisol as they've got her on Julliard's security camera stealing a priceless violin. But Marley knows that Marisol didn't do it - at least not of her own free will. Piecing together clues from the security tape and Marisol's recollections, Marley vows to bring the true thief to justice and clear her friend.

[Mti Librarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Marley Z is a smart, spunky, confident teen willing to jump in, take risks, and get to the bottom of the problem when her friend Marisol is accused of stealing a priceless violin from Julliard. I'll be honest and say right up front that I did not like this book, but it was engaging and clever enough that I kept reading and finished it.