Karl. Anna, Maria, Teresa and Mark. And violin.
Connections and disconnections.

Karl, immensely gifted musical compositor of German origin, living in Barcelona, is a powerful presence in the lives of his fellow people, even if he himself would probably be shocked by it. Larger-than-life, all women mesmerized by him; he who understanding the soul of the music. Distantly kind, living in his own world, and yet breaking female hearts all the time.
And spo they are at his memorial in his native Berlin- Mark, his son; Maria, his housemaid of forty years; Anna and Teresa - two musical prodigies, one with soul and one with technique. And the precious violin that has touched all of their lives.

While this is rich, character-driven story with many wise remarks and with one very special lovestory, I found it hard to connect with the characters - maybe because they are not able to connect between themselves. They are good people (even bitter and troubled Anna), yet they simply do not cross the lines between themselves to get closer. They all live in their own houses of silence. And their contacts are often made because of music and by music. Which is charismatic, yet cold.

There is also certain "grandeuse" missing, which could make this a better novel by far. The great passions are missing here - the greatest of the has Anna, who immaturely longs for a motherly/fatherly figure to validate her existence. Yet, in her brokenness she has a certain flare. Maria has it, too - but her gift is her perceiveness, because she is a great, clever observer - and a very decent human being.
I think that this could be an interesting novel if the protagonists would simply communicate more. Most of them are Spaniards, so what about some fights? Some screeching and dish-throwing? And then what about some hugging and crying in each others' arms?

The House of Silence took some persevering to finish . For the first quarter I couldn't understand who was who and what was what. The writing was competent, but the structure and the characters confused me.

The timelines messed up with my head as well. For quite a while, I couldn't quite figure it out when the novel was set. It begins with sever year old Teresa who found a Steiner violin in the tip, where she was scavenging with her mum for things to sell on. Initially, I thought maybe it was set in the nineteenth century. They were doing it rough, food was scarce, mum was making a living from sewing. There were very few modern elements to give us a sense of when the story was taking place. Later on, another character's pov, there's reference to the falling of Berlin Wall. Aha! 1989. And then it moves back in time, another character's pov, another setting.

I got dizzy and a bit annoyed. As you know, I love music of all kinds. This novel has at its core music, the love and dedication needed to become proficient at playing an instrument. I just couldn't get invested in the story and the characters.

Does a violin a soul? And can the soul of the instrument connect with the soul of the one playing it to create something magical? This was a haunting tale that explores these questions through the viewpoint of the three women that have played this magical violin. This one will stay with me for quite a while.