Immortal by Jessica Duchen

Synopsis
Who was Beethoven’s ‘Immortal Beloved’? After Ludwig van Beethoven’s death, a love letter in his writing was discovered, addressed only to his ‘Immortal Beloved’. Decades later, Countess Therese Brunsvik claims to have been the composer’s lost love. Yet is she concealing a tragic secret? Who is the one person who deserves to know the truth? Becoming Beethoven’s pupils in 1799, Therese and her sister Josephine followed his struggles against the onset of deafness, Viennese society’s flamboyance, privilege and hypocrisy and the upheavals of the Napoleonic wars. While Therese sought liberation, Josephine found the odds stacked against even the most unquenchable of passions…

Review
What I love most about historical fiction is learning something new, and Jessica Duchen’s new book Immortal gave me a fascinating insight into the world of Beethoven. This is a work of fiction, based on a letter found in a hidden draw of Beethoven’s apartment after his death, dedicated to ‘my Immortal Beloved’. But who was his Immortal Beloved, over the years many there have been different theories, and Jessica Duchen opens her book with Countess Terese Brunsvik telling a student that it was her Beethoven was writting about, but was she covering up for someone else? Covering Beethoven’s rise to fame, his inceasing problems with deafness, and set amongst an ever changing Europe this is a wonderfully engaging love story about an eternal mystery.

Immortal is the perfect piece of historical fiction for me, seamlessly blending fact and fiction with plenty of historical detail. In my family I am the art aficionado, whilst my husband is the classical music brain, so whilst I knew Beethoven’s music I didn’t know much about the man himself, but I had heard of this letter. Like many artistic geniuses, he was a torchered soul, having a difficult childhood,and being estranged from his brothers, and used music to express his emotions. He seemed to need to be loved and wanted, especially by women, most of who were part of the aristocracy, of which there was a lot in Europe at that time, and who he could never marry due to the class system. Into his world come Countessses Theresa and Josephine Brunsvik, both of whom are accomplished musicians and huge admirers of Beethoven’s music. It is through his relationship and friendship with Teresa and Josephine that we see Beethoven the man, his insecurities, his success and his failures.

Through the characters of Josephine and Theresa we see how women were treated through this period of late eighteenth to early nineteenth century. Everything was based on getting the best marriage possible, regardless of love or age. One married it is the old story of women being property of their husbands, having no say in money or really in their children’s lives. Josephine finds herself widowed meaning her husbands family could take her children away from her, especially if she remarried. Theresa can be seen as a trailblazer, deciding never to get married after seeing the challenges her sister goes through. She is a believer in the education of girls as well as boys, so much so that in later life she established a school for girls.

This period of history is fascinating, with a lot of changes going on in Europe and beyond. Nearly ever character is either a Prince or Princess, Count or Countess Duke or Duchess as Europe had many smaller states and not the bigger countries we have today. The cultural, political and social history is written with sublime detail, following the Napopeonic Wars accross Europe that change the face of the cities including Viena on the surface and in the government. The oppulance of the palaces, filled with Grand Master art, having the most famous composers, Schubert as well as Salieri and Beethoven entertain their guests. Also at the forefront is the importance of lineage, where class is important and marriage to someone of a lower class would have been a scandal. All this luxury is juxtaposed with the harsh effects of the war, the shortages of food, the lack of money and the death of the soldiers.

What struck me the most though with this book is how Jessica Duchen skillfully brings the music of Beethoven to life. It is strange to think of reading about musical compositions but the descriptions and Jessica Duchen’s passion brings them to life, I really felt I understood the notes on the page and could hear the pieces in my head; I did end up listening to parts of the pieces mentioned in the book to get a more rounded view of Beethoven.

Immortal is a stunning and fascinating read. The love story of Beethoven’s ‘Immortal Beloved at it’s heart is dazzling if heartbreaking, and Jessica Duchen does make a good case for the lady named in this book (you need to read the book to find out). Written with skill, passion and wonderful detail, this is the perfect read for this years two hundred anf fiftieth celebration of his birth.