Gustav and Alma Mahler in New York City in 1907: He had been invited to lead the Metropolitan opera; his glamorous wife accompanied him to the New World. Nineteen years his junior, Alma was Gustav's constant companion, occasional soulmate, sometimes his muse, always his caretaker: a woman otherwise restless and unfulfilled. Her husband's life was intensely interior, sporadically alert to others' needs and desires. His energy and idealism were aroused by new surroundings, but fitfully. He remained a chronic outsider, with Alma bearing much of the brunt amid their turbulent New York surroundings. A stunning debut novel from renowned cultural historian Joseph Horowitz.
