An Unfinished Score by Elise Blackwell

The provided text is an extended excerpt from the novel "An Unfinished Score" by Elise Blackwell, identified explicitly as a work of fiction published in 2010. The narrative centers on Suzanne, a violist in a string quartet, immediately following the death of her lover, Alex, a famous conductor, in a plane crash. The story explores Suzanne's grief, her struggle to maintain a semblance of normal life with her husband Ben, a composer, and her friend and quartet colleague Petra, and her anxieties about the affair being revealed, especially by Alex's widow, Olivia Elling. Much of the plot revolves around a viola concerto Alex supposedly left unfinished, which Suzanne attempts to complete, leading to a confrontation with Olivia, who eventually reveals that Alex never actually composed the music, implying a larger deception.