'Certain Liberties' is an historical novel about a gifted young musician who defies 19th- century models of womanhood by trying to succeed in a man's world. It was said that she had 'male courage, feminine fortitude and the soul of an artist'. Challenging cultural bias against playing the 'masculine' violin and performing in public in an 'unladylike position', she incited censure for her views on everything from politics to the shackles of women's...