Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Violin Conspiracy

Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

16 reviews

kimveach's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Great story. The audible narration was terrific, and a violin played in between parts. It was more painful to hear the racism spoken than it would have been to read about it, but that made it more real. I loved learning about the world of the top classical musicians and the Tschaikovsky Competition.

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ajay913's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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passionatereader78's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book is an emotional read. It's so sad. Ray is a great violinist! His mother hates that he plays and wants money. He faces racism at every turn. The only light is his grandmother. She tells a story about her grandfather playing a fiddle like Ray plays the Violin. She loves hearing Ray play. She gives Ray the fiddle and asks him to use that as his instrument. When Ray has the instrument cleaned and appraised he finds out it is a rare Violin worth millions. Ray wants to honor his grandmother and great grandfather and play the instrument. Everyone else has other ideas.

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alisonfaith426's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.25

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pershie13's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It took me a long time to finally finish this book while completing my last semester of undergrad, but this book turned out fantastic! The book follows the story of violinist Ray McMillan, who received no formal training on his instrument until he reached college. Mentored by his violin professor Dr. Janice Stevens, Ray becomes one of the best at his craft. Along with following his journey as a violinist, the story also places an emphasis on the instrument he plays, a Stradivarius violin passed down to him by his grandmother. The story turns into a sort of mystery/thriller as we find out in the opening pages that this violin has been stolen and requires a multi-million dollar ransom for its return. This story covers many of the issues that Black people often face in the field of classical music, as well as the themes of hard work, family, and mentorship. The story definitely took unexpected turns, and I questioned to the very end what was going to happen to Ray, his violin, and his musical career. The book was fantastic, and I enjoyed every twist and turn!

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mgraceoliver's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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tome's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

It is truly rare that one finds a book that floors the reader. In spite of that, this review is being written lying on my apartment floor. Riveting from start to finish, what was meant to be a light hour of afternoon reading became the whole afternoon to finish the novel. Slocumb masterfully weaves the plot together, easily transitioning between past struggles, current anguish, and the ever looming worries of the Tchaikovsky competition. Even between the deeply emotional aspects of Ray's journey, details about the mystery are well interspersed throughout the novel, though the ending reveal still shocked me. This was truly an amazing read that I cannot recommend enough.

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