A review by theroastedbookery
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

challenging emotional hopeful sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

The TLDR version of this review is "I loved it." All the things I pack into the word love is astounding.  I quite honestly don't know where to begin. I had to sit with this book and these feelings for a long time before I felt I could even begin to translate what was happening in my head and in my heart into words. The long and the short of it really is that I felt seen by this book. Fish out of water, the only one in the room...absolutely, I felt every single bit of the same discomfort, heard the same questions about my right or fitness to occupy space, heard the same back-handed compliments. That's what it really comes down to for me. Yes, the book is excellently paced and the plot is structured well. It is imminently enjoyable to read because the jumps in time keep you guessing as the plot unfolds. High level of craftsmanship all around. But seeing Ray's struggles in the spaces he deserves to be in, seeing his tumultuous and fractured relationship with his family, seeing the juxtapositions of courage (Ray) and cowardice (Ray's mother) clearly illuminated a struggle I've seen play out time and again. I love this book because Ray doesn't shrink away from the light, and he let's the talent and passion he has burn for the world to see.

Things I Liked:
  • Fast paced, riveting story
  • The novel was well constructed with no wasted words
  • This was an authentically Black story - not a story with a black face on it
  • While the story explored the complications and consequences of diminished economic opportunity and racism, the characters weren't made to wallow in trauma porn to make the point

 
Trigger Warning:
  • There is one scene where the treatment of enslaved people is described. It is all the more poignant and painful because the book doesn't wallow.