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A review by scarroll178
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
3.75
This.. is a really hard book for me to rate.
I loved the MC. He has great character development from the time he’s a kid to the time he's an adult at the end of the book. The relationship he had with his grandma was so beautiful. Hearing his grandma’s writing at the end of the story and everything Ray’s great great grandfather went through was heartrending.
I wish the book had started at the beginning of Ray’s life as opposed to when the violin was stolen because it really took the momentum away from the first half of the story. A little taken aback that every evil/bad character was described as ugly and/or fat. Also, I wish the title had been something else because “Violin Conspiracy” makes the book sound a lot more action packed than it is. The first two thirds of the story focus on Ray’s family and his experience in the classical world. The action comes much later. Also, I wish his girlfriend’s betrayal had been hinted at more before it was revealed at the end. And I’m surprised Ray pushed for the maximum sentence for her. Confused on how her betrayal is supposed to fit in with the themes presented in the rest of the book. Is the message just that you can’t trust anybody?
Also, Ray listing “dating a supermodel” as one of his accomplishments at the end of the book was cheesy and kinda gross tbh.
TW for the G slur for Romani people. It’s used several times in the book.
So, yeah. I loved Ray as a character. And I appreciated all I learned in this book about classical music and the prejudices toward Black classical musicians. But I didn’t like the ending, and I wish the book had been structured differently. And there were some parts that rubbed me the wrong way. Very mixed bag.
I loved the MC. He has great character development from the time he’s a kid to the time he's an adult at the end of the book. The relationship he had with his grandma was so beautiful. Hearing his grandma’s writing at the end of the story and everything Ray’s great great grandfather went through was heartrending.
I wish the book had started at the beginning of Ray’s life as opposed to when the violin was stolen because it really took the momentum away from the first half of the story. A little taken aback that every evil/bad character was described as ugly and/or fat. Also, I wish the title had been something else because “Violin Conspiracy” makes the book sound a lot more action packed than it is. The first two thirds of the story focus on Ray’s family and his experience in the classical world. The action comes much later.
Also, Ray listing “dating a supermodel” as one of his accomplishments at the end of the book was cheesy and kinda gross tbh.
TW for the G slur for Romani people. It’s used several times in the book.
So, yeah. I loved Ray as a character. And I appreciated all I learned in this book about classical music and the prejudices toward Black classical musicians. But I didn’t like the ending, and I wish the book had been structured differently. And there were some parts that rubbed me the wrong way. Very mixed bag.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, and Murder