Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

80 reviews

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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adrienneleigh's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

4.5

I really enjoyed reading about Ray and his connection to music and his connection to his family through the music. My favorite scenes were his performances, especially the Tchaikovsky competition. The instances of racism were hard to read, and I’m glad that the author included in the author’s note that these were real things that had happened to him. 
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sfunk's review against another edition

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5.0

This was one of the best books I've read in a while!
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disguisedposer's review against another edition

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hopeful mysterious sad fast-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

5.0

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pepp_sheffield's review against another edition

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2.0

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dominiq_ec's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I LOVED this book, despite how re-traumatizing it is to read as a Black person. On that front, i strongly recommend readers be careful with that book. 

Also, the only reason it’s not getting 5 stars is because it uses the term/slur “g*psy” a handful of times. I’m unsure if this is an acceptable term to use when describing classical music and/or its methods, but because it was never explained in-depth, it reflected poorly on the author and publishing company
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jmross10's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

4.5

I am not generally a thriller reader given the genres most common tropes. I stumbled on this book when looking for one that didn’t revolve around murder and was instantly hooked by the premise. 

Slocumb did a great job of bringing his passion for music to the page and making that love understandable not only to people who share it but also to those who might be experiencing it through his/Ray’s eyes for the first time. 

Across the pages of this book readers are confronted with unconditional love, respect, and dedication but also the brutal honesty of what it is to be black, well off, and accomplished. Slocumb doesn’t shy away from Ray’s struggles and it gives the readers a point of view they may never have considered or could never have the personal experience to understand. 

It was real without feeling so over the top that it came across as comical or unbelievable. The pacing was good and I like the way the timeline was rearranged to tell the story in a more fitting way. I also appreciated that the mystery wasn’t obvious from page one. 

An all around excellent book. A really good read for those who enjoy contemporary stories, books about music or musicians, and/or sociopolitical conversations. There’s plenty to unpack from beginning to end. 
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ladyzbyrd's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • 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

4.0

This was a fun and emotional read. I was so angry and sad the whole way through, scattered with bits of joy, only to be turned to rage again and again. What a way to mess with a reader’s heart and still come out of the book and say yes, this was an amazing read! 

There were definitely some parts that’s defy realism when it comes to procedures in various fields that made certain scenes difficult to believe, and I had to set that aside. Reading this slower on my second go around with a group, I ended up in several rabbit holes, mostly due to the above-mentioned procedures in different scenes. 
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dragongirl271's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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language_loving_amateur's review against another edition

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tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

 The tension was higher than I expected, but very good and the book kept me on my toes. 
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