A review by carireadsbooksandtarot
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

dark emotional informative 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? No

3.5

 
The book opens with the theft of Ray McMillian’s $10 million Stradivarius violin from his hotel room in New York. Going back in time, it is revealed how Ray, a Black musician, came to own this rare instrument and who may have a motive for stealing it. The novel also tackles the racism inherent in the classical music world and what it’s like to be a Black classical musician. 
 
I found this book to be fairly engrossing and enjoyable. Learning the history of the violin and Ray’s family was really interesting and the scenes depicting the racism Ray faced (based on true experiences of the author) were tense and eye-opening. I don’t, however, think this book should be classified as a thriller. I also think they mystery aspect was not particularly believable: the violin is replaced with a shoe and he doesn’t notice a difference in how the case feels when he picks it up? Furthermore, I guessed the culprit about halfway through, and I’m not particularly good at solving the mysteries I read. 
 
JD Jackson’s narration is great and I stayed invested in Ray’s story throughout but I did feel let down in the end. 
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