Review of the Violin Conspiracy

I am busily reading through “best of 2022” mysteries and thought this one was an interesting suggestion. What is a mystery? What are your criteria for a book being a mystery? This one made me rethink mine a little. Check out my Review of the Violin Conspiracy!

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

Published on February 1, 2022 by Anchor Books

Synopsis: Ray McMillian loves playing the violin more than anything, and nothing will stop him from pursuing his dream of becoming a professional musician. Not his mother, who thinks he should get a real job, not the fact that he can’t afford a high-caliber violin, not the racism inherent in the classical music world.

But when he makes the shocking discovery that his great-grandfather’s “fiddle” is actually a priceless Stradivarius, his star begins to rise.

But with the international Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—fast approaching, his prized family heirloom is stolen.

Ray is determined to get it back. But now his family and the descendants of the man who once enslaved Ray’s great-grandfather are each claiming that the violin belongs to them.

With the odds stacked against him and the pressure mounting, will Ray ever see his beloved violin again?

What Else Has Brendan Slocomb Written?

He’s a debut author. You can check out his website. Here’s his bio:

Brendan was born in Yuba City, California and was raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He holds a degree in music education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. For more than twenty years he has been a public and private school music educator and has performed with orchestras throughout the Washington, DC area. 

In his spare time, Brendan enjoys writing, exercising, collecting comic books and action figures, and performing with his rock band, Geppetto’s Wüd.

He has a second book coming out next year and I am ON it.

Updated: Check out my review of Symphony of Secrets, published in 2023!

Review of The Violin Conspiracy

I am not a musician in any way, shape or form. My family says my singing is terrible. So rude. I do know the lyrics to every 80s power ballad and many 80s alternative songs. Which does impress my family quite a bit.

What I do love? Stories about people who are good at something and completely passionate about it. Like this book with a rather unlikeable main character.

Ray is a gifted classical musician. He’s also a Black man, which leads most people to make assumptions about him and his musical abilities.

Knowing his love for music, Ray’s beloved grandmother gave him his great-grandfather’s old fiddle out of the attic. This fiddle, and Ray’s skill at (and love for) playing it, finally gets him noticed in the rather narrow-minded world of classical music.

Great, right? Except his fiddle gets kidnapped. Yes, seriously. There’s a ransom note and everything.

ME: what is happening?

What I loved about The Violin Conspiracy is that it made me re-think what a thriller could be.

No, there is no murder in the book. No bloodshed.

But yes, a kidnapping. An investigation. A ransom note. Suspects. So, yes, I’d say it’s a thriller.

Who could have stolen Ray’s violin? There are plenty of suspects.

What I also loved about The Violin Conspiracy? It’s about so much more than this theft. It’s about talent. About racism and prejudice. About family drama.

I thought about it a lot and The Violin Conspiracy reminded me of The Queen’s Gambit. Both stories are about prodigies. Each story features a main characters face a lot of judgment and prejudice and doubt. Both stories explore a cut-throat world of competitive playing. If you loved The Queen’s Gambit, you should try this book!