The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

Slocumb begins this novel with the theft of Ray McMillian’s $10 million Stradivarius violin, but we are quickly taken back to his past: we see how he comes into his own as a Black violinist in the highly competitive (and racist) world of classical music, and the people who help and hinder him — including as he tries to recover his violin in time for a prestigious competition.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room: This is not a great mystery (I correctly identified who stole the violin when they first appeared in the narrative), and I wouldn’t recommend reading it if the primary draw for you is the whodunnit. That said, I was very drawn to Ray’s origin story and the challenges he faced. Although many of the characters seemed like sketches or foils for Ray’s personal journey, it was still meaningful to see him grapple with things like imposter syndrome, family conflict, relationships, and of course racism.

It was even more powerful to learn, in the author’s note, that many of Ray’s experiences come from Slocumb’s own life; despite the weaknesses of the mystery plot, this book offers a moving fictional account of the very real struggles one can face both as a Black classical musician and as a Black man in America and abroad.

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The Violin Conspiracy is part of the Tournament of Books, a sort of March Madness for 16 books from the previous year. If this sounds like an interesting event to you, I’d recommend checking out the list and trying at least one or two books that catch your eye!