The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Wow -- an incredible debut novel! It has everything I love: classical music, mystery, intrigue, family drama, edge-of-your-seat-what-will-happen-next page turning excitement! It starts out with Ray McMillan preparing for an upcoming violin competition when his extremely valuable Stradivarius violin is stolen. The story immediately goes back several years to focus on Ray's his family life, his early love of the violin, his musical talent, and his journey approaching the iconic Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. We also learn how a Black boy from a poor family in North Carolina acquires a Stradivarius, along with all of the many setbacks and challenges he encounters along the way. Luckily he meets a college music professor when he is auditioning for a regional orchestra who immediately offers him a full scholarship and becomes his mentor, guiding him throughout his early career. Be sure to listen to one of the Spotify playlists which have been created to accompany this book with tracks of all the music Ray plays during his performances. Highly recommended! I'm looking forward to the author's second book, "Symphony of Secrets" which is due to be published this month (April 2023).
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