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Brendan Nicholaus Slocumb was raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, & holds a degree in music education (with concentrations in violin & viola) from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. For more than twenty years he has been a public & private school music educator & has performed with orchestras throughout Northern Virginia, Maryland, & Washington, D.C. GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK! • Ray McMillian is a Black classical musician on the rise—undeterred by the pressure and prejudice of the classical music world — when a shocking theft sends him on a desperate quest to recover his great-great-grandfather’s heirloom violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world. “I loved The Violin Conspiracy for exactly the same reasons I loved The Queen’s Gambit : a surprising, beautifully rendered underdog hero I cared about deeply and a fascinating, cutthroat world I knew nothing about—in this case, classical music.” —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and Hour of the Witch Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian’s life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dream—he’s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can’t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music. When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he's lost a piece of himself. As the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himself—and the world—that no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him. GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK!#160; Ray McMillian is a Black classical musician on the riseundeterred by the pressure and prejudice of the classical music world when a shocking theft sends him on a desperate quest to recover his great-great-grandfathers heirloom violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world. I loved The Violin Conspiracy for exactly the same reasons I loved The Queens Gambit : a surprising, beautifully rendered underdog hero I cared about deeply and a fascinating, cutthroat#160;world I knew nothing aboutin this case, classical music. Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and Hour of the Witch Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillians life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dreamhes determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he cant afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music.#160; #160; When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly#160;seem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competitionthe Olympics of classical musicthe violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he's lost a piece of himself.#160;As the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himselfand the worldthat no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him A riveting page-turner about a Black classical musicians desperate quest to recover his lost violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world [A] galvanizing blend of thriller, coming-of-age drama, and probing portrait of racism ... This flawless debut will do for classical music what The Queen's Gambit did for chess. Booklist Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillians life is already mapped out. If hes lucky, hell get a job at the hospital cafeteria. If hes extra lucky, hell earn more than minimum wage. But Ray has a gift and a dreamhes determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he cant afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music. When he discovers that his great-great-grandfathers beat-up old fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach. Together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competitionthe Olympics of classical musicthe violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Ray will have to piece together the clues to recover his treasured Strad ... before its too late. With the descendants of the man who once enslaved Rays great-great-grandfather asserting that the instrument is rightfully theirs, and with his family staking their own claim, Ray doesnt know who he can trustor whether he will ever see his beloved violin again A riveting page-turner about a Black classical musician?s desperate quest to recover his lost violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world "Utterly original and downright gripping." ?Zakiya Dalila Harris, New York Times bestselling author of The Other Black Girl Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian?s life is already mapped out. If he?s lucky, he?ll get a job at the hospital cafeteria. If he?s extra lucky, he?ll earn more than minimum wage. But Ray has a gift and a dream?he?s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can?t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music.? ? When he discovers that his great-great-grandfather?s beat-up old fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach. Together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition?the Olympics of classical music?the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Ray will have to piece together the clues to recover his treasured Strad . . . before it?s too late. With the descendants of the man who once enslaved Ray?s great-great-grandfather asserting that the instrument is rightfully theirs, and with his family staking their own claim, Ray doesn?t know who he can trust?or whether he will ever see his beloved violin again A mystery about a Black classical musician whose family heirloom violin is stolen on the eve of the most prestigious classical music competition in the world. 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. And when he makes the startling discovery that his great-grandfather's fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, his star begins to rise. Then with the international Tchaikovsky Competitionthe Olympics of classical musicfast 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? "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. And when he makes the startling discovery that his great-grandfather's fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, his star begins to rise. Then 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?"--. Provided by publisher