The publisher provides the following statement about the accessibility of the EPUB file supplied to OverDrive. Experiences may vary across reading systems. After borrowing the book, you may download the EPUB files to read in another reading system.
This ebook features mark-up that supports accessibility and enables compatibility with assistive technology. It has been designed to allow display properties to be modified by the reader. The file includes a table of contents, a defined reading order, and ARIA roles to identify key sections and improve the reading experience. A page list and page break locations help readers coordinate with the print edition. Headings allow readers to navigate the ebook quickly by level. Images are well described in conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Colors meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA contrast standards. There are no hazards.
Appearance of the text and page layout can be modified according to the capabilities of the reading system (font family and font size, spaces between paragraphs, sentences, words, and letters, as well as color of background and text).
All content can be read as read aloud speech or dynamic braille.
Has alternative text descriptions for images.
The publication contains a conformance statement that it meets the EPUB Accessibility and WCAG 2 Level AA standard.
This publication claims to meet EPUB Accessibility 1.1 WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
Table of contents to all chapters of the text via links.
Elements such as headings, tables, etc for structured navigation.
Page breaks included
February 1, 2025
Slocumb (The Violin Conspiracy, a GMA book club pick) pens another musical thriller. Cello prodigy Curtis Wilson has succeeded in the classical music world, despite growing up with a drug dealer for a father. When his father implicates his old bosses to the FBI, the family must enter the witness protection program, and they'll have to take on the cartel themselves to survive. Prepub Alert.
Copyright 2024 Library Journal
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
February 1, 2025
Slocumb's (Symphony of Secrets) new novel, a musical literary thriller, illustrates the shady side of a life of crime but also the beauty of the strings in the symphony. Curtis Wilson is a child prodigy on the cello who received his instrument through a free school program. His father, Zippy, is a low-level drug dealer in Washington, DC, who doesn't have much time for his son. But Zippy's girlfriend Larissa sees and encourages Curtis's musical potential while gifting him the comic books he devours. While, Zippy's boss moves Zippy into a higher but sketchier business position, Curtis earns a spot at Julliard and is becoming known nationwide as a star cellist. Then his father turns state's evidence and the family is moved into witness protection, putting a hold on Curtis's skyrocketing musical career. The family comes together, however, while in hiding to create an online comic book called The Dark Maestro and to pick up where the FBI has left off on a quest for justice. VERDICT The twists of the story keep coming, and the thread of superhero comics and the Dark Maestro bring readers along on a journey that comic book fans will appreciate.--Kerri Copus
Copyright 2025 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from March 15, 2025
A cello prodigy takes on merciless criminals. The latest classical music-themed thriller from Slocumb follows Curtis Wilson, who grows up in Washington, D.C., with Zippy, his drug-dealer father, and Larissa, Zippy's on-again, off-again girlfriend. Curtis loves two things: comic books and the cello, which he plays at a startlingly advanced level. Zippy gets busted for selling drugs and goes to prison while Curtis continues his ascent as a musical prodigy, earning a scholarship to Juilliard; when Zippy is released, he leaves behind his drug-dealing life--for an even sketchier, and more illegal, black-market scheme. Zippy gets busted again, this time by the FBI, and agrees to cooperate with the feds to bring down his bosses, but things go south, and the family enters the witness protection program, hoping to stay safe from Zippy's vengeful employers. Curtis chafes against his forced anonymity: "Music had been his way ofconnecting....How could he talk to people, how could he explain how he felt and make them like him, without music? It just didn't seem possible." Eventually, he realizes he'll need to take down the criminals himself, with the help of Zippy, Larissa, and a comic book character he originally created as a child. This is an intricately plotted novel, paced perfectly by Slocumb, who keeps the book moving at a breakneck speed--but not at the expense of his beautifully drawn characters. Curtis, shy and sweet, is especially memorable; Slocumb paints a beautiful picture of the young man's internal life. The final act of the book strains credulity, but who cares when you're having so much fun? This novel should catapult Slocumb into the upper echelon of thriller authors. A virtuosic thriller.
COPYRIGHT(2025) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
April 1, 2025
For Curtis Wilson, the cello is everything. It's his passion and his way out of the oppressive poverty and racism he endured as a child. He's a talented prodigy on the brink of a stellar career when it all comes crashing down. His father cooperates with the FBI to provide evidence against a dangerous criminal organization, forcing the family into a witness protection program. They must all start over with new identities to save their lives, and Curtis can no longer perform. With so few Black cellists in major orchestras, it would be impossible for him to blend in, even with a new name. Seeking an anonymous outlet for his creativity, Curtis creates the Dark Maestro, a comic superhero, and eventually has millions of online followers. When even this puts his family in danger, he decides he's had enough of hiding and hatches a plan to sidestep the FBI and bring the criminals to justice on his own. Following up on The Violin Conspiracy (2022) and Symphony of Secrets (2023), Slocumb delivers another winning music-themed thriller.
COPYRIGHT(2025) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.