Violence and Vengeance

Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby

A 5⭐️ Book Review

Razorblade Tears has been all over my Bookstagram feed for the past two months. I enjoyed this book because of the emotional story, but I have to admit that it took me longer than usual to read this one. The violence and desperation that S. A. Cosby describes is truly heartbreaking.

The book is centered on two fathers, Ike and Buddy Lee, and their deeply complicated relationships with their sons. Ike is a Black man who changed his life after his prison release but never connected with his son, Isiah. Buddy Lee, who is white, has tried to drink away his own criminal past and troubles with his son Derek. But when Isiah and Derek are shot and killed, leaving their young daughter Arianna and a mysterious story about a friend named Tangerine, Ike and Buddy Lee join together to seek vengeance against their married sons’ murderers. The fathers, both engulfed in grief, must face their assumptions about each other and their sons in order to move forward.

Razorblade Tears takes you on a journey about race, sexuality, and family. It’s a story where there are no winners, no heroes, but it’s also a story about hope and love. Mr. Cosby’s writing is descriptive and lyrical, but sparse and brutal at the same time.

Reading this book was hard. As a parent, I cannot imagine losing a child, and I ached for the losses felt by Ike and Buddy Lee. This is the most violent book I’ve read in a long time, and it felt like I was watching a movie as I read each page.