Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby - February 2022

[Kristie, Moderator (Retired)]

Our winning group read for February 2022 is Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby. Please discuss here and remember to use spoiler tags as needed, as everyone may start at different times and reads at different speeds.



A Black father. A white father. Two murdered sons. A quest for vengeance.

Ike Randolph has been out of jail for fifteen years, with not so much as a speeding ticket in all that time. But a Black man with cops at the door knows to be afraid.

The last thing he expects to hear is that his son Isiah has been murdered, along with Isiah’s white husband, Derek. Ike had never fully accepted his son but is devastated by his loss.

Derek’s father Buddy Lee was almost as ashamed of Derek for being gay as Derek was ashamed his father was a criminal. Buddy Lee still has contacts in the underworld, though, and he wants to know who killed his boy.

Ike and Buddy Lee, two ex-cons with little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their dead sons, band together in their desperate desire for revenge. In their quest to do better for their sons in death than they did in life, hardened men Ike and Buddy Lee will confront their own prejudices about their sons and each other, as they rain down vengeance upon those who hurt their boys.

Provocative and fast-paced, S. A. Cosby's Razorblade Tears is a story of bloody retribution, heartfelt change - and maybe even redemption.

[sonya]

It’s really good

[Lisa - (Aussie Girl)]

I just read this over in another group. I agree it's not what I usually read but it was really good. Great book to discuss for a group read.

[Paige]

I am actually going to be reading this for two book clubs in the month of February (this one and the Literally Dead Book Club). Super excited to get started on it.

[Taja]

Didn't think I would like it, but I really enjoyed it.

[Andrea]

Started this on Feb 1 by fluke and just noticed it's one of the books of the month here! I'm listening to the audio and it's pretty heavy but I'm very into the story and loving the writing. I'm about half done.

[Ed]

I read this when it came out last year and loved it! If you enjoy it, try Blacktop Wasteland too which I thought was even better :)

[Devin]

I thought this book had a lot of potential but missed the mark in plot line and dialog. The over arching theme of "love is love" was great and I was really glad they took on that topic but some of the dialog was repetitive and the storyline was just very unbelievable to me. I also noticed a lot of typos in my copy and that bothered me. I would rate it 3.5 stars if that was an option.

[Carol]

I’m a little worried that this might be a “preachy” book….which would not be my cup of tea. Interested in hearing other’s take before diving in.

[Sarah]

I throughly enjoyed this book. I thought it was a great story about two fathers seeking to discover who murder their sons. The plot was unique and tackled difficult subjects such as homophobia, racism, and discrimination through the eyes of two very flawed yet raw and honest characters of Ike and Buddy Lee. There is a lot of violence but if you can get past that, I thought the book was so interesting. The friendship that develops between the two fathers is powerful and I appreciated the characters honesty with mistakes and regrets of raising homosexual sons. Neither Ike or Buddy Lee was going to be winning father of the year but both were determined to discover and seek revenge on the person or people who killed their sons.

[Melissa]

I’m enjoying it! It’s not my usual read. I agree that the dialogue is a little clunky at times but the action is good. I could really see this as a movie - an updated buddy / revenge / dark mystery movie with some deeper themes.

[Sarah]

Melissa wrote: "I’m enjoying it! It’s not my usual read. I agree that the dialogue is a little clunky at times but the action is good. I could really see this as a movie - an updated buddy / revenge / dark mystery..."

I totally agree with you about seeing as a movie. I kept thinking that the entire time I was reading it with all the action. Although there was way too much violence for me. I would much rather see some great actors chosen for Buddy Lee and Ike and focus on those twos unlikely strange friendship that developed. Maybe Denzel Washington and Matthew McConaughey? Michael B. Jordan or Jamie Foxx? Could think of some many!