Southside Book and Writers Club Review of (Troubled Redemption), by Ciara j Lewis

4- Stars were given to this powerful and thought-provoking read. Some of the members felt that at times the read was to slow and also that the author forced a happy ending for everyone. This book was not a romance, even though many will say that it was. It read more like a drama or thriller in the opinions of the club members. It did have a hint of romance, which softens the read a lot! However, this was a drama, and dramas should be exactly that (dramatic), scary, and at times in your face.

Torrian nor TJ and Aiden, both had tragic incidents shape their past. Torrian experienced the worst a child could experience in foster care, at the hands of people/families that should have protected him. That abuse, both physical and mentally, shaped him into a hardened teenager who only knew one way to protect himself and that was to fight. The fighting led him to constantly getting in trouble, another foster brother pulling a gun on him, becoming a bully, and making bad decisions.

The bright side of Torrian or how you knew he could be more, or redeemed, and changed. With all that fighting he did, he finished school and got a full scholarship to college. That right there, showed, that it was so much more to this kid and then the next question, how to get him to realize that he didn’t have to fight anymore.

Aiden, her father, was shot and killed during a home invasion; her mother was paralyzed from the incident. No wonder she was bitter and angry with the world. Her bitterness and anger had almost caused her to lock herself away from life, and think that everyone was bad or even out to get her.

Torrain’s mother is a key factor in this book, as well as one of his foster brothers Jamal. Aiden’s mother and two friends Whitney and Samuel all play small roles in the story that is Aiden. The club decided not to go into to detail about the sub-characters because we felt that it would be telling the whole story. What you read above, is nowhere near the full story of those too young people’s lives. This is one book you have to pick-up and read for yourself.