A moving, heartbreaking, and triumphant story about family and community in the face of evil

This was my forty-third book I chose via the Reedsy Discovery program, for which I am the single approved reviewer for this new book. This review also appears on Reedsy.

If you’re interested in becoming a Reedsy reviewer (and have the chance to get paid “tips” to review books!) check it out here.

The Premise

After the death of their mother Chandra, her three children continue to live on as though she is alive but just isolating like she had been at her workplace due to the Covid-19 outbreak. They fear that they would be split up in foster care, and with the oldest daughter Isabella’s resourceful measures, they are able to survive on their own for several months — before they are noticed by someone who abuses the information. Their suffering at the hands of this evil man is brought to an end when Chandra’s former coworker visits to return her things, but escaping from his lecherous reach is not quite so simple. Their story reveals the seedy underbelly of sex criminals, and celebrates the power of a community to counteract the darkness.

The Pros & Cons

This was a moving, heartbreaking, and triumphant story about family and community in the face of evil.

With the Covid-19 pandemic as a backdrop, it explores a “what if?” scenario that, though fictional, could easily have happened to a family: death of a parent, lockdown restrictions, and a lecherous abuser exploiting their misfortune. Told from a third-person omniscient narrator, it covers multiple viewpoints of the mother, her children, and all the parties that come into play to rescue the family and defend the eldest daughter’s unknowingly illegal activities. Swinging from emotionally wrenching scenarios to practical, procedural court justice systems, there is a lot to love here for all types of readers — drama, crime, family life, faith, and even a sliver of romance.

Above all, at its heart is the story of the community that closes ranks around the three children once they knew what was going on, rescuing them in more ways than one. I especially loved the late-in-life romance with two characters who assumed parental roles, the Reverend’s involvement at all stages of the children’s lives, and the resilience of the young girl Isabella as she faced her abuser despite having the odds stacked against her. There are also a few plot twists that employ dark comedy, which will thrill and excite readers.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel all the way through, and flew through it quickly. There are no real flaws here, but I were to comment on anything to set other readers’ expectations, it would be that as it covers several years of events, the pacing does speed up significantly at times, particularly when the chunks of the factual research of the novel are slotted into the narrative.

Also, though I appreciated that there is a universal element to this story — this could’ve happened to any family — I felt like race was a critical factor of this particular story, but it was mentioned (told) rather than being naturally interwoven into the story (shown) through descriptions, behaviours, language, etc. The story is more plot-driven than character-driven so these elements were minimal, whereas the backdrop of Covid and the story’s events with the court case took prominence. Nevertheless, as indicated, these are not drawbacks to the story itself in any way, but just my own takeaway as a reader of the writer’s style and preferences in the way she told her story.

Conclusion

Overall this was a beautiful, multi-layered story that was well written and engaging. I admit that the title made me wary at first — as we’re still *in* the pandemic, it’s difficult to read novels set in this time! — but I was glad that the real story here is much, much deeper than just “another pandemic story.” Here, we see the potential gaps of coverage revealed by the pandemic — the events that snowballed simply because our society was not prepared for it.

From the abuse that was able to trickle through the gaps, to the new criminal outlets that manifested as predators were forced to change tactics, to the flaws in the systems for social and financial government assistance programs; it was eye-opening and enlightening to consider some of the ways in which this pandemic broke our society. More importantly, it was heartwarming to see the ways in which the goodness in our community can triumph over its evil.

This story is an important one, and I could even imagine it being made into a film, as there are many highs and lows and twists that would make for an epic, excellent, cinematic story. I look forward to reading more by this author.

Purchase your copy