About Magnificent Redemption
|
|
Desmond Anderson, an honor student and nationally recognized four-sport athlete destined for a promising future, is dealt an unjust hand during his freshman year of college in the 1960s, when he was sentenced to a 40-year prison term in the Deep South for a crime he did not commit. But Desmond knows adversity first hand, growing up in a riot-torn, crime-ravaged urban community in the North, which formed his steel-willed determination. In this novel, Desmond’s life is skillfully depicted upon his release from prison through diverse themes of murder, sexual liaisons, homosexuality, Alzheimer’s disease, and spirituality. Revisit with him—four decades later—his past relationships, his family bonds, and the crimes that robbed him of his bright future and threaten the final chapter of his life.
Here’s what two judges from the Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards competition had to say about Magnificent Redemption:
“Good work on this story! The production and cover were well-done and will draw the reader in. Also, the plot and conflict of a past mistake coming back to haunt Desmond is interesting. The racial tension is built up well and portrayed well. While there were important social themes here, the exploration of the issues does not come off overly preachy. Desmond was a good character whose past helped to examine the questions inspired by the plot.”
The novel was evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5. Here is how Magnificent Redemption was rated by one judge:
Grammar: 4
Production Quality and Cover Design: 4
Structure and Organization: 3
Plot: 3
Character Development: 2
“The front cover is intriguing and draws the reader in. The colors are just right. The back copy is well-done and compels the readers even more to crack open this book! I love the author’s bio and photo on the back; I really like the author’s acknowledgments and personal tributes in the book as well, but I’m not sure they belong up front. The author’s extensive research shows clearly. The characters were all well-drawn, and I really like the addition of each individual’s needed redemption in the introduction. That was a brilliant touch. (I’m really bummed that Dez’s redemption required him to die though).
I loved the interior elegant font for the book’s title and at the beginning of the introductory material and wonder why it is not on the cover as well as at the start of each chapter. The first letter of each chapter’s first word would look great with that addition. The photo of the book’s cover on the current chapter heading just doesn’t work for me. Another thing that was bothersome is that Eve’s acceptance of Dez’s sexual relationship with Charlene doesn’t ring true; and I understand that Charlene is alluring, but I find it hard to accept that Dez would sleep with her even the first time because he knows that she is trouble and a threat to his relationship with Eve. Since it is integral to the story, I know it can’t be removed, but perhaps it can be better justified.”
The novel was rated on a scale of 1 to 5. Here is how Magnificent Redemption was rated by another judge:
Grammar: 4
Production Quality and Cover Design: 4
Structure and Organization: 3
Plot: 3
Character Development: 2
