When Eli Atkin’s mother betrays him in his girlfriend’s murder trial, he has no choice but to flee his home. He must find a way to survive, ultimately clear his name, and emerge transformed in Paul Attaway’s novel, Eli’s Redemption.
When life corners you, what choice do you have? On the brink of his high school graduation and a potential major league baseball career, Eli Atkins is framed for the brutal murder of his beloved girlfriend. His alibi hinges on the honest testimony of his mother, but instead she shocks him with a cruel, ruthless lie. Devastated and terrified, Eli takes his chance and runs away, fast. Alone, grieving, and confused, where can this troubled young man turn? He has to fight for his freedom and reputation, despite the impacts on others’ lives.
In the first book of the series, Blood in the Low Country, Eli escapes dangerous accusations, and the warrant for his arrest. We never learn where he goes, until now.
The thrilling tale behind that mystery mixes aspirations of hope with a dire tension. Once again the unknown may swoop in and create circumstances that will bury Eli forever. At the risk of facing arrest themselves for helping an escaping suspect charged with murder, surprising people step in for the sake of their friend. Eli makes it safely to the Caribbean. He hides from his old life and the law that pursues him, assuming a new identity. Though he escapes, he also leaves behind everything he loved. Eli grieves the loss of his girlfriend, his family, and the future he had planned for himself. All that has dissolved into thin air.
Anxious for the efforts of his friends back home to prove his innocence, Eli waits. Weeks turn into months and then years.
While others work on his behalf, digging up clues and following leads, the rhythm of life in the Caribbean captivates Eli. He discovers some joy in his work, in those people around him, and in new interests. The devoted baseball player tries his hand at a new game, golf. He develops enviable expertise. When he least expects to, he meets someone special, and irresistible. Cautiously, he even opens the door to the possibility of a new love.
Similar to the game of golf, life sometimes leaves players out of bounds, or deep in a sand trap. Not everyone wins with a hole in one. Eli finds delights in the Caribbean, but also dangers. When he has the chance to clear his name and reconcile with his old life, will he be tripped up again by the deceptions of his new life? Is Eli’s Redemption just one more broken dream? He fears that may be par for the course for his future. And yet, Eli drives forward and finds out.
Author Paul Attaway satisfies readers’ curiosity about Eli’s escape and his experiences as he grows from a scared teenager into an exiled man.
Artistically, the author paints the picture of this young man’s emotional journey. Along with Eli, the reader cringes with fears, thrills at joys, grieves at loss, and is surprised by new trouble and danger. Tension builds, keeping our interest and concern as Eli, and those around him, are tested by trials and tribulations. While we follow Eli’s adventures, we’re also treated to glimpses into the lives of those he left behind. How can they move forward without Eli, immersed in all the secrets that drove him away? Readers will be in Eli’s corner when he finally returns home and faces his ultimate test, his family. Reconciliation is easier said than done.
