Act Of Grace by Karen Simpson

Life takes its toll on most people. By middle age or older, we've been hurt emotionally and/or physically a time or two. Each individual chooses how he or she will handle these unwanted lessons of life. Grace's emotional scars come from her mother, Mariam. This woman is unable or unwilling to show unconditional love to Grace, her daughter. Her other daughter, Jamila, can do no wrong.Grace's life is a railroad track. One side of her life is covered with mercy. The other side of her life is covered with nothing good. Act of Grace by Karen Simpson is about love, forgiveness, family and secrets. Throughout the novel, Grace's life is fought on a battlefield beside that railroad track.

Grace has a personal relationship with her ancestors who have passed to the other side. These ancestors give Grace guidance. Grace contends with the secret of not knowing how her father died. Her mother with an attitude claims suicide as the cause. The people in Vigilant say his murder was a Hate crime committed by the Klu Klux Klan.

 At this point, the novel flips over and becomes a mystery. Because not only is Grace's father murdered, there are seven or more unidentified skeletons to discover. Each one strangled by a guy named Gilmore. These skeletons are of children which made me think of the Atlanta murders. Since these deaths were done by a racist it is difficult for people in the town to understand Grace's act of grace. There is reaction from all sides of town. How could she? Why did she? Is she an Uncle Tom? etc.I think Grace was born for this very moment.  She faced the moment with grace and love.This is irony at its best. Love and grace is what Grace never experiences with her mother but those  two attributes are what will cause her to take ahuge  risk.I feel the ancestors groomed her for this Act of Grace.

The question becomes what is "real" love? Karen Simpson writes it's Agape. Is their a limit to love? If love must be given to haters, how much is enough?  Where are the boundaries? Also, is a mother's love more complex than society is willing to address? How does a mother's past influence the love for her children? Will all of us have to show an Act of Grace before leaving this earth, or is it only given to some people to face such a test? Karen Simpson has opened the doors of my mind to many questions. For most of the doors, I have no keys. I can only hope to remember Grace as a role model who went after life with gusto and without pause.  http://karensimpsonwrites.com/ 
(Plenary Publications)