Rise (Volume 1)

How it reads

Rise (Volume 1) is contemporary fiction (contemporary inspirational fiction, specifically), and its dominant mood is hopeful. Whatever it puts its people through, it believes things can get better. The pace is moderate — neither a page-turner nor a slow burn — so it holds up whether you read it in long sittings or short ones.

It's set in a big city setting, in the present day, told in the first person by a single narrator. Its central concerns are identity, coming of age and redemption. In weight it sits in the middle: substantial without being heavy going.

It opens a series. The ending resolves happily. At 334 pages it's an ordinary novel's length. It's a hidden gem — known to relatively few readers.