Glory Bishop by Deborah L. King

5 Stars

Publisher: Red Adept Publishing

Date of publication: June 4th, 2019

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Where you can find Glory Bishop: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BookBub

Book synopsis:

Glory Bishop lives her life in pieces. At work and with her friends, she reads novels, speaks her mind, and enjoys slow dances and stolen kisses with her boyfriend, JT. But at home, Glory follows strict rules and second-guesses every step. Though she dreams of going to college and living like a normal teenage girl, her abusive mother has other ideas.

When JT leaves to join the navy, Glory is left alone and heartsick. The preacher’s son, Malcolm Porter, begins to shower her with lavish gifts, and her mother pushes Glory to accept his advances. Glory is torn between waiting for true love with JT or giving in to the overzealous Malcolm.

When a stranger attacks Glory on the street, Malcolm steps in to rescue her, and her interest in him deepens. But the closer she gets to him, the more controlling he becomes. Glory must eventually decide whether to rely on others or to be her own savior.

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My Review:

I was surprised at Glory Bishop. I went into the book, thinking that it was going to be a heavy drama full of violence. Instead, what I read blew me away.

Glory Bishop does start slowly. While I was aggravated by it at first, I came to appreciate it. The author uses those slow first chapters to build up the main characters and the world they resided. That world and character building continued throughout the book. By the end, each of the main characters were multi-layered characters.

I liked that the author showed how easy it was for someone to get into an abusive relationship. I liked that the author also showed the many facets of abuse. She explained how the abuser could integrate themselves with family and friends. I felt bad for Glory. I was mentally shouting at her, “Listen to Herschel, stay away from him!!” But, once she got the bracelets, I knew that she was done for. It would be impossible for her to get away.

I loved Glory’s character. Seeing what she overcame brought me to tears at points in the book. I wished that she could act like the 17-year-old she was. Instead, she had to act in different ways for different people. It got exhausting after a while.

I was “eh” with Malcolm during the book. I couldn’t understand why a grown man wanted a 17-year-old girl. Then it came to me. He wanted someone he could control.

I loved Herschel. He tried to help Glory as much as he could. He gave her the unconditional love that her mother couldn’t or wouldn’t. His last talk with her sent shivers up my spine. Talk about foreshadowing!!

Religion was an integral part of Glory Bishop. It wasn’t shoved down my throat. Instead, it was interwoven with the plotline, and I loved it!!

I liked how Glory Bishop ended, but at the same time, I was a little disappointed. I will always associate the words “I’ll give you back to God” with this book. Chilling. I was disappointed because I think I know what Glory was going to do at the end of the book. I wish there were some sort of epilogue that either proved me wrong or validated me. But then again, I understood why the author ended the book the way she did.

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I would give Glory Bishop an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Glory Bishop I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**