🩺💥🪞 “Mirrored Reflections” (2022) 🪞💥🩺 – Book Review
Book Title: Mirrored Reflections by J.F. Ridgley
Category: Adult Fiction (18+) , 418 pages
Genre: Christian Romance
Publisher: R Pride Publishing
Release date: December 2022
Content Rating: PG-13 +M. This is a Christian Romance, no sex. two hot kisses. Lots of trauma but a happy ending. There is a language warning: Chad's debridement is painful, being a burn survivor is painful and the story is about also about sexual trafficking.
“I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU NOR FORSAKE YOU” - Hebrews 13:5
Opposites attract and Chad and Sierra are that.
Chad is destroyed on the outside by a suicide bomber while Sierra is broken on the inside by human trafficking. They are each other’s reflection of who they are - beautiful but ravaged by life.
Chad Michaels, an Afghan vet, comes home to a suicide bomber who destroys not only his family but the man he was. Now, he must deal with life as a burn victim -- as a monster. But Sierra sees what a beautiful man Chad truly is.
Not all wounds are flesh. Many are inside one’s soul where Sierra Smith’s scars run deep. Yet, Chad sees the innocence that Sierra fails to see. Kidnapped at the early age of six, Sierra was raised to become a high-end prostitute who now dreams of becoming a nurse...someone who helps heal people not service them. But her past relentlessly haunts her.
Sierra and Chad are determined to help each other heal from their traumas – whatever it takes. And, somehow, with God’s help, they will survive to see a brighter day.
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Thank you in advance to the author, JF Ridgely, for providing a complimentary review copy through iRead Book Tours. A positive review was not required nor requested, and all words are my own.
This is a new-to-me author, and having seen the blurb, it sounded like an inspiring Christian read.
As of note – while this has some Christian themes – there is EXTREMELY strong language (F-Bombs; S-Bombs, a$$hole, b@stard). There are some crude terms for intimacy used, but there is no intimacy depicted. There are some references to child rape, child sex trafficking, kidnapping, suicide bomber, and a suicide attempt. Some of these are “re-lived” through the character’s memories. There are also graphic scenes describing the wound care for burns.
Those who are sensitive to such topics and language might want to exercise caution.
The author introduces us to:
🩺 Sierra
🩹 Chad
🎀 Lori (Chad and Margery's 6-year-old daughter)
🪖 Charlie (Chad's military buddy)
🪖 Hunter
🪖 Axel
🪖 Ryan (Chad's military buddy)
👩🏻🦳👨🏻🦳 Chad’s Parents
For the most part, the story focuses on Sierra being unable to escape her porn-star past, much of which was the result of being trafficked for sex as a child. This is mentioned several times.
The story also focuses on Chad’s recovery from the suicide bombing that scarred him and killed his wife compounded by the fact he is a war vet with PTSD.
The story literally starts off with a bang – within three (3) pages, Chad’s life has been forever altered, and within five pages, we know Sierra is going to be facing a challenge to move on from her own past.
Sierra connects with Chad in the burn unit, and he mistakes her for his wife, who was killed in the bombing. While against the rules, at one point, Chad’s daughter Lori visits.
Despite knowing he was deceived; Chad still has a connection with Sierra. It isn’t long until her past catches up and she’s fired. Chad decides to go home early and hire her as his private nurse. In a way that works as she’d have to find a new place to live when a roommate moves.
Given Sierra’s nature, it isn’t long until Lori bonds with her, at one point calling her mommy causing a severe incident with Chad. It’s clear to Sierra, Chad has NO intentions of seeing her differently.
While bonding with his family and friends, Sierra wonders about the “what next” as Chad begins to recovery physically. Despite the fact his family and friends bestow her with a car, a bible, and a cross – she feels tainted and unworthy. And, at one point – rather than to go back to that life, or go forward – Sierra attempts to kill herself.
Chad is torn – he feels by caring for Sierra, he is being unfaithful to Margery; yet he knows Margery isn’t coming home. He isn’t sure what to do. But, they both undergo PTSD counseling and begin to unpack and confront their traumas.
Chad also begins to wonder about Sierra’s past and finds out that she’s been lied to. But, he isn’t sure how to process once he finds something that will change her perception of her past.
Sierra learns she’s being hunted down and has to leave, especially when Lori becomes targeted. Chad is forced to confront the fact that Sierra’s future and his are together.
What’s needed to secure that future; is a bold and daring rescue in more than one way in a dramatic climax.
Ridgeley creates a compelling, moving, and gritty story about recovery and redemption. She tackles sensitive subjects and highlights the importance of a strong support system – family, friends, and faith.
This did have quite a few typos and grammar issues which didn’t hamper the story too much. The short chapters helped move the story along. At times, it had the feel of a movie as some of it seemed overly “dramatized”. There were some minor arcs that had a bigger impact than the overall plot.
In a minor story arc, but very much part of the plot, the author confronts the challenges of a child abduction where the child is found as an adult. I like how the parents and siblings were understanding and still included the child/adult when it came to birthdays and Christmases. And, it was interesting to see how one would reacclimate in that situation.
But, one minor arc that I wanted a bit more from, involved a dog that mysteriously shows up at Chad’s parents’ home around Christmas (no collar, no tags, no chip). The dog is given to Lori, but turns out to be a support for Sierra and Chad as well as his buddies; even saving Sierra’s life. It turns out the dog disappeared from a K9 for Vets program (Steve and Elyna).
While it was wrapped up quite quickly, I wondered how the dog disappeared in the first place – was it stolen, accidentally let out? Wouldn’t the dog have been chipped for the program as a pup as most start out as pups? In addition, Steve and Elyna didn’t have paperwork for the animal, and were going by familiarity, as well as being told about the dog by paramedics. They just showed up – how did the paramedic know that was THEIR dog?
Steve opts to let the dog stay with Chad after a confrontation with him and his buddies (which was alarming), but I wonder if Steve and Elyna could’ve legally taken the dog without paperwork and a chip? There was NO identification other than their word. The lack of police involvement was one thing that had me curious given the value of the dog. Steve said someone already “purchased” it which kind of raised my suspicions.
According to VetDogs – they provide the dog, training, and transportation free of charge. The owner only has to show they can afford the care/cost of maintenance, and participate for a two-week training program.
This definitely had room for expansion.
As far as the characters; I really didn’t connect with them much. But, their backgrounds were interesting. There was a moment that had me re-thinking how I viewed Sierra. During a barbeque, she got insulted by Allyssa (Charlie’s fiancée) saying they needed to help her learn how to dress, so she changed into an expensive outfit and acts sultry. Given how the guys had accepted her as a family member, this was insulting to them.
I thought Sierra could’ve taken a moment and acted with dignity – thank Allyssa, and move on. There have been instances where someone, well-intentioned but unaware of my past, says something. I tend to temper it with a graceful learning moment – acknowledge their lack of knowledge, politely inform them, forgive, and move on.
This was not a bad read, but I tend to stay away from books with extremely strong language. The Christian theme tended to be hampered by the language. I mention this because some readers will prefer NOT to read because of the language and thus lose the message.
RATING:
4 (3.5) ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Goodreads
4 (3.5) ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Personal Rating (see rating explanation in this blog: https://readingexcursions.blogspot.com/2020/01/rating-system-2020-changes.html;update https://readingexcursions.blogspot.com/2022/07/what-goes-into-my-reviews-2022-edition.html)
JF Ridgley is the author of eight novels and short stories set in ancient Rome and three contemporary romance novels. She loves researching history and writing fiction based on real stories of real people. She also loves to write contemporary romance because the ancient Roman saying of ‘Live. Love. Laugh.’ is just as true today.
connect with the author: website ~ twitter ~ facebook ~ pinterest ~ instagram ~ goodreads
Sounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
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