The Hand of God
Listing Details
An African-American man is caught between his own demons and those of 1950s American society in this historical novel. The Hand of God tells the story of 24-year-old Bobby Lincoln, who lives in the coastal town of Palm Harbor in 1955 Florida. With few jobs and no education available to him, he ekes out a living by fishing and working at the local sugar mill. But it’s not enough for him or his common-law wife, Idella, who keeps threatening to leave him if he doesn’t become a more effective breadwinner. When a local gangster offers him $2,450 to take part in a serious crime, Bobby knows that it would break the heart of his deeply religious mother and disappoint a smart teenage boy who idolizes him. But he also believes that it might be his only chance to keep his wife and get back some self-respect. One little boat ride quickly turns into a nightmare that consumes Bobby’s life even as he tries to conceal it from others. As the situation spirals further out of control, he finds that there may still be a way to get the redemption he seeks, even if it takes divine intervention. A riveting, powerful story of a young black man’s pursuit of redemption. Based on Florida’s infamous Chillingworth murders.
