Family Ties

In the acclaimed A Life for a Life, Ernest Hill created an unforgettably candid story of violence, love, and redemption with teenaged D'Ray Reid at its center. Now, with his jail time behind him, D'Ray has returned home to find that the real fight for survival is only beginning. . .

Everyone was shocked when Mr. Henry took D'Ray Reid under his wing. After all, Mr. Henry's real son, Stanley, was murdered by D'Ray--a crime D'Ray committed to save his brother, Little Man. Yet in the years since, Mr. Henry has tried to show D'Ray how to become the man Stanley would never be.

After Mr. Henry's death, D'Ray seeks out his own mother, Mira, hoping to rebuild their broken relationship. But D'Ray's homecoming is more tumultuous than expected. Arrested for a crime he didn't commit, Little Man has escaped and is in hiding. Mira blames D'Ray for Little Man's troubled history, but she has her own secrets to hide. And putting things right will mean uncovering a legacy of lies and hidden agendas, and realizing the only way to be free of the past is to stand tall and confront it at last. . .

Praise for the novels of Ernest Hill

"If novels offer us a way of seeing the world that we could not imagine before, A Life for a Life does just that." --The Times-Picayune

"An exceptional literary piece that some readers will compare to Richard Wright's Native Son."--Booklist on Satisfied with Nothin'

"As the story unfolds. . .these unforgettable characters come to full, sympathetic life."--Publishers Weekly on A Person of Interest

"A skilled storyteller." --New York Times Book Review