The Redemption: A Thornton Mystery

by C L Tolbert

Overview

Emma Thornton is back in The Redemption, C.L. Tolbert's second novel in the Thornton Mystery Series.

When two men are murdered one muggy September night in a New Orleans housing project, an eye witness identifies only one suspect-Louis Bishop-a homeless sixteen-year-old. Louis is arrested the next day and thrown into Orleans Parish Prison. Emma Thornton, a law professor and director of the Homeless Law Clinic at St. Stanislaus Law School, agrees to represent him.

When they take on the case, Emma and her students discover a tangle of corruption, intrigue, and more violence than they would have thought possible, even in New Orleans. They uncover secrets about the night of the murders, and illegal dealings in the city, and within Louis's family. As the case progresses, Emma and her family are thrown into a series of life-threating situations. But in the end, Emma gains Louis's trust, which allows him to reveal his last, and most vital secret.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781947915435
Publisher:	Level Best Books
Publication date:	02/02/2021
Series:	A Thornton Mystery , #2
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.67(d)

About the Author

C.L. Tolbert grew up on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, a culturally rich, beachy stretch of land with moss covered oaks and unforgettable sunsets. Early in her career, she earned a Masters of Special Education and taught children with learning disabilities before entering law school at the University of Mississippi. She spent most of her legal career working as defense counsel, traveling throughout the country in litigation for corporations and insurance companies. She also had the unique opportunity of teaching third-year law students in a clinical program at Loyola Law School in New Orleans where she ran the Homelessness Law Clinic and learned, firsthand, about poverty in that city. The experience and impressions she has collected from the past forty years contribute to the stories she writes today.

After winning the Georgia State Bar Association's fiction writing contest in 2010, C.L. developed the winning short story into the first novel of the Thornton Mystery Series, Out From Silence, which was published in December of 2019. Her second novel in the series, The Redemption, is set in New Orleans where she lived and worked for twelve years. Retiring after thirty years of law practice, she lives in Atlanta with her husband and schnauzer Yoda. When she's not writing, she visits her children and grandchildren as often as possible.

Editorial Reviews

"Mystery, murder, and mayhem in The Big Easy; C.L. Tolbert's The Redemption is a page-turner guaranteed to keep you guessing until the very end." - Bruce Robert Coffin, award-winning author of the Detective Byron Mysteries

"With The Redemption, Cynthia Tolbert delivers another beautifully written and compelling read in her Thornton Mystery series, as law professor Emma Thornton's fight to save a teen wrongly accused of murder endangers her own life in this gripping tale of corruption and crime in the 1990s Big Easy." - Ellen Byron, award-winning and bestselling author of The Cajun Country Mysteries

From the Publisher

2021-11-24
In Tolbert’s mystery-series installment, a university professor and her students defend a teen accused of multiple murders.

Emma Thornton, an assistant law professor at the Legal Clinic for the Homeless at St. Stanislaus University Law School in New Orleans, along with three of her third-year pupils—Melissa Granger, Lauren Acevedo, and Josh Delcambre—take on young Louis Bishop’s case. The 16-year-old is charged with shooting and killing two men at the Redemption housing project where he lives and is being tried as an adult. He has only a few family members who care about him, including his grandmother, known as Mama Ruby,and his aunt, Juanita Bishop; he also has an ally in Mr. Branson, his school guidance counselor, who notes that the young man has a distinct talent for clothing design. The murders of Brother Reginald Antoine and Sam Maureau seem unrelated but connections are later revealed that take readers into a world of lies and deception; further complicating the case is that many Redemption residents won’t talk to police and lawyers for fear of reprisal from local criminals, including Louis’ cousin, Marcus, who heads the drug-dealing Gangsta B’s. Thornton starts investigating with her three students, but soon removes Lauren from the case, due to her apparent discomfort around potential witnesses. Gaining the trust of those at the Redemption is a critical factor in proving Louis’ innocence. Plot twists and turns involving more murders, threats to investigators, and police corruption take readers on an intriguing ride. This richly told story offers fine characterization throughout: Louis is ultimately shown to be a boy struggling with traditional education but shining through his art, and Juanita is revealed as an astute businesswoman who cares for and protects her niece and nephew. Vivid description also brings the characters to life: “The receptionist garnished her look with four-inch chartreuse fingernails and glittery gold eye makeup. Emma, dressed in her navy suit, her hair in a ponytail, felt dull in comparison. A caterpillar among butterflies.”

An engaging and unpredictable whodunit.

Kirkus Reviews