Release Day! Lookin' for Love by Susen Edwards ~ My Thoughts #LookingForLove

Happy Release Day!

Lookin' for Love by Susen Edwards

Fiction, 408 pages
Published October 22, 2024 by She Writes Press

Based on a compelling and sometimes tragic true story, this novel follows young mother Ava from the go-go bars of the 1970s to the heart of Florida’s drug trade to a Kenyan prison to, ultimately, a place of forgiveness, faith, and love through recovery.

Inspired by a gripping true story, Lookin’ for Love begins in 1963, when Ava, nineteen and pregnant, marries a violent alcoholic and is disowned by her abusive mother. She bears two sons, leaves her husband, and turns to go-go dancing to provide for her children, using alcohol and drugs to numb herself to the degrading work. Then she meets Mike, a charismatic drug dealer who promises to give her “a beautiful life.” They move to Florida and begin working for The Crew, one of the largest drug smuggling organizations in the country. The Crew sends Ava and Mike to Kenya to find farmers to grow marijuana—but while they’re there, their home is raided, they’re charged with international drug smuggling, and Ava is sentenced to serve time in a Kenyan prison.

After her release, Ava struggles with sobriety but soon returns to dancing, alcohol, and drugs. Eventually, she hits bottom and surrenders her will to God. Once sober, she learns the power of forgiveness, faith, and love.

My thoughts about Lookin' for Love ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)

First line—"Kukaa, kukaa! Eighty-two women drop their work and sink to the ground. The Swahili word means 'sit' but in our world it means 'squat'."

I was sent this book by the publisher and I didn't know anything about it or the author. It sounded intriguing so I dove in. And then I was hooked. How on earth did this woman, Ava, find herself in this life that she was leading? 

There is so much sadness, intensity, and drama in her life and at times it was hard for me to read but if she could get through it, then so could I. What this woman went through was sometimes unbelievable. But Lookin' for Love is based on a true story so I had to keep remembering that someone's life really was like this. 

It truly is amazing that Ava was able to pull herself out of her tumultuous life and turn it around for the good. This was an amazing story of a woman's resilience through unspeakable odds. I was completely invested in the drama of her life. This was a very sobering and interesting read. Check it out!

I received an ARC of Lookin' for Love and this is my honest opinion of the book. 

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About the author

Joy Jordan-Lake is the #1 Amazon bestselling author of thirteen books, including A Bend of Light; Under a Gilded Moon, a 2023 North Carolina Reads selection; A Tangled Mercy, an Editors’ Choice recipient from the Historical Novel Society; Blue Hole Back Home, winner of the Christy Award for Best First Novel; and three children’s books.

Raised in the foothills of the southern Appalachians, Joy spent many the summer vacation on St. Simons Island, Georgia, a place of heartbreaking and surprising history. She holds two master’s degrees and a PhD in English and has taught literature and writing at several universities. Now living outside Nashville, she is startled to find only the ten-pound rescue pup still living at home full time, the kids launching to college, getting married, and building careers of their own. She and her husband console themselves with hiking to waterfalls and traveling to story-worthy settings.

Joy loves to connect with readers. You can visit her at www.joyjordanlake.com.

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