“They Loved With a Closed Fist” is a memoir, documenting the journey that one woman took to break free from the vicious cycle of violence in her life.

What allows the reader to truly invest in this story is the author’s ability to be completely vulnerable. She went back in her life and visited dark places, places brimming with pain and scars, and eloquently revealed this pain to the reader without holding back anything. For this reason, the reader cared about the author’s plight. When she hurt, we hurt. When she was scared, we were scared. When she felt hopeless, we felt her despair. We cared about her plight and we wanted to know how things would eventually work out for her, which kept the pages turning.

Everyone needs to read this story. Man, woman, child—no matter the race, no matter the age, no matter the situation. This is a story that embodies hope. Similar to a white rose laying unharmed upon a bloodied battle ground, this story reaches out to the reader and says, “God is not a respecter of persons. If He did it for me, He’ll do it for you. No matter your situation, there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. All you have to do is keep the faith and keep pressing forward. God will do the rest.” As long as I live, I will never forget Carmen Love’s story, and will carry her struggle and triumph in my heart as a reminder that if God bring me to it, He can and will bring me through it.