The Bluff

The Bluff by Xavier Smith
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

SYNOPSIS
The gritty tale of a street legend narrated from his personal perspective.

BOOK REVIEW
This cautionary tale of a young man who chose to drop out of high school over the shame of his circumstance only to end up in the streets and in love with the woman who started him down this path. The story's message was a good one of a man who glorifies street life and thinks "street cred" is the most important thing to have. Your heart goes out to the protagonist, who was abandoned as a baby, by his teenage mother. The choices he makes fueled by ignorance and lack of guidance are heartbreakingly graphic. There were a few times as I read that I thought "if only he". If only he had someone early on to tell him he mattered and that material items were not important in the grand scheme of things. If only he had trusted his gut. If only he......

The author did a good job of pulling you into the world of "Strap". His character was developed well. His false sense of loyalty to a game that would just as soon kill or jail him was foolish, but something that many will be able to relate to as they may be in the same situation now. The story was told in the first person and was a bit difficult to read because the character spoke in his native dialect, which can cause some readers to stumble over the words while they are reading. So, this affects the flow of the story.  The author did offer a glossary that could be referenced and it was a nice touch. However, that did not stop this from being a difficult read, which is the reason for the rating I gave. I am almost positive that if this story was on audible, it would be rated much higher.

All in all, this was a good read and I look forward to more from Xavier Smith. You can get your copy here and support the author by leaving a review.



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