Against the Wall

Sorenson (the Aftershock series) takes a close look at the life of an ex-con, painting a realistic yet hopeful picture of the struggles and obstacles he must endure to earn trust and secure any chance of a positive future. According to the government, former gang member and drug dealer Eric Hernandez has paid his dues; however, his former associates have put a price on his head. He was raised in a crime-riddled barrio on the California-Mexico border, but he’s determined to change his life and has vowed to do what he needs to do to stay on the right path. Meghan Young has always loved Eric, despite the objections of her brother, Noah, a police officer. The day before Eric was sentenced, he told Meghan she never meant anything to him. Believing his lie, she moved on. But when Eric gets out of prison three years later, he winds up living with Noah—who’s now married to Eric’s brother’s widow—and that same house is where Meghan flees when she leaves her abusive boyfriend. Eric must find a way to hide his intense attraction to Meghan, whom he sees as off-limits in numerous ways. This intense contemporary story has solid character and emotional development; however, the lovers’ paths only cross sporadically during a majority of the story, leaving romance readers unsatisfied. Agent: Laurie McLean, Fuse Literary Agency. (Feb.)