Review: Born At Dawn – Nigeria Lockley

I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Thirty-four year old Cynthia Barclay knows that marriage is supposed to be for better or for worse. Unfortunately, for the last ten years of her marriage Cynthia has experienced the worst that marriage has to offer at the hands of her abusive husband Marvin Barclay. With the hope of saving herself and her family she turns to the Lord. Expecting to see God manifest himself greatly in her life sooner than later Cynthia is not content just waiting. She wants out.

Abandoning her hope, her husband, and her two young sons Cynthia boards a bus from New York City to Richmond, Virginia. She begins a new life armed with six thousand dollars on a prepaid credit card, a sketchy plan for success, and a promise to return for her sons. That is until she meets Cheo, a photojournalist with enough connections to take her where she wants to be and forget where she came from.

After six years in Richmond Cynthia's dark past resurfaces. At the risk of losing it all--her past and her present Cynthia returns home to right her wrongs. Has Cynthia chosen the right time to return home or is it too late for God to restore everything she has broken?

This well written and descriptive story has me emotionally spent. It hit too close to home.

I appreciate the Author writing about a subject that seems to be taboo among Churches, Domestic Abuse. However, I was conflicted with the advice of Pastor David. I felt as though he was always attempting to make Cynthia stay in an emotional and physical relationship.

I’m sure someone will read this and think they would never leave their children behind, but until you are in “this” situation, you don’t know what you would do. This is a story of survival, and surviving can make us make questionable decisions. It would have been impossible for the Barclay family to function properly had Cynthia stayed. Marvin had to miss his “water” from the dried up “well” to realize the role he played in the dissipation of his marriage. Sometimes we must hit rock bottom to realize that God is our “go to” solution for everything.

I enjoyed seeing Cynthia’s growth. She became a Victor. I started feeling “some kind of way” toward her after she became successful and didn’t go back for the boys. It broke my heart every time she called home and “listened” to Keith talk. This tear jerker does an impeccable job showing how abuse affects the abuser, victim, and children.

Cynthia and Marvin’s reaction to their tragedy left me feeling conflicted, but it shows that everyone experience grief differently. A person who is not a Christian or nonreligious may have issues with this read because it may come across as too “preachy”. I was surprised by the “happy but not so happy” ending. I enjoyed and appreciated this story. #teamcheo

Reviewed by: Dwon

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