Redemption: A Historic Novel

by John H. Alt

374 pages, Paperback

Published January 20, 2026

About the author

A brief tour of my life: Born in Iowa. Grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. Saw duty on aircraft carriers. Married, with an adult daughter. BA, MA, PhD in English. That leaves out how the breeze felt on my cheeks when hiking through the high Sierra, how I cried like a baby when told my mother had died, what I felt when my daughter took her first steps. But as a brief tour it will have to do.

Like everybody else, I have tried to make sense of this crazy world and what I am left with is this: Though I hold no sword of orthodoxy, above all I believe in human caring, conscience, kindness, self-control, self-responsibility, and respect for others.

Reviews

[John Alt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Redemption: A Historic Novel follows Cole Wilson across borders, wars, and moral fault lines, but at its heart this is a story about what it costs to stay human in a world that often rewards cruelty. From a haunting act of violence in Mexico to the spiritual and ethical trials of New York and the crucible of the Spanish Civil War and World War II, Cole’s journey is one of conscience and hope stubbornly held.

The novel lives in uncomfortable places, between justice and mercy, belief and doubt, silence and action. The framing interview years later allows memory itself to become a character, shaping what we confess, what we hide, and what we finally understand. Zen, faith, and history intersect here not as abstractions, but as lived struggles.

If you’re drawn to historical fiction that isn’t afraid to wrestle with big questions—about evil, responsibility, and redemption—this book gives you both a story and something to sit with long after the last page.

It is about what it means to be good in a brutal world. The framing interview years later adds a layer of reflection and memory, and in the best way the story never feels simple or easy in its answers.

The writing is vivid without being showy, and the characters feel lived-in and real. This is historical fiction for readers who want more than just period detail. It provides depth, conscience, and heart.