True Strength

by S.L. Clarke

After Marissa's only child died and her husband abandoned her, it took her six grueling years to rebuild her life. She used Shorinji Kempo, a Japanese martial art, to help her work through her grief. Through martial arts, she found the self-confidence to advance in her career, restore old friendships and build new ones, as well as a possible love interest--something she never thought she would want again.

But then all of that is threatened when her estranged husband returns. He seems determined--desperate--to have her back in his life, and he's not afraid to cause physical harm to get what he wants. Will she find the strength and courage to fight back both physically and mentally? Or will her warring emotions break her?

True Strength is a 78,000 word fiction novel loosely based on S.L. Clarke's emotional journey while studying Shorinji Kempo. Sensitive readers should be aware that the novel brings up heavy subjects, namely thoughts of suicide, domestic violence, healing after SIDS and implied sexual assault.

328 pages, Paperback

Published July 15, 2021

About the author

S.L. Clarke is the award-winning author of multiple short stories featured in various anthologies. She dabbled in numerous creative hobbies before landing on writing, cementing her love of stories with a Creative Writing degree from Utah State University (but only because she couldn't major in knitting or sewing). Her short pieces range from personal memoir to fiction, touching poetry only when the muse demands. Her women's fiction novel, True Strength, published in July 2021. Amid mothering four boys and writing, she crochets, reads, goes to the dojo, binges on Netflix, plays computer games, and sometimes picks up her trumpet.

Reviews

[Keri Montgomery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marissa has to find her own "true strength" and that's not easy to do in her circumstances. S.L. Clarke does a great job at giving us a real character, with flaws and emotions, and allowing her room to grow in the storyline. Several times I wondered what I would've done in the main character's position. This book is well-written, and learning more about Kempo is fun. I recommend it.

[Haley Cavanagh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heartfelt, powerful debut novel! I had the good fortune to meet the author in person at a book signing, and I'm so glad I did. This book is a terrific voyage into the true strength of the human spirit, well written, and an entertaining as well as a deep emotional journey. I highly recommend it!

[Charlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could definitely relate to parts of this story.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

She is such a good writer! This really is an excellent debut novel. The storyline is absolutely compelling - heart-wrenching but powerful. The characters were very well developed, and though the main characters thoughts and choices sometimes made me want to scream in frustration, they are admittedly realistic. I loved learning a little more about Kempo, too. Though it's heavy subject matter - loss, depression, and abuse - it is not depressing. It's exciting and empowering and personally, I think it would make a great movie!
There are a few scattered profanities, but compared to most novels, it is very clean.