The Gospel According to Brick

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO BRICK

In the hollowed-out remains of Ashford Hollow, Mississippi, faith comes in many forms—most of them false.

Clarence "Brick" McAllister knows this better than anyone. A washed-up, one-eyed boxer turned ex-con preacher who never believed a word he said, Brick returns to his hometown after ten years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. All he wants is to keep his head down, work his cousin's auto shop, and drink quietly until the Lord takes him.

But when Levi Johnson—a skinny fourteen-year-old with bruises around his neck and a bloodied Bible in his hands—shows up at Brick's trailer asking to learn how to fight, something unexpected happens. More lost kids start appearing. Darnell, trying to avoid gang recruitment. Jessie, hiding from her mother's abusive boyfriend. Miguel, whose parents were deported, leaving him with a negligent uncle.

Suddenly, Brick finds himself with a ragtag group of misfits, a broken-down gym, and a second chance he never asked for.

Not everyone welcomes this development. Pastor Vance Holloway, the charismatic megachurch preacher who runs the town from his gleaming worship center on the hill, sees Brick's growing influence as a threat. The local drug dealers, led by Brick's childhood friend "Weasel" Dotson, don't appreciate the competition for young recruits. And Sheriff Ray Cantrell has never forgiven Brick for a decades-old grudge.

As pressure mounts from all sides, Brick's past threatens to catch up with him. The crime that sent him away—a nightclub fire that killed three people—wasn't his doing, but he knows who was responsible. And that person will do anything to keep Brick quiet, even if it means burning down what little he's built.

In a town devastated by economic collapse and spiritual bankruptcy, Brick discovers that redemption isn't found in preaching or promises, but in the everyday miracle of showing up, standing firm, and teaching others to do the same. Because when everything else burns down, sometimes faith looks like bloody knuckles and getting back up.

A powerful debut novel about resilience, redemption, and the family we create when the one we're born into fails us, The Gospel According to Brick reminds us that the most profound acts of faith aren't proclaimed from pulpits—they're lived in the trenches.