Title: The Tragedy of Darkness
Author: Ted Bagley
Publisher: XlibrisUS
Pages: 132
ISBN: 978-1-45686-540-5
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Reviewed by: Jennifer Weiss
Buy on AmazonAuthor’s Website
Pacific Book Review Star
Awarded to Books of Excellent Merit
Sometimes life can throw us through a period of darkness filled with uncertainty, confusion, fear, and even hopelessness. To find our way through whatever darkness we experience we need to find the switch that turns on the light, so to speak. A light to guide us through. “Tragedy of Darkness” by Ted Bagley depicts the trials of a young man named AJ as he stumbles through darkness of his own. He has lost his path to the switch and needs to find his way back. Along the way he discovers the importance of clinging to the light to make it through the dark.
Bagley begins the story off with a detailed description of the coldness in Chicago, his words are so powerful and accurate that the reader can really begin to feel the bite of the wind against their cheek. Readers get a clear idea of who the main character is and what makes him tick in this opening scene. From there, readers are able to begin to relate to him and see themselves or friends within this character. He becomes real, almost too real as what he thinks and experiences seems to hit too close to home at different points in the story. Bagley has the ability to bring out emotions without the need to describe the emotion or explain what his character is feeling or sensing at a given time.
The novel has the feel of being a reflective piece, meaning it has the feel that the main character has already gone through what he does and if reflecting back upon it and the lessons he has learned. This is one of those stories that feel like the narrator is speaking about you, the reader; what he is going through is something similar to what we all at times have to handle and deal with. While it is a fiction piece, it addresses themes and ideals that readers face on a daily basis, having to reflect on our lives and how they make it to the light through the darkness.
There are a few novels that have the ability to change a person’s perception of things, or to make them reflect back onto their own lives and wonder if something needs to change. This book is one that does exactly that. Readers can’t get enough of AJ and his journey to discover the light that shines through the dark moments throughout life. Ted Bagley’s writing is clear and concise, easy to understand and does not utilize “fluff” or anything that is unnecessary to the story. It is evident that a lot of thought went into writing this novel and the words needed to get his message across. It is hard to pick this book up and not finish it in one sitting. Time seems to stand still while you are reading this novel.
It is truly rare to come across a novel quite like this one, readers will find themselves eager to tell their friends and family about the “The Tragedy of Darkness.”
