Keys: Portraits of Trials and Truth

Keys: Portraits of Trials and Truth by James Lloyd is a collection of 3 short stories that centers on different characters, Paul, Will and Edith, and their drive for something better. Paul is a career-driven millennial who has lost touch with everyone that mattered to him after the death of the love of his life. He has chosen to go after the golden ring no matter the cost to his own personal relationships, until one day he stops to help a man in a wheelchair. Will is a subdued but very capable person who feels he has one fatal flaw that has kept him from his dream job and holds resentment for that. Edith is a manipulative egomaniac that will stop at nothing to get what she wants. All three stories are about everyday people and very realistic scenarios. The central story in all these stories is the faith in themselves, in others and most importantly in God that has been pushed into the background in order for each person to accomplish what they think their dreams are. Each story is unique and contains the religious undertones that you will find comfort in. Each chapter reveals God’s Grace in ways that may surprise you to value your own self-worth and to show you how God sees you. I was drawn into this book in the first few pages and then had a very hard time putting it down. Whether you practice religion or not, you will enjoy this book. It is very well written and easy to read. I highly recommend it.

Keys: Portraits of Trials and Truths is a wonderfully splendid mini trilogy by James Lloyd. The book contains three separate stories, featuring different tales and different journeys, different pathways to redemption.The author, Lloyd, wrote something I found to be rather emotionally inspiring. Each story has our lead character undergoing a journey, s process of changing their attitudes and shortcomings, to make ample use of the opportunities put in front of them. I strongly identified with the first book, with Paul, that millennial chasing the American dream of a successful career, but all too often forsaking friends and family in the process.Paul undergoes a radical transformation after helping a veteran who is struggling to get his guitar (in a case) over a curb. In the process he ends up getting a parking ticket, and honestly that probably would have hardened my heart thinking no good deed goes unpunished, but Paul is the hero and I'm certainly not. He ends up getting plugged into a few people's lives and helping them in real meaningful ways. We can pray all we want for others and it's not a bad thing, but sometimes a person like Paul is in a position to help be an answer to pray, helping connect people to opportunities, whether for employment or education. Paul certainly redeems the time in ways I aspire to.I recommend this book to anyone looking for an inspirational, Christian based storytelling. Lloyd is able to capture the essence of people in such a rare way, that he really shows the transformational experience that faith brings.

“Keys, Portraits of Trials and Truth” by wonderful author James Lloyd is a simply great book. The three fictional short stories it contains are all uplifting and encouraging.Each story portrays, each in a different way, God’s magnificent mercy and grace to His people, as individuals, as they make decisions to change their ways and determine to accept and follow Him. I thought the storylines were all great and extremely realistic.The stories are true to life and each shows both the misery of misdirection in a life not well lived, but also the joy of redemption and the redirection that follows that.Mr. Lloyd is a wonderful writer, and the stories are beautifully told, the lives changed in them intelligently portrayed. The plots of each are suspenseful and relatable.In this strange world, it is good to read stories of redirected and redeemed lives. It is not too late to get on the ‘right’ side, to make something beautiful of a life that has been, so far, not so well-lived. These fictional stories project this truth in very convincing ways.I recommend this book to just about everyone. If you are discouraged by the world or by your situation and place in it, Mr. Lloyd’s writings will encourage and enable you to see that there are always better alternatives. If you are already in a good place and at peace with God, get the book anyway and share it with others.I am very happy with my purchase of “Keys,” and would buy the book again.

Every author has to answer the question, what do I have to say? It's a confounding question, but the answer lends meaning to the words. It's clear that this author felt compelled to tell others about the message inside his heart. "Keys" delivers. This isn't a novel; it's a volume made of three short stories, “Waiting,” “Will to Soar,” and “Inside the Orchard.” Each story follows a different person, and they each have their own circumstances to deal with. As the characters move through their lives, they are met by different people, and each encounter leaves them slightly different. It's a parallel of real-life, but the events unfold in a really captivating way. Often, when I'm reading a fictional story, as the drama builds, so does my desire to see what happens next in the story, but with this book, I found myself reading more slowly. I don't mean that in a bad way, though. Throughout each story, there were so many incredible and inspirational quotes, and each character had a captivating arc with drama, unexpected twists, and self-discovery. I thought each story's pacing was excellent, and the dialogue was crisp and concise. I'd be interested in reading more from this author. He has a talent for engagingly telling impactful stories. I can highly recommend this book to anyone. It has a universal message and can be enjoyed by everyone.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book and I would encourage other to read it. It's interesting from page to page but don't be surprised if you find a bit of yourself in one of the characters. The fact that this was a trilogy was a plus. I really appreciate how the author took extra time to add scripture before beginning the next story which flowed very well with the upcoming story.Personally, I do enjoying reading the Bible so seeing the characters and how things played out was interesting to me. Not to say it's a religious book so I do believe all kinds of people would enjoy it. I see that Paul reminded me of Paul from the bible with how his life changed from the path he was on to where it needed to be. Edith was the type of women I have ran across a few times before so when Ben caught her off guard with "Try again" I was excited to see how she would respond.This book was actually inspiring to me and I'm glad I read it. The characters lives felt real to me and I am glad this was my first book from this author. I would be willing to read more of his books because of this one.