Book Review: Karma's Street Justice by R. Roberts Gibson

R. Roberts Gibson, Karma’s Street Justice, iUniverse Publishing, April 17, 2019.

Karma’s Street Justice is former Genesee County District Court Judge R. Roberts Gibson’s debut crime/romance novel. It is a tale of murder, secret love, and inner city life in the fictional Florence, MI told from the perspective of three characters: Judge Anita Tolliver, Det. Sherman Lacy of the Florence Police Department, and Carlos, a young man who gets wrapped up in a situation out of his control. As Anita and Lacy begin a steamy affair, both must also navigate the turmoil in Florence caused by a horrific murder of a woman and her two young children as Carlos and his friend LL attempt to hide the secret they share. The book aims to be an inside look into the causes and consequences of crime in an urban environment on the perpetrators and those forced to respond. Karma’s Street Justice is not perfect, but many of the weaknesses of the book are a mere symptom of the Judge Gibson self-publishing and are made up for by clear passion and nuggets of value that will hold special interest for the community of Genesee County.

Karma’s most compelling feature is subverting the reader’s expectations about who the “good guys” are in a crime novel. The book is lightly framed as a story told by Judge Tolliver to her therapist, but the true central figure is Detective Lacy of the Florence police department. On the surface, he is the shining protagonist: a man who rose out of the poverty of Florence to become the city’s best detective and a true community leader who inspires intense respect and love from the men and women of the city, including Judge Tolliver (and her husband). However, he is in reality more dangerous than the murderers he pursues; he uses the titular “street justice” to avoid the “technicalities” of the law and his passionate affair with Anita distracts him from his job and reveals his homophobic disdain for Anita’s husband. Meanwhile, the supposed antagonists are two young kids who make a few grave mistakes triggered by drug-addiction, broken families, and an intense summer heat.

Purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Karmas-Street-Justice-Gripping-Thriller-ebook/dp/B07QXMVL1Q/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=karma%27s+street+justice&qid=1578064411&sr=8-1

Publication in Genesee County Bar Beat, February 2020 edition