Cross: The Awakening

By Dr Richard J Bell Jr

One hero. One purpose. One Cross.
Avery Bell was supposed to be an ordinary teenager trying to survive grief, school, family pressure, and the weight of growing up without his mother. But when a mysterious cross awakens something inside him, Avery discovers that his pain may be connected to a larger purpose.
Lakewood is not as safe as it looks.
Behind the schools, police department, scholarships, sports programs, and city politics, a hidden system has been quietly choosing vulnerable kids and sending them down two dangerous paths. Some are pulled toward the streets. Others are groomed through opportunity, college connections, and power. When Avery's family becomes a target, he must step into a calling he never asked for.
With his sister Luna, his brilliant best friend Ethan, and his father Joel caught in the middle of a citywide conspiracy, Avery must decide what kind of hero he is going to become.
But the deeper he goes, the more one question refuses to stay buried:
Was his mother's death really an accident?
The Cross is a faith-driven young adult superhero thriller about grief, courage, family, corruption, and the moment a young man discovers that purpose can rise from pain.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GZZFHBR4
• ISBN13: 9798250241410
• Release Date: July 2026
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 316 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.5" x 6.0"