I have to admit that I've gone back to write this after finishing all three books in this trilogy, but that's because Beck has managed to write such a compeling series that it made me want to write a review. Redemption is about two women who meet in prison, the only real resemblance to The Shawshank Redemption that another reviewer mentioned. Angel is in the Bog for killing her husband. She doesn't deny doing the crime, although he was in the process of raping and abusing her when it happened and she only intended to "stop" him with the bat. She comes into contact with an amazing cast of characters, from Corinne the librarian, known as the "Black Widow" for the several husbands she quite joyfully murdered, and the Amazons, a group of women who live by a code of honor and try to keep the peace in the prison between the gangs and the guards. Then one day, the founder of the Amazons is brought back to the prison. Ice is an amazing collection of characteristics. Raised by artistic parents until their untimely deaths, she has been turned by life into a cold blooded killer with a highly developed sense of honor. She can snap your neck with the same talent that she uses to cultivate bonzai trees. Prison life runs in her veins while she reads books in the original Chinese and Russian. She is feared, admired and worshipped by convicts and guards alike. Framed for a murder she did not commit, Ice has allowed herself to be convicted because of the murders she has committed and can't be convicted for. Ice has to be one of the most complex characters created in modern literature. And she and Angel love each other with a passion that is frequently breathless. Beck has a real ability for writing erotic love scenes that are realistic and not crude. The book is a fascinating vision of prison life, not something that I originally thought I would find interesting. You can read just this book for a terrific story, but the entire trilogy (Retribution and Restitution are the other volumes) tells a compelling story. These characters seem like real people. You'll wish they were just so you could meet them.