Nicole Legerra- Just an author who believes in the power of true stories.

You don’t always know when you’re rising. Sometimes it looks like just getting up again.

From the streets that shaped her to the silence that nearly...

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Nicole Legerra- Just an author who believes in the power of true stories.

You don’t always know when you’re rising. Sometimes, it looks like getting up again. And again. And again. Built from wreckage. Carried by grit. She became the light they said she’d never find.

The Big Light is a memoir about rising through it all and finding light in the places no one thought to look. Nicole Legerra doesn’t offer a polished narrative, she offers the truth. From the streets that shaped her to the silence that nearly broke her, this is a story built from grit, and grace. It’s about pain that didn’t just leave scars, it carved purpose.

With language that burns clean and cuts deep, Legerra traces the anatomy of endurance and resilience. This isn’t a tale of arrival or redemption, it’s a reckoning.
A blueprint for how to survive the hard and still build something luminous from it.
This is for the ones who survived the hard, who love fiercely despite it, and those who have learned to carry both grit and grace in equal measure.

For those who’ve walked through the dark and wondered if there was anything left to find, The Big Light is proof: it is light that saves you in the dark, and it’s always there…even when you can’t see it.

Drawing from her own experience Nicole Legerra is a Board Certified Mental Health Coach and in Crisis Intervention. She is dedicated to helping others find hope and healing through life’s most challenging moments. Nicole is a writer who believes in the power of true stories—the kind that hit somewhere deep and stay with you. She’s a mom to five amazing humans and married to her best friend, juggling family life with a love for books, running, and the kind of music that carries you through. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her hitting the pavement with a playlist or audiobook in her ears, escaping into the world of words and sound. She owns more vintage rock band T-shirts than she’ll ever admit and still holds out hope for that one unforgettable Broadway stage door is opened…just once.

You don’t always know when you’re rising. Sometimes, it looks like getting up again. And again. And again. Built from wreckage. Carried by grit. She became the light they said she’d never find.

The Big Light is a memoir about rising through it all and finding light in the places no one thought to look. Nicole Legerra doesn’t offer a polished narrative, she offers the truth. From the streets that shaped her to the silence that nearly broke her,...

Praise

The ‘Big Light’ is the personal story of Nicole Legerra’s survival against odds that a young person should never have to face. It is at once a compelling chronicle of one young woman’s journey from the traumas of abuse while employing a surviving fortitude toward the triumphs of achievement while embracing a sustaining faith. The chapters take the reader from the juggernaut of a loveless childhood home and life-threatening tumultuous young life beyond, through the life-enhancing jurisdiction of a devoted grandmother, to the ultimate final loving junction with an adoring man (at last) who would change the course of her failed relational life to become her husband and soul mate. In vivid detail, she describes the valleys of her victimization and the heights of her victories. It is a captivating read of a life experienced from devastating fear to divine faith. Nicole is a well-versed and brilliant writer. Her visceral work deserves our attention and trustfully serves to encourage others in like life circumstances.

– Chaplain Gary R. Evans, M.Ed.; Litt.D.; CCISM; DAAETS; FAAETS

I read Nicole’s autobiography through Kindle Unlimited and found it both moving and inspiring. Her conversational writing style drew me in right away and made the book very easy to stay engaged with. The chapters were the perfect length—well-paced and meaningful without ever feeling overwhelming.

Nicole’s story is heartbreaking at times. She endured a great deal of pain and hardship as a child, and I truly felt for her as she shared those difficult memories. At the same time, she highlighted moments of joy and passion—especially her love for performing and her vivid reflections on life in her Italian community and her most precious family members.

What stood out most was her resilience. Her determination and courage were deeply inspiring, and the love she held in her heart shone through, even in the darkest moments. When she opened her life to God, it became clear that His presence had been with her all along, even when she felt most alone. God gave her beauty for ashes in the form of a wonderful husband and 5 beautiful children.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates honest, heartfelt stories of struggle, strength, and faith. It’s a powerful reminder of the healing that can come through courage and grace.

– Shannon

The Big Light is not just a memoir. it’s a soul-piercing anthem for anyone who has ever felt swallowed by darkness and clawed their way back. This book is a raw, breathtaking testament to the resilience of the human spirit. At its core is a woman whose life has been carved by trauma and steeped in pain — yet what emerges from these pages isn't despair, but defiant hope. With each chapter, she lays bare her wounds, showing us not just what she survived, but how she reclaimed herself. Through brutal honesty and breathtaking vulnerability, and her faith, the author invites us into the depths of her trauma — loss, pain, and the moments when even surviving felt uncertain — and then shows us what resilience truly looks like. Her journey is not linear, nor is it neatly resolved. That’s what makes it so powerful. With grit and grace, she bears witness to her own healing and, in doing so, offers readers a kind of quiet permission to begin theirs. This book doesn’t preach. It walks beside you. What struck me most was the way she doesn’t dress up the darkness. She meets it head-on and, through sheer grit transforms it into light. Her story is as harrowing as it is healing. It’s not just a memoir, it’s a mirror, a map, and a lifeline.
I’d recommend this book to anyone who has wrestled with mental health, trauma, or the messy, unspoken spaces in between. It’s a reminder that scars don’t make you weak, they make you real. The Big Light may crack something open in you, and just as gently, start to mend it. I’d recommend it to anyone who needs a reminder that broken does not mean beyond repair. And in her vulnerability, Nicole gives readers the permission to be their fullest, fiercest selves and you matter, fully.

– ThatLitLife

Latest Updates

September 22, 2025

🌟 The Big Light Audiobook Is Here 🎧

I’m proud to share that The Big Light, my memoir, is now available as an audiobook performed by the incredible Tess Donelon.

This isn’t just a recording. It’s a voice that...