Month: November 2013

First Love by C. Truth

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Publisher/Date:  Penny Publishing, LLC, June 2011
Genre(s):  Romance, Coming Out, Young Adult
Pages:  181
Website:  http://www.bflyctruth.com

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

As much as I want to, I can never tell a book character what to do. And not just because she’s not a live, breathing person, but because when it comes to a teenager like Savannah in FIRST LOVE by C. Truth, she wouldn’t listen to me anyway.

She’s 17, a high school senior and falling in love with best friend Bree. She can’t talk to her by-the-Bible mom, who wants a better friend for her daughter than the openly-gay Bree. And she can’t tell Bree she likes her, because she has a girlfriend. She has virtually no one to turn to with her feelings.

I wish she would listen to me. But what could I tell a book-smart, hard-working girl like Savannah, coming from someone older?

  1. Don’t get a boyfriend just to please your mother. When handsome football player Marco approaches and asks you out, say no. Just because he’s 5’7’’ with chocolate skin and deep waves in his hair, and he’s the guy all the girls want, doesn’t mean you really want to go out with him and you shouldn’t get him caught up in your confusion about your sexuality. It can only lead to heartache for both you. Especially when you kiss him and you’re thinking about Bree.
  2. Be honest with yourself. Savannah, you spend a lot of time in your room pondering your sexuality, and that’s good. But you also beat yourself about liking girls when that’s truly where your heart is. Stop it, be who you are. There’s nothing wrong with liking girls. I spent my own high school years denying whom I was, only to feel like I should have just owned up to my feelings.
  3. Tell Bree how you feel. Girl, it’s hard, I know. Telling someone how you feel is never easy. But this is Bree, your homie. You’ve known her since elementary school. She’s told you all about her girlfriends, and you know she would do anything for you. I find it hard to believe she would abandon you after you told her the truth. And don’t worry about that girlfriend of hers; she’ll reveal her true colors – and whom do you think she’ll coming running to advice and comfort?
  4. Don’t make such a big deal about sex. I know at 17 it seems like sex is the best thing on earth. Don’t get me wrong; it’s amazing. But you know what, Savannah? It’s better with the right person. Feel me. Don’t be in such a hurry to give what’s your most precious gift. Cause when it’s right, ooh wee!
  5. Get your mother a boyfriend. Your mother is a piece of work. These praying rants y’all do to save you from lesbianism aren’t going to work. Since your mother is forever beating down the church doors, find her a deacon to work out her own issues with.

Now that I’ve taken care of Savannah, let’s move on to C. Truth. First Love is a dramatic book for sure, but the both the story and the writing needed work. There are more than a few grammatical issues, and some of the situations Savannah found herself in seemed too far-fetched, like her first college visit which went swimmingly considering how complicated her life became by that point. I read so many 5-star reviews for First Love, and while I was reading, I was a little disappointed in how the story unravelled.

Full of youthful decisions and text messages, First Love is good for the drama and the angst of beginning love. Some girls could identify with the identity and parental issues Savannah faces. Teens can read it also for C. Truth’s 8 Love Lessons she provides at the end of the book. Too bad she didn’t make Savannah follow any of them.

Reviewed November 2013

Abandoned Property: The Eviction Chronicles Part 2 by Kai Mann

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Publisher/Date:  Scriblical Vibez Publishing LLC, June 2013
Genre(s):  Family, Romance, Self-Love
Pages:  282
Website:  http://kai-mann.com

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

ABANDONED PROPERTY by Kai Mann, the sequel to 30 Day Notice, proves that losing family, money or your soul can sometimes set you on the path, for better or worse, you were destined.

30 Day Notice was Mann’s first installment in Eviction Chronicles, and it was a journal into the life of Kori Maitland. It was being literally trapped in the closet with a gun to her head that set her life in motion, leaving behind her four children to escape her boys witnessing the pain and discomfort being a lesbian trapped in a straight marriage. She knew God was steering her life to something greater. Moving from Florida to Chicago, Detroit and California, then back to Detroit, she encountered a series of trials that seriously tested her faith and sanity.

Abandoned Property continues her story, but ties in stories of five people Kori collided with on her journey, from her husband she left to the women’s she’s loved. Jerard, Darius, Jay, Layla, Karina and Coco had all in some way been discarded in some fashion, and each one’s reaction to their abandonment impacts Kori’s life.

Jerard has been left to raise four kids after Kori’s departure; Darius deals with his sexuality after his father leaves his family for drugs; Jay can’t seem to forgive her mother’s neglect; Layla is forced to begin life again after her husband skips out; Karina is facing motherhood alone; and Coco feels the ache of her mother’s rejection when she comes out at 17.

With this many characters and their separate issues, it would appear that Mann’s story would be convoluted, but that could be far from the truth. It has great focus and I could see that, just like reality, every character’s life has a unique purpose and reason for being in Property. From childhood hurts to love affairs gone wrong, their hurts are magnified and felt as the story progresses. None of these characters were cookie cutter. What Mann reveals is how their abandonments serves to either propel them forward or set them back; how each chooses to use their insecurities, daddy issues, questioning sexuality or self-doubt; and how they dump their issues onto Kori by simply leaving or staying. Some truly loved Kori; some showed their love in destructive ways.

Abandoned Property permits us to see why the people were in her life for a reason. It paints a detailed, complete picture of what Kori underwent when she moved from place to place and couldn’t find a healthy relationship. And I wanted her to find real, unconditional love. Essentially, that’s what all them were looking for. How they try to obtain it is the compelling part.

I felt like Mann really brought Kori full circle. I felt a better connection to her (although there’s still a small part of me that questions leaving her kids). The writing is more cohesive in Abandoned Property, mostly because it wasn’t all narrated by Kori as in 30 Day Notice. It’s a solid effort. Now I just need to know what’s next, Kai Mann? I wonder what the future holds for Kori, but as long as she has herself to rely on, she should be okay.

Reviewed November 2013

Sistahs Shop Talk – 11/10/13 #blackgirlsrock

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Introducing this new series, Sistahs Shop Talk is just random ramblings from yours truly about books, news, and views that captivate me (hopefully on a weekly basis).

One Thought…

  • #BlackGirlsRock:  I watched Black Girls Rock last Sunday on BET, and as always I felt inspired by these women who are making a difference and the encouragement it gives young women. Lord knows, girls and women of color aren’t visible enough or are only visible as negative portraits painted by media), so the show’s message is important and needed. Young girls like my 20-year-old niece, who just got her real-world job disappointment a while ago, need to know that they are special and they do have a place in this world. My only issue with Black Girls Rock is the exclusion of black lesbians. I thought it would be amazing to have Brittney Griner earn the Star Power award for accomplishments in sports (not to take anything away from this year’s winner Venus Williams). Brittney’s rise from college phenom to WNBA Phoenix Mercury player is extraordinary. Not to mention she’s unapologetically open about her sexuality and passionate about working with children in order to bring attention to the issue of bullying, particularly in the LGBT community. It would serve black girls who rock to see that sexuality is just one aspect of being comfortable in your own skin, especially those girls who identify or struggle as gay. Well, there’s always next year.

 News Snippets…

  • Kerry Washington is pregnant:  I know all you Scandal fans are excited to hear Kerry’s pregnant with a little Gladiator. Congrats to Kerry and husband Nnamdi Asomugha.
  • Young gay leaders in the workplace:  The Human Rights Campaign recently hosted the HBCU Leadership and Career Summit, which brought together an effective group of LGBT HBCU student leaders committed to developing their personal leadership and career skills. Watch video of “Generation Equality: Entering the Workforce” panel, hosted November 4 as part of HRC’s 2013 HBCU Leadership and Career Summit. (http://www.hrc.org/resources/entry/hbcu-leadership-and-career-summit)

 What I’m Reading This Week…

Descendants of Hagar:  Nik Nicholson has crafted a wonderful character in Linny Remington in the Descendants of Hagar, a woman charting her own path in a small Georgia town. She doesn’t follow the conventions of living as a lady in 1914, being 21 and without a husband and kids. It’s unheard of. She’s as smart and strong as the men building houses around her and just as gentle as the women she knits with. I think I heart her. I’m a good ways in the novel and I’m trying to savor it.

Book Quote…

“Being unmarried, I’m like some eternal child, less than a man and always at odds with everybody.

Then again, may not have nothing to do with none of that. Mama was always hovering over my sisters, and I was always running behind Daddy when he what’n pulling me with ‘im. They always use to tease that he raised me like a boy, and that I would grow up to think and act like a man. They say that’s probly why I’m so stubborn and ain’t got no respect for men. I know all they know and can do all they can do, so it ain’t no place for one in my life. That bother Daddy, don’t bother me.”

– Nik Nicholson, Descendants of Hagar

Trolling for New Books…

Slippery When Wet:  Author Cairo’s latest erotica outing, Slippery When Wet, involves women-on-women action flaunted in short stories. With titles as “Juicy Fruit” and “Sweet ‘n’ Sticky”, it’s bound to be wild ride. I’ve read at least one story in the book already, and I must say that Cairo, a dude with 11 books under his belt, has a way with the raunchy. But it brings up the issue of can a man write good lesbian lit? I haven’t found many men who’ve quite gotten it right – well, with the exception of Terry B., author of Dancer’s Paradise. What do you think?

Visit This Website…

Sapphic Pages:  Have you checked out Sapphic Pages, a new website review for gay and lesbian books?

Books 2 Check Out – Nov. 2012

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Looking for something new to read? Here’s a round-up of a few novels you should check out (the titles are linked to Amazon, but most are available for purchase at Barnes & Noble, as well):

Cream (Stud Life) by Christiana Harrell

Cream, an androgynous beauty, knows what it’s like to be abandoned, broke, and used. Left to the state by her parents and taken under the wing of her selfish foster mother, Cream sets her focus on one thing: money. She dives head first into the exotic lifestyle of stripping. Starting out in gentlemen clubs, drama seems to follow her wherever she goes. Instead of facing the turmoil, she moves on to the next city, causing more chaos than what she left behind. She thinks she has life all figured out until she crosses paths with Payton, a daddy’s girl with lots of cash and a lust for women. Payton makes her learn things about herself that she never saw possible and with her new discovery comes a big change in her look and personality. Cream is at the top of her game, surrounded by money and beautiful women. Then, one wild night forces her to discover yet another truth about herself and face the reality of her lifestyle. Will she continue to dwell in her unstable comfort zone? Or, will she finally open her eyes?

Full Figured 7: Carl Weber Presents by Nikki Rashan and Ni’chelle Genovese

Sassy, sophisticated and sensual are the three adjectives Sugar uses to define her personality, her style, and her shapely curves. Fiercely confident about her luxurious, full-figured body, Sugar sashays through Chicago’s nightlife, belting high notes as a well-known singing sensation. Idolized by many, only few know her secret: she and her long-time manager Ace share more than a common passion for Sugar’s career. They’re lovers. At Ace’s insistence, Sugar has always agreed to secrecy for the sake of her career, but now she’s tired of hiding just to maintain her spotlight. Sugar is ready to reveal her true love for Ace. Too bad Ace would rather keep Sugar right in her place—as a sweet scoop of sugar on the side.

Alicia considers herself nothing less than a survivor after escaping years of physical and mental abuse at the hands of her high school love. Now she does whatever is necessary in order to maintain the picture perfect image she thinks she needs to present as a female working for the Virginia Beach Police Department. Tia is Alicia’s polar opposite. She’s an enticing con-woman who’s broken every law, deliberately searching for cracks and loopholes in the system. Tia’s main goal is to live the lavish lifestyle she adores without having to work an honest nine to five to achieve it.

When their worlds collide, it’s everything but ordinary. Alicia finds herself drawn into a world she swore to defend against. They say opposites attract, but Alicia starts to wonder if her fascination with Tia is because they are actually birds of the same feather.

In Full Figured 7, Carl Weber brings together two literary divas to give readers what they’ve been asking for: empowering and entertaining stories about big, beautiful women.

Love After Miami (Love After Series) by Samantha Underwood

Not written as a sequel, the 2nd novel in the Love After Series (read the SOTS review of Love After Atlanta) features two characters that are full of explained angst, graphic passion, and suppressed anger. The slow burn of the content quickly heats up as these women are pushed to their limits and begin to question themselves.

Alexandra Lyon, caught in between a love triangle with a co-worker and a stranger gets in her feelings and falls for a killer love. Crippled by self-deprecation and alcoholism this Creole, English Professor struggles to stay sane after finding out the truth about her lover.

Blonde bombshell CIA Agent Talen Elliot, appears again, this time assigned to a case in Miami. The Spy soon has her hands full while protecting the French Ambassador’s daughter and stopping a terrorist plot while tip-toeing the line between love and duty. As the terrorists’ plot unfolds our favorite couple, Agent Leah Fiento and Dr. Carla Ward make guest appearances to inspire love and save the day.

Niya: Rainbow Dreams (The Dreamers) (Volume 1) by Fabiola Joseph

Do you know who you are? Are you comfortable in your skin? Outed by her best friend in front of the whole neighborhood, Niya is trying to come to terms with being a lesbian, and it isn’t easy. Although everyone around her seems to know the secret she is trying to hide, she is still battling the fact that she likes girls. Filled with dreams of becoming a rap star, she must first learn to accept who she really is before taking over the music industry.

Jamilla is drowning in the reality of her home life. Forced to face a real life monster on a daily basis, the shame of her past is slowly killing everything beautiful about her. Just when she thinks life isn’t worth living, she befriends Niya. Armed with a pen, journal, and true friendship, this writer will find the courage to overcome her past.

With Jamilla’s self-imposed restraints and label of being straight, feelings will emerge, but will also be stifled. Both of these women will be confused by an extremely close unconventional friendship and high sexual tension. Afraid of disrupting their budding friendship, Niya fights to keep her true feelings for Jamilla under wraps. How long can this game of friendship last when love is the stronger opponent? How will these ladies triumph over pain, murder, and so much anger? The secret lies within the pages of Niya… Rainbow Dreams. The story of forbidden love, friendship, music, and destruction.