All I Want Is Forever [Mass Market Paperback]

Lynn Emery (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 5, 2002

Talia Marchand has come a long way from Pointe Coupee Parish to Washington, D.C. -- and this smart and beautiful political consultant never wants to go back. But the past and painful family responsibility are calling her to tiny Rougon -- and to Derrick Guillory.

As tempting as the richest chocolate, Derrick shared a first passion with Talia when they were both young and troubled -- and a dark, deep, and dangerous secret. Now an investigator for the local D.A., he thinks he's over the lady who was his world back in the day. But the years haven't changed his feelings for Talia -- and he finds it impossible to deny what's meant to be. Talia thought she could get away; Derrick thought he could forget. And now that they're together again, love's true promise must be honored -- and the ghosts that have haunted their lives must finally be destroyed.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Behind the pretty face and business-like demeanor of 29-year-old D.C. lobbyist and political consultant Talia Marchand lies a "past as thick as swamp mud." Unfortunately, Talia is forced to confront her former life when a new client turns out to be none other than her long-lost first love, Derrick Guillory, now an investigator for the DA's office in their tiny hometown of Rougon, La. During an extended trip home, Talia reluctantly reunites with her incarcerated mother, Monette, who is serving a 40-year sentence she is trying to appeal. As Talia and Derrick look into the circumstances surrounding Monette's conviction, they uncover a trail of corruption leading to a high political official who is determined to keep Monette behind bars. The political intrigue subplot adds a smidgen of suspense, and Talia's interactions with her mother, while at times overwrought, inject the narrative with warmth. Despite Emery's (Gotta Get Next to You) tendency to tell rather than show ("Talia had always meant to follow the money. Yet influence and control were just as important to her"), she still manages to place the reader firmly in her Southern setting.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Lynn Emery is a native resident of Louisiana. A licensed clinical social worker, she has been an expert consultant for articles on relationships and single women for the popular magazine Today's Black Woman.

Her first novel was reconized by Romantic Times Magazine for Excellence in Romantic Fiction for 1995. In 2000 she was nominated by Romantic Times Magazine for the Lifetime Achievement Award in Multicultural Romance Fiction.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (November 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060089288
• ISBN-13: 978-0060089283
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,971,936 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lynn is the author of fifteen romantic suspense and mystery novels. A native of Louisiana, most of her books are set in her home state. NIGHT MAGIC was recognized for Excellence in Romance Fiction by Romantic Times Magazine. Her novel AFTER ALL was adapted for a television movie by Black Entertainment Television (BET) in 2000. Lynn has been nominated several times for awards, and in 2006 won three Emma Awards for Kiss Lonely Goodbye as part of the Romance Slam Jam conference. Her latest novels are
A Darker Shade of Midnight, a paranormal murder mystery, and Best Enemies, a cozy mystery.

Happy reading!

What reviewers have had to say about Lynn's books:

"Beginning with the cover, this book is superbly written and rendered. It's beautiful and the storyline is enthralling." Francine Craft (A Darker Shade of Midnight)

"AFTER ALL...is a brilliant expose of the dark secrets that lurk in the gutters and spires of a southern metropolis, complete with murder, passions and spine-tingling suspense." Romantic Times Magazine

"A superb storyteller." Greg Langley, The Advocate (Sweet Mystery)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars engaging ethnic romance, November 5, 2002

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All I Want Is Forever (Mass Market Paperback)

Political consultant Talia Marchand has come along way from her poverty stricken childhood as she hobnobs with US senators. Talia's prime ambition is to never go back to the Louisiana Parish that she despairingly once called home. The only positive thing from her school days was her friendship with Derrick Guillory, but she fled him as much as she did her hometown of Rougon the first chance she could.

Derrick arrives in DC and using his investigative skills easily finds Talia. Though he still desires the woman who was his first love, he knows she will never reveal that she wants him too because he represents her dark past. Still Derrick persuades her to come home in order to take care of personal responsibilities even as he has a secret agenda to convince her that they belong together.

ALL I WANT FOREVER is an engaging ethnic romance filled with a strong love story supported by subplots involving murder and drugs. The story line retains a serious undertow, but insures that the romance remains pivotal, taking the front and center position throughout the tale. Though Derrick is an intriguing hunk, perhaps a bit too perfect, and the support cast adds depth especially to the subplots, this novel is owned in every sense by the complex Talia. Her negative feelings about her heritage has propelled her into making a success out of her professional life, but distrusting anything personal including Derrick. Lynn Emery provides a strong tale that focuses on the theme that a person has no choice but to go home because the adult is the result of the child.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars To forgive is divine, May 6, 2003

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: All I Want Is Forever (Mass Market Paperback)

Talia Marchand has finally escaped Ponte Coupee Parish, Louisiana,
and all of the heartache it held for her. Her life is now in
Washington, D.C. as a political consultant. But her past is calling
her back home, back to family responsibilities and back to Derrick
Guillory.

Talia is a product of the foster care system, and were it not for her
foster mom, Ms. Rose, and the promise of her childhood friend Derrick
that he would be her protector, Talia would have slipped through the

cracks. But after graduation Talia needed to escape Derrick's boy scout
mentality and the antics of her birth mother. Now ten years later, her
foster mom is sick and Talia needs to go home. The timing is perfect
as Talia has just been assigned to assist the District Attorney's office
in Coupee Parish, they are studying prison regulations involving non-
violent crimes. But the fact that the case under study is Talia's birth
mother and because she has to work with Derrick, her plan is to spend the
least amount of time in Coupee Parish, treat Derrick as part of her job
and return to her safety net in Washington. But Derrick has other ideas,
all he's ever wanted is forever with Talia.

Those familiar with Ms. Emery's works know she always treats readers
to a well seasoned story about the Bayou state. And this romantic
mystery with unsolved murders and drug world implications does that
indeed. Talia is in for some shocking surprises as she starts to uncover
the background of a mother she wants desperately to hate. And as feelings
that she thought were buried begin to fill her head she starts to conquer
her demons and open her heart.

Reviewed by aNN Brown
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

5.0 out of 5 stars Love, love, love it!, September 21, 2011

By 

Courtney - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: All I Want Is Forever (Mass Market Paperback)

This book is definitely one of my favorites. The story line is just...WOW! I got emotional on more than one occasion. It's just really a relatable book, a real page-turner that will have you rooting for certain characters from start to finish. You can't hide from love! That's definitely the moral of this story. Read it. Talia and Derrick will make you fall in love, or at least want to lol. Check out some of Miss Emery's other books too ("Tell Me Something Good", "Kiss Lonely Goodbye" and "Gotta Get Next To You"). She's a great writer!