Autumn Leaves: A Novel [Hardcover]

Victor Mcglothin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 16, 2002

Marshall Coates and Rorey Garland are on top of the world--best friends and superstar athletes with millions in professional contracts just around the corner. But their lives are far from perfect. Despite loving the best thing that ever happened to him-his girlfriend, Jasmine Reynolds-Marshall is constantly faced with the shapely sirens who always seem to accompany the limelight. And Rorey has a dark secret that could destroy their friendship and his life.

In Dallas, Kennedy James is a beautiful art curator who's romantically involved with the wealthy but self-centered society climber Simpson Stone. When confronted with the dilemma of what's more important, getting what she wants or having the man she needs, she finds herself caught up in a tumultuous war of the heart. When she's offered a chance at true love with a less glamorous man will she be able to take it?

As their lives converge, which of them will manage to capture happiness? And which will fall, beautiful but doomed, like autumn leaves?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Autumn Leaves is a dull, cluttered drama from first-time novelist Victor McGlothin. Marshall and Rorey are the stars of their college football team until Rorey, who has just admitted he has AIDS, kills himself. Marshall is still a hot property, but his success begins to interfere with his relationship with longtime girlfriend Jasmine. Meanwhile, Kennedy is miserable with arrogant, philandering coke dealer Simpson, but she sticks around out of habit until she is tempted by sensitive artist Legacy. Melodramatic 11th-hour plot twists (a baby, a murder, an AIDS death) only serve as reminders that nothing of interest has happened all along. The cliche-riddled prose is clumsy and condescending; stereotypes abound, especially Kennedy's mincing co-worker, Morris. McGlothin opines that "love is like a bad perm, you can spread it on thick and it still won't take" the same could be said about weak writing.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"This is a very moving story with plenty of drama, heart-pounding action and seriously emotional scenes." -- Romantic Times - 4 1/2 Stars

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (September 16, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312286767
• ISBN-13: 978-0312286767
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,567,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Essence Best Seller- Victor McGlothin is a former bank vice-president who nearly forfeited an athletic scholarship due to poor reading skills. His knack for weaving passionate tales of suspense and drama, ('Autumn Leaves,' 'What's A Woman To Do?' 'Every Sistah Wants It,' and 'Down on My Knees') has book clubs across the country adding his novels to their Must-Read lists. Victor, the on-line columnist of highly entertaining Victor Said', a real Brotha to Sistah look at relationships, has also given his loyal readers several reasons to hail him as a refreshing voice in African American fiction. Living in Dallas with his wife and two sons, Victor is working on future novels and as a contributing writer for D Magazine.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST READ!, May 9, 2003

By 

Clarissa Bolding "clbzone" (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Autumn Leaves: A Novel (Hardcover)

...I just finished Autumn Leaves and found it a deeply moving, socially conscious and a truly laugh out loud read. It is the kind of novel you can visualize in your mind as you go through each situation. It is the kind of novel that will pull a tear from you eye. It is the kind of novel that leaves you wanting more. I absoluted adored Legacy and found Simpson the kind of man you just want to ...well, you have to read the book. I 'aint giving it away. lol.

Mr. McGlothin read an excerpt of this book at a salute to African American writers here in Austin earlier this year and he left everyone in the room in complete anticipation of what would happen next and trust me, the scene he read from is a WHOPPER!

I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a story that is real with characters you will either love or hate. What's also great about AL is how a famous diva we all know and love is written into the story and I found that too cool!

With that said, go out and get this book. Mr. McGlothin, continued success and keep it up. CLB.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Life You Save, December 17, 2002

By 

T. B. Robinson "Toni Bonita" (St. Marys, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Autumn Leaves: A Novel (Hardcover)

Autumn Leaves is the love story that as a matriculating college student or college graduate, we can say but for the grace of God there go I. College students Roary Garland and Marshall Coates are the famous salt and pepper team of UTC's football team, both destined to become pros. Legacy is an artist struggling to get through college by working in a toll booth at night.

Thinking they have no worries or cares in the world, love and lust lead to casual sex, unprotected sex, and AIDS. Victor tells an unnerving story that should make us all think before we act. At time the story seems to drag, however it shows us AIDS has no respect of person, age, gender or race. ...I wish evrey teenager, college student, and young adult would read Victor's book and have the realization set in; being careless and not protecting yourself will end your life in a split second.

The subject matter in this story is one we deal with daily, Victor, stepping up to the plate writing about AIDS, on the college level has earned him a shout-out from this old lady.
Reviewed by Toni Bonita, APOOO Bookclub

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Slow Moving, But I Kept Reading Because Of It's Realness, May 13, 2003

By 

Smootchez "smootchez" (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Autumn Leaves: A Novel (Hardcover)

I read this book over a course of 3 days during my hour commute. Autumn Leaves starts out with a lot of drama that drags on until the last 5 chapters where it makes a great attempt to tie all the loose ends. Though the plot was drawn out, I kept reading because the characters and their situations were real. No superhero action, no mind-blowing sex, no "everyone lives happy" ending - just people easily found in any city. Issues such as AIDS, emotional abuse, suicide, identity confusion, and low self-esteem are common themes among many of our lives.

- Marshall's self-destructive behavior that he chose to deal with the suicide of his best friend Rorey was handled in a realistic manner. Though Marshall's self-negotiating a multi-million dollar NFL was over the top in fantasy land.

- Kennedy choosing to remain in a relationship because of Simpson's social status and looks is representative of superficial things women are willing to accept to be in a relationship. It took Kennedy's gay pal, Morris to show her that a man, like Legacy, with nothing much more than morals and good heart can bring happiness into her life.

- Several areas in the book touch on how individuals dealt with being diagnosed with HIV and full-blown AIDS. The reader is allowed to experience the emotions of denial and acceptance and the anguish of coping or living with the disease.

This book has many other strong points, but it always delves into too many topics to adequately cover all of them. I didn't see a need to bring in Legacy's lost racial identity...it was enough that he and Kennedy had similar misfortunate childhoods and a love for art. Knowing that Simpson came from a wealthy family, there was no justification on why he dealt drugs. I also felt that Jasmine and Marshall's relationship as well as the encounters with Erykah Badu caused the book to drag longer than need. With the elimination of that excess baggage would make this book 5 stars.