Customer Reviews

A Change Had To Come

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In much of Leticia Langley's earlier life, she allowed herself to be defined by others and circumstances. Since her mother was an outcast from the family, she was too. The relative she was closest to was her cousin Kenyetta, who didn't really have her best interest at heart. Graduating from college with honor, albeit a little late in life, Leticia decides to make some much needed changes as she pursues what she wants out of life. A new job, a new attitude and a new look, gets Leticia's confidence to spike, leaving a jealous cousin and an unwanted suitor in her wake.

Leticia lands a job with The Journal as a food columnist, but immediately sets her sights on a higher position. However, this ambition puts her in direct conflict with the paper's top journalist, Max Baldwin. Having been burnt by love in the past, he stays his distance from the impressive Leticia who seems to worm her way into his life anyway. Although Leticia never dated, she finds herself being pursued by someone whom she is not comfortable with and eventually she begins to notice Max in a whole new light. Her cousin, however, is determined to get ahead of Leticia using any means necessary.

In A CHANGE HAD TO COME, Gwynne Forster writes a convincing story about a young woman who is empowered to change the way she and others see herself. For Leticia, it came with physical change as well as a change in her state of mind. The metamorphosis was like that which a butterfly experiences. Forster paints a wonderful picture of carving your own niche in life and being comfortable with self while you do it. As a contrast, Forster uses the cousin as an example of how low self-esteem and jealousy can work in one's life. Forster's dialogue and approach to the love story appeared to be suited for a much older audience. In this advance reader's copy, the conversations were often stilted, the few love scenes were awkward and the passion was lukewarm. Despite this, Forster still tells a pretty good story.

Reviewed by Brenda Lisbon
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

I am not sure if it was the dialogue or what but this was not one of her best works, I actually skimmed it to the end because I just couldnt finish it...I can say however that the story itself had a good point to it but it wasnt what you have become used to from Ms Forster....This is not a hot and steamy love story but it is a story about finding ones self and being true to ones self. Like I said the point of the story was good but the dialgue and the way it was written was and is not that easy to follow....

I was very disappointed in this story. It was very disjointed and there were numerous story lines. The back cover indicates that the main character's change in outer appearance is so important that it changes her life. There is very little about this change other than one shopping excursion with a cousin and a couple of more to buy one dress each time. And the author frequently points to a long silky hair weave instead of the main character's short unmanageable hair as essential to being beautiful...what about beauty with OUR natural hair?????

The cousin, who has an affair with a married man for years, also grabs the main character's love interest for a relationship that doesn't work out. The main character is reunited with her family, but then again not really. The main character falls for a co-worker and they begin this impersonal, dispassionate relationship. The characters bump over their issues so many times you want to slap them and beg for an end to this story.

It was a long winding road to nowhere. The characters were underdeveloped and I was unable to identify with them. The language was formal with words like vituperative and nugacious. I am so glad I finished this book I couldn't wait to give it away. A total and complete waste of my time!!!!!

This book starts off with a nice pace, and the added characters of Kenyatta, Wilson and Mark are enjoyable.... but it seemed to me that once Letica and Max began their relationship the book died. Letica is a 31yr old woman who handles her relationship with Max as if she is in her late 50s, and Max... I had no interest in the character what so ever. He seemed to be in his late 70s, these characters aged when their relationship began, and I WILL NOT RECOMMEND PURCHASING THIS BOOK.... PLEASE LEND FROM A FRIEND OR THE LIBRARY AND SAVE YOUR MONEY.

A Change Had to Come by Gwynne Forster is a contemporary version of the ugly duckling becoming a swan. Leticia Langley is considered unattractive, mostly to herself. However, when she becomes the first in her family to graduate from college and she receives a great job at the newspaper, a swan is born. She gets a hair weave and new clothing. The one problem is she continues to rely on her cousin, Kenyatta, for inspiration, but she is coming to realize that Kenyatta might not always have her best interests at heart. She also discovers truths about herself while she seeks new male interest in her life.

Reggie has been part of her life for a long time and she literally, financially, supports their relationship. Not only that, he is married and may have something even more unseemly going on. Wilson is also showing a great deal of interest in Leticia, and she is falling for his charm. However, her boss has warned her that Wilson might be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Finally, there is Max. The two start out wrong because Leticia is given an assignment that Max wants. Immediately, they are competitors. Of course, there could be more to Max than meets the eye. The question is will Leticia see it, or will she, even now that she is all spruced up and living large, succumb to what she has always known?

A Change Had to Come is a well-written, contemporary romance that is perfect for a leisurely day at the beach. This is not a drama-filled, sex-laced contemporary romance. What it is, is good storytelling and I recommend it to all readers.

Angelia Vernon Menchan
APOOO BookClub

A Change Had to Come starts with Leticia Langley putting the right foot forward. She's graduated from college, landed a great job, so what's left but to get a great make over? The reader is quickly swept up into Leticia's and her cousin Kenyetta's world of friendly rivalry and the dramatic roller coaster begins. Foster writes real women with real problems that are both easy to relate to and be astonished by. There was plenty of drama and just enough `will they, or won't they?' moments to keep me hooked. This was an enjoyable read with an ending that made me smile.