Colored Waiting Room is a novel set in contemporary rural Tennessee that poignantly reveals the struggles of a woman to be accepted in the unwavering traditional workforce ranks of a racist employment circle. The author takes the reader on a suspense-filled journey from a fierce beginning to a shocking and unpredictable ending. Injecting murder, corruption, and deceit into the arena of the federal government, the story paints a picture not readily forgotten. The main character explores love, deals with personal weaknesses, and vulnerablity.
The novel describes the struggles of a Black female locked in the grips of the "good ole boy" network. Alberta Graham, the novel's central character, examines the past eight years of her life as she waits for the hours to pass in a long forgotten room at Cherokee Nuclear Plant in rural east Tennessee. Following her as she relives the highs and lows of her life, the reader will cheer her on, cry, laugh, and begin to live the experiences as the story prompts judgment calls. The discovery of an ongoing taxpayer financial burden with government racketeering, as witnessed through the eyes of Alberta Graham, is both disturbing and frightening.
Characters drawn from Southern values and traditions come alive in Chief Ronnie Klein, the domineering power source at the nuclear plant and eventually head of security. Lieutenant Mack Settles and Lieutenant George Lincoln, are two subordinates whose roles help make for interesting contrast. Officer James Patton, the other Black assigned to the security section permanently, becomes involved with Alberta's plight out of racial pride and a need to identify that pride with being a Black man.
Division Chief Dale Warren is sociopathic, domineering and upper management's overseer of the multi-million dollar security operation. Laura James, the security unit clerk, manipulates Chief Klein consistently in order to control him for her own selfish endeavors. The tailored character of Jeremy Chambers, the love interest of Alberta, impacts and shatters the ideology of love and lifetime partnership. Other characters invade an enhance the story as it unveils the drama, laughter, and pain of survival.
As the title indicates, Colored Waiting Room focuses primarily on the submission of one's will. This is a book for both the casual reader and scholars of fiction.
