Customer Reviews

Complementary Colors

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COMPLEMENTARY COLORS is the second novel I've read by Kate Evans and I have to say I'm a fan. The book is about a straight girl, Gwen, who meets a gay girl and, despite a history of having never really thought about it, edges toward a lesbian affair. Complicating this strange, new attraction is that she's deeply into a tricky long-term, live-in relationship with an attractive male scientist. The female love object has her own entanglement -- a Lesbian minister. Triangles upon triangles seems to be Miss Evans's style, as it was also characteristic of her first book, FOR THE MAY QUEEN (which was about the sexual adventures of a college coed). Plotting is one of this writer's strengths and there's some striking imagery, as befits a novel about two people who meet in a poetry workshop. But what really fascinated me was the close-up portrait of the woman changing her sexual stripes. A fun, sexy, quick read.

Yes, it's a bad play on words, and apologies for that. But go ahead and "color" me pleasantly surprised and impressed by Kate Evans' COMPLEMENTARY COLORS (CC).

In the past, I've been underwhelmed by some of the offerings of small presses. No matter what type of publisher is involved, I try to vet carefully the books in which I invest. I can't remember exactly where I heard about this book and author, but I believe it was recommended on an online forum somewhere on a list of "quality" lesbian fiction. I had the free sample sent to my Kindle--remember, you can have it sent to the Kindle for PC software if you don't own a Kindle device--and was tempted enough by it to make the full purchase.

I am very glad I did.

Kate Evans has renewed my willingness to stray off the literary beaten path. If this is the distinctiveness of literary voice and quality of characterization that small presses can bring us, it is worth my effort to seek out other small press gems like CC.

GENRE

Some people may classify this as a Romance. Technically, it does meet the required elements of that genre. But in all honesty, this is less a standard Romance novel than it is a book of ideas, experiences, and thoughts. The romance is the main plot point, but it's the journey, not the destination, that will impress the thoughtful reader.

SYNOPSIS

It is 1991, at a time when Bill Clinton is running for President and the world seems poised on the brink of exciting change. Gwen, a low-paid office worker who lives with her moody and emotionally closed-off boyfriend Daniel, senses the changes around her but lives a life that doesn't equally reflect growth or discovery. That all changes when she enrolls in an evening poetry class. Gwen's intriguing classmates are the catalyst for her realization that she is attracted to and in love with another woman, and that she is no longer willing to settle for a life devoid of color and self-exploration.

FINALLY, A NOVEL OF GENUINE "SELF-DISCOVERY"

So many books are touted as novels of "self-discovery" but fail to show the protagonist's actual growth or inner processes. But Evans' novel of self-discovery delivers on its promise. Out of the thousands of books I've read over the years, Evans' protagonist--Gwen--is one of the very few whose head I feel I've completely entered, whose experiences and mental processes I feel I've undergone along with her. Evans takes the reader step-by-step not only through the main plot point of a formerly straight woman's attraction to and growing love for a lesbian woman, but from Gwen's transformation from an adrift 9-to-5 office worker to an artistically-attuned embracer of life and all its "colors."

I'd say at least 75% of this book is composed of Gwen's thoughts and reactions and emotional and mental inner processes. She is utterly believable as a character; so many of Evans' little details ring powerfully true to life. For instance, Gwen sits across from her thinner, elfin-like friend and finds herself distracted by the way the friend becomes so engrossed in their conversation that the friend forgets about the open bag of potato chips in front of her. Gwen reflects to herself that she doesn't know what it's like to be that sort of person, the sort who can "forget" about food when it's set before her. In another passage, Gwen sits in an evening poetry class for adults and experiences a rush of pleasure when praised by the instructor. Almost immediately after, her pleasure turns to disquiet as she wonders why, at age 31, she craves the approval of a teacher as much as any eager schoolgirl might.

I cannot overstate the effectiveness and power of Evans' guided tour through another human being's brain as that person undergoes major life transformations in steps so subtle and realistically rendered, the reader feels he or she is experiencing it at the same time. If you're wary of how convincingly an author can depict a lifelong heterosexual woman's sudden love and lust for another woman, put your mind at rest; because of her skill at guiding us through the protaganist's head, Evans' handling of this trajectory is seamless and utterly believable.

WRITING STYLE/VOICE

This is the second major selling point of the novel. Evans' style is simple, fluid, unpretentious. The prose style sweeps the reader along, never drawing attention to itself; rather, those passages and lines that do stand out do so organically, jumping out at us because they are well-crafted, not because the writer tried too hard to make them appear so. The poetry class students' poems--which I presume were written by Evans herself--are a wonderful addition to the work and contribute to the novel's appealingly "literary" quality.

NOTES ABOUT ROMANCE PLOT

For those who are wondering, the main character has enjoyed sexual relationsips with men. Her attraction to and love for another woman is treated with all the awe and surprise that a formerly "straight" character might feel upon realizing she's fallen for a woman, however, Gwen never really puts labels on her love. Although I think sometimes "labels" can be liberating in their own way, it's ultimately not really important within the context of *this* particular story whether Gwen thinks of herself as lesbian, bisexual, etc; here, it's the journey from "always attracted only to men" to "oh, wow--I'm attracted to a woman!" that's what's most notable.

Also, please note that there is very little in the way of sex scenes. Rather, Gwen's slow-blooming sensual awakening is described by way of its effects on her body, mind and spirit.


WEAKNESSES/MINOR FLAWS

The novel is not perfect, by any means. Some topics were given cursory treatment and little follow-up, almost as though Evans felt the topic "should be" included in the novel, but didn't have the space to fully develop them. The coming out scenes with Gwen's sister and hometown friend seemed to fall into this category.

Also, some characters are at slightly loose ends: one character whose spouse has been borderline emotionally abusive abruptly "resolves" her problems with him, and another character who was romantically attracted to Gwen suddenly loses interest in her.

But these flaws are minor when compared to the impressive strengths of the novel, and I predict you will still enjoy and be enlightened by CC.

RECOMMENDED FOR: people who enjoy self-discovery stories; anyone seeking a compelling and believable love story between two true-to-life characters; lovers of poetry; English Lit majors and other lovers of the process of literary analysis; visual artists who enjoy reading descriptions of artists' lives and works.

I cannot stress enough how valuable and enjoyable this novel of self-discovery will be to men and women of any age or sexual orientation. If you have been through any life change or even just a change in how you look at the world, CC will be of value to you. And it is well-written enough that you will enjoy every step of the journey.

I can't believe how many positive reviews have been given to this book. I bought it off of the good reviews and was so disappointed. There was no evolvement of a relationship and it was so glazed over. So much wasted time on things throughout the book that didn't matter. The things I wanted to learn more about were barely even touched upon. Big Disappointment!

I stumbled over this book accidentally on Amazon and honestly wasn't expecting too much when I decided to buy and read it. At the time it was discounted to under five bucks though, so it seemed worth taking a chance on it. I'm really glad I did!

The story is told in first person. Gwen is a thirty-one-year old woman who has kinda been drifting through life, just latching on to things when they come her way. She's in a longterm relationship with a man who seems entirely unsuited to her and working a job she doesn't particularly like, but she doesn't really appear to be seriously thinking of doing anything to change that. All this changes when she takes a poetry class and becomes intrigued with one of her classmates, who is a lesbian.

The real strength of this book is Evans's writing. The story, a straight woman confronting being attracted to another woman for the first time, has been told before in many ways. So in that respect there's nothing unique here. What is unique is how Evans tells the story and the language she uses. Gwen's excitement over poetry is palpable and Evans's prose is quite poetic and enchanting. (I'm not into poetry personally, but Evans easily made me understand why Gwen is.)

Evans has a deft touch with characterization also. Even characters who only appear once or a few times are vivid. Where I thought her skill in this regard really shone was in regards to Gwen's boyfriend, Daniel. He's a very closed up person and though it's not stated, I'd guess he suffers from depression. It's possible that he came across as unsympathetic to other readers, but I empathized with him a great deal. It's not that he's a bad person so much as he doesn't realize how unsuitable he is for being in that sort of a relationship, especially with a person like Gwen. I believe this was Evans's intent in how she wrote him.

About the only weakness I can think of is that the pacing seems a bit uneven at times. Sometimes it felt like things dragged a bit here and there, or we were a little too wrapped up in Gwen's mental musings at the expense of new events unfolding. But this is a fairly minor criticism for what is otherwise a very good book.

Cynn Chadwick in the product page review above states that, "Kate Evans explores not so much a coming of age story as a coming to terms story." I think that's an excellent way to sum up this book. Here's a passage from Complementary Colors that I highlighted in my Kindle: "But here I was, right on the edge of something. My inside life and my outside life each had one foot on different continental plates. An earthquake seemed inevitable."

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well-written book about a woman's internal struggles with trying to make sense of her life. Especially readers who enjoy books about relationships between women, both friendship and romantic.

Kindle Note: This ebook is from a small publisher so the formatting is pretty simplistic, but there are few errors.

I, too, appreciate the accuracy of Kate Evans' "Complementary Colors," and the title itself proves her poetic nature evident in her earlier books, the range between the development of a love affair and the development of one's writing and another's teaching style. The descriptive and narrative power to paint what it is like to not have a clue one might not be as "straight" as she presumed when she meets the woman who sparks the lean is right on. Also, the instructor/student dynamic is handled with photo/graphic reality. I have my own memories of undergrad and mfa creative writing workshops, and I can tell you the conversations, both out loud and interior, are visible in Complement Colors, deftly close to transcripts verbatim to mine, and past participants whom I've witnessed, and heard described. This is my first public post on Amazon. Think mused.

Kate Evans' new novel COMPLEMENTARY COLORS starts off with the lines "I was craving something, but I wasn't exactly sure what. I wanted something new. I wanted something beautiful." Nothing could be more appropriate for the way I felt coming into this novel. Evans weaves and entertaining and nuanced tale with wonderful characters and an intimate look on the human dynamic. Her characters are fresh, but real, and the story doesn't fall back on cliché. Despite being a quick and fun read, I walked away from the novel feeling like I'd witnessed an actual metamorphosis of a close friend. This book pulls you in and doesn't let go.

COMPLEMENTARY COLORS follows Kate Evans' first novel, FOR THE MAY QUEEN with an engaging story about a woman coming to terms with who she is and what she wants from life. As an aside, it happens that this involves examining her sexuality and making some difficult life choices, but the book is more about self-exploration and discovery than exploring alternate sexual orientations. I grew to like each of her characters a great deal as I read, and as I got to to know them better, I appreciated that Evans didn't default to the old, tired stereotypes that so often characterize books about coming out and lesbianism. This was a truly enjoyable read and I'm already looking forward to her next novel with enthusiasm!

Just finished reading this great novel. I also read her 1st book, and looked forward to this book. Kate does an outstanding job of building a central character that seems like a fictional Kate. I loved the references to SF Bay area , especially the love connection in Santa Cruz. Wow; what a turn-on for this straight guy. Just having some fun, I highly recommend this book. The author has created another excellent story line that makes you want to find out how this novel ends.