Naked Love [Paperback]

Darnella Ford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2009

Thirty-two year old Adrian Cage has just jumped from the roof of the Landmark II building in downtown Chicago. With only twenty eight floors to work with, she has less than 60 seconds to tell you the story of her life...

Adrian has lived a life filled with breathtaking passion--but also deepest sorrow. Raised by her eccentric father until his senseless death, she fell into the hands of her cruel and merciless grandmother. Yet miraculously Adrian grows into a hopeful young woman who expresses her innermost feelings through her dream of being an artist. When she meets and falls in love with the wealthy Michael Keifer Cage, her life at last seems complete...but is it only an illusion?

Adrian's dream life quickly turns into a nightmare. Michael becomes a workaholic who sees their relationship as a formality. Her young son is "emotionally disturbed,"and Adrian stops feeling much of anything. Until a "gifted" music teacher enters her shuttered life...and she begins to live again.

An evocative and poignant tale of longing, love, and betrayal, Darnella Ford is back with her fiercest novel yet.

Praise for Darnella Ford

"An unpretentious gritty masterpiece...full of vivid suspense and detail."--Upscale (on Rising)

"A novel that will disturb and comfort at the same time."--Ebony (on Rising)

"An enjoyable, insightful and entertaining read."--Mary Monroe, bestselling author of God Still Don't Like Ugly (on Crave)

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Dafina; Reprint edition (January 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758216750
• ISBN-13: 978-0758216755
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #456,566 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Falling and Never Getting Up-At Least Not in This Life, March 13, 2008

By 

Coulee Eidos "4YaSoul" (NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Naked Love (Paperback)

Author Darnella Ford tells an intriguing and heart-wrenching story in naked love. The story is about the tragic life of Adrian Moses, a young woman who seems to always get the short and stinking end of the stick in the game of life. The book opens with a quote from Adrian--she's falling from a building and has twenty-eight floors to tell her story. I was instantly drawn in as she refers to it as "not a suicide note; this is a suicide novel..." Wow!

The main character, Adrian, has a life that starts out bleak. Her mother died of cancer when she was two years-old and her father, Juno, is left to raise her as a single parent. Adrian has to deal with the fact that her father is comfortable with walking around in high heels and dresses and acting like a woman. His life revolves around his acting and his devotion to his daughter, but he is struggling with homosexuality and it tragically takes its toll on him. Once a blooming actor in his community--all of that is taken from him when the town finds out about his sexuality and he tragically commits suicide. Adrian is then sent to live with her white trash grandmother, Reva Joe, who was Juno's mother. And so begins the next sad journey in this young woman's life.

Reva Joe is the epitome of poor and trash. She lives in a run down house and speaks to Adrian like she is trash. The only hope that Adrian has going for her is her love of art--this keeps her pressing on. With a grandmother who seems to harbor nothing but hate for her and her deceased father, Adrian finds delight in nothing except for her dreams of becoming an artist and her newfound first love, a young bi-racial boy named Anthem. She finds life in Anthem but when her grandmother catches her and Anthem in a compromising position, she sends her away to boarding school--the next journey of Adrian's life.

Adrian manages to graduate from boarding school after experiencing a horrible experience there that ends up leaving yet another negative experience in her life. Despite this she manages to meet and fall in love with a wealthy young attorney, Michael Keifer Cage--but all that glitters is definitely not gold. She ends up having to deal with a husband that only seeks to use and degrade her, gives birth to a son that has mental problems and who seems not to love her. All hope seems to be gone until she meets up with a music teacher than can help her with her son. He ends up being a loved one from her past.

All of these experiences in life leaves Adrian yearning for one thing--love. With everything tragic that has happened in her life one would think she would get a break--yet right when she reaches the point of when she thinks life will be worth living, she loses it all. What brings her to this point? Why does she meet the same fate as her father? Twists and turns, anger, sadness, triumph, pity and hope are all feelings I felt while reading this wonderful read.
The unique way in which the story was written gets many kudos from me. It is very interesting how the author has the main character reflect on her tragic life as she descends floor by floor and lead into its tragic end. This story reads like a screenplay in the making. I definitely give this one two thumbs up and am very excited to read many more titles from Darnella Ford.

Reviewed by Coulee Eidos
APOOO BookClub

5.0 out of 5 stars There is no happy ending..., October 27, 2011

By 

A. Mboup "adiaha1913" (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Naked Love (Kindle Edition)

...and if you read the description of the book you know that going in. Yet and still you hope and wish and pray that something good happens along the way that changes the course of this story. It seems that from birth she has the short end of the stick and she can't quite catch a break, even when she does seem to catch a break you realize that "everything that glitters ain't gold." I found this to be a true page turned, I could feel Adrian's struggles along the way and wanted to cry along with her. I finished this book in less than two days. Definitely one of my favorites by Ms. Ford! Its not a happy book, but even if you don't love it like I did, you won't regret reading it.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Unique Interestng Tale of a Tragic loss Soul, November 29, 2010

By 

T. Brooks "Honest Book Reviewer" (TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Naked Love (Paperback)

The novel was well written, characters well developed, great story-teller but at times the author is writing about white people, many times, the white characters dialoque fell along the lines of black folks. It was unrealistic.

It was not a page-turner, but an interesting read. I would recommend the read.

Overall rating: 4.0