Most Helpful Customer Reviews
40 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Just okay, November 12, 2004
This review is from: A Personal Matter (Mass Market Paperback)
I read this book because of the great reviews it received on this site. I thought it was an okay book but I didn't love it.
The Good:
Technically, this was a well written book. It has a polish and a sophistication that one does not normally find in an author's first book.
The dialogue was great. It was snappy and witty and I could actually "hear" the characters talking.
The not so Good:
I didn't care about the characters. Alayna was the most repressed, isolated character I have ever read about. I didn't like her and I didn't sympathize with her. Normally, this isn't such a bad thing as long as the character grows and changes during the course of the story. I don't feel that Alayna's character grew at all during the story. I think she was simply repositioned.
I actually liked Ben, but for a hotshot lawyer he didn't seem very hot-shot at all. The follow through of the character did not live up to the set up. Of all the characters I think he was the one with the most depth.
I thought the secondary characters dragged down the story. I appreciate secondary characters a lot in a story because they can really add texture, and a great supporting framework for the main characters. But the father storyline and the sister storyline were distracting. Maybe that is because the primary storyline of the romance between the two main characters just wasn't very engaging.
This takes me to my biggest disappointment. I didn't feel as if these two characters connected to each other at all. Alayna seemed so disdainful of Ben and white people in general that it seemed really bizarre that she would actually unbend enough to date a white guy let alone marry one. I think the author tried to so hard to showcase Alayna as a strong black woman that she forgot to show how even a strong black woman becomes vulnerable in love. Alayna never became vulnerable in my opinion. So much so, that I found myself wondering why did Ben even bother.
As I got toward the end of the book I kept expecting wondering how the heck they'd get it together and become a couple. Alas, it was a quick dénouement where everything happened all at once. I wish the book had a bit more depth and a lot more emotion.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Author's first novel is pretty good, August 31, 2004
This review is from: A Personal Matter (Mass Market Paperback)
I actually read this book a couple of months ago because I work at a book store and we were sent an advanced readers copy of it. At first I thought it would be some of the usual crap we're sent, but the front cover piqued my interest and when I read it found it to be surprisingly good.
This book is about the blossoming relationship between a young, black female paralegal,Alayna, and her white hard-to-get-along with boss, Ben Richards (aka "Ice"). Both of them must learn to trust the other in order to resolve their personal issues.
Unlike some other interracial romance books that I have read, this one is more realistic. The couple does not fall in love at first sight, and the issue of race is something that is crucial to the development (or lack thereof) of the relationship. I also like the fact that Alayna and Ben are around the same age categroy (she's 27 and he's in his early 30s), unlike a lot of IR romances which have a young black woman paired with a relatively old white man.
This book is a quick read because it's so good. Don't be surprised if you finish it in a day.
I think the author did a great job for this to be her first novel. I hope to see more novels from her soon.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Interracial romace readers...here's a book for you, September 8, 2004
This review is from: A Personal Matter (Mass Market Paperback)
Just finished this book and...loved it! I didn't know if I would but I was hooked from the first page. I mean standing at the bus stop reading, forgetting to do anything else, hooked. This novel is about two people who end up working together when that's the last thing they want to do. Alayna is trying to support her younger sister and works for Ben "Ice" to make more money. Ice comes off as an ass, but turns out to much more on the surface. Alayna comes off as a woman who hates white people and see them as the enemy, but turns out to be so much more. SHe learns a lot throughout the novel. Alayna and Ice become work associates, friends, and lastly lovers. The relationship is slow. They just don't fall into bed with each other. Situations come up where they get to know each other even when that's the last thing they want to do. Each scene with them is important b/c it shows how little by little they began to care about each other. By the time they make love they are comfortable and real wtih each other, not having to pretend.
I liked Alayna's character a lot. She was a real stong person who didn't take any crap and didn't depend on anyone. I would say she was kind of a tourtured heroine. Ice had his own problems, but was able to help Alayna work through hers so later she can help him with his'. They became partners is every sense of the word.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
