Customer Reviews

A Personal Matter

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

Alayna Jackson had worked hard raising her baby sister after their mother's death, working long hours for a pay she didn't deserve, so when her sister needed to go to college Alayna was about to ask the big boss for a promotion and raise when the "big boss" offered her one to work with the "Ice Man" Ben Richards. Alayna neeeded the money, so working with the devil himself wouldn't make her say no.

Ben "Ice Man" Richards didn't care what people thought of him because he was a damn good lawyer, who knew how to get the job done with emotional ties to another person, but Alayna's way of being very direct with him wore him down.

They couple had to go through their own personal battles, Alayna sister getting pregnant and not wanting to go to college from Ben's secret she had to uncover, before she could confesss her love.

A Personl Matter is a wonderfully written novel about two people who fell in love while working with each other on a case. Race was secondary to the love and commitment they felt for each other.

I think this book is a must have for you interracial bookshelf. Don't miss out on the chance to get a fanastic book.

Because I have been a legal secretary for several years, this book piqued my interest. I thought that the plot and story were well written and very realistic. There were two characters that I loved. . . one was Jamal and the other was Ben Richards. Jamal was a very mature, admirable 18 year old who was determined to hold his own. Ben was very strong willed and extremely confident and did not allow the "good 'ole boy" system dictate his life. The author touched on racism from both black and white perspectives. I also liked the chemistry that developed between Alayna and Ben and how their feelings for one another ascended color barriers.

I would recommend this book.

Karyn Langhorne comes out swinging in the first sentence of her debut novel, A Personal Matter. From page one it is obvious the main character, Alayna, is witty, outspoken, and sure to be a wonderful host through this literary tour de force. And she proves as such in the ensuing pages. Even more thrilling, the other characters are just as intriguing. Langhorne fills in enough details, enough unique traits, and distinct dialogue etc. to give her characters a versimillitude unfortunately too few novel characters enjoy. From Alayna's sister,Martine, to Trailer Trixie, every time one of Langhorne's characters stepped on stage, this reader was riveted. Not your basic love story, A Personal Matter deserves a large audience, and hopefully will achieve it. The story in a snippet...Alayna, a black, paralegal with the brains and chutzpah for much more in her firm, is assigned to work with Ben "Ice" Richards, a white lawyer with the reputation, as his nickname suggests, for being less than personable. Do sparks fly between the two? Let's just say their meeting and first few encounters looked like a night in Baghdad. But eventually, through Langhorne's fresh prose, inventive conceits, and breathtaking realness, the two become closer. The cover tagline, "Their relationship was strictly business...until it went too far" is a fitting nugget of what occurs in the pages to follow. I can't say enough about this work. Langhorne is one to watch.

OK,

I rented this book from the library last night after having it on my Amazon Wishlist forever, and I am really glad that I did not buy it. I will say that this book was a very quick read, but the main character "Alayna" got on my nerves. She made so many assumptions about white people, or people in general, and her reasons for that were never delved into. It was as if she was a bitter, paranoid black woman for no reason at all. It wasn't holding her back on her job, she wasn't dating, so it's not like a man did her wrong, etc. I mean, she was just nasty in teh beginning...for a heroine. The first five or six pages of the book had some remark "white this" and "white that." I almost decided to chuck the book and not read it at all.

I did like Ben "Ice" Richards though. I sympathized with him from the beginning because after those first five or six pages, I knew she would be the one to get on my nerves.

I truly enjoy reading IR stories: love, drama, whatever, but I think there were better ways to incorporate that into this story (i.e. Color of Love). Everything race-related was so completely over the top. Alayna, Martine, and that lame old Linc. Just too much.

I also could not get with her ungrateful brat of a sister, Martine. Let me tell you, if I ended up raising my brother for the last ten years of his life, put away money for him to go to college, put MY LIFE on indefinite hold, you had better believe he would respect me and not let his friends talk to me like they owned my house. Please. That relationship was so unreal.

It does get decent after maybe the first 250 pages of the book. The first and only love scene came at about this point. I agree with another poster, too much race, and not enough romance. I mean, we had to deal with her nasty attitude for way too long!

I put off picking up this book for the longest because of all the earlier negative reviews. But, after coming across it in a local bookstore I decided to go ahead and give it a try since it was only $6.99. I'm glad I did!!! Don't believe the negative hype being spouted about this book. It is very well written. The characters are developed thoughtfully and fully. The plotline was completely natural and believable. There was no rush into sex or a relationship before the two really "discovered" each other over time. It was simply a natural progression that was refreshing especially since there are a few IR novels that are just too ridiculous with how quick they have their characters profess their "love" for one another or hop in the sack.

Alayna, the main character, was in no way a pain or unbearable as some here have suggested. I found her to be strong, sensitive, intelligent and clever. Additionally, I was not offended by the way she stood up for herself when necessary and didn't take anything off of anyone. I especially loved how she remained the epitome of class while doing it, a true example of the beautiful and intelligent black woman. She wasn't that super-stereotyped version of the black woman with attitude (like in the horrendous Renee and Jay by JJ Murray). Also, I loved the fact that Benjamin (the "Ice Man") was her match, wit for wit and brain for brain. That was wonderful to witness. Everything Alayna dished out, Ice could take and give right back. LOVED IT!! They were equals and complimented each other in every meaningful way!!

If you love INTELLIGENT and REALISTIC interracial novels, purchase this book!!! You'll be glad you did.

I agree with the others reviewers that this book hooks you in right from the start. I especially love the initial relationship between Ben and Alayna, the adversarial current between them was exciting, but then the budding romance became implausible. I don't buy how Ben (Ice Man) starts falling for her so quickly. I also don't believe that Alayna, who clearly acted unprofessional in a top notch law firm that was predominately white, would get away with making frequent racist comments about her co-workers. Black people in general have to watch their backs in white corporate America. Let's get real, she's an underlining as a paralegal, I don't care how bright or how much potential she had, home girl was expendable.

I'm also tired of how black women are portrayed in these i/r romances like they have no sense or home training. It's like some of these characters are trying so hard to suppress their natural "ghetto" side to them. I feel the novel went stale about two-thirds in. And what was up with the love/sex scenes? I couldn't believe that Ben and Alayna were intimate, the bickering between them became old hat after a while. I'm wasn't looking for them to be lovely-dovey, they were abrasive people by nature, but the constant references of nagging and race commentary made me feel that there was nothing else between them but that. I was very disappointed by the end of the book but I still recommend it. For a first time writer, Langhorne did an excellent job and hope to see more work from her in the future.

Summary: A hard working paralegal, who happens to be black, is pressured into working for her law firms good looking, slightly disheveled, top attorney, who happens to be white and nicknamed "ICE." Throughtout the book, they both deal with personal problems, gain a greater understanding of themselves and eachother. There is a happy ending.
So what you as a reader really want/should want to know:
1) The book has a realalistic plot and storyline; you could actually imagine the characters in the situations the author put them in.
2) The book was well thought out and there is and ending to every subplot.
3) If you read romance novels for the steamy sex, this is the wrong book for you. The author does a good job of creating a good amount of sexual tension, but only really alludes to the act itself. I.E. "He then put his tounge someplace she had never felt before." Not, "He slowly guided his tounge down the crevices of her hot silken core, nibbling on..."
4) The author tries very hard to make the characters three-demensional, but gets too wrapped up in adjectives. Often the adjectives are unecessary and add no new meaning to the object their modifying.
5) One of the best things about this book, that is often handeled badly by more expeirenced IR authors, is that she deals with race without allowing it to overwhelm the plot. You understand their different but your not sitting through American History 101.
Overall: A good read read and a nice start to what should be a promising career. Definite read if your in it for the romance and not the sex and can stand of few misplaced adjectives.