Customer Reviews

Room for Love

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was a thoroughly enjoyable book on several levels. First, it's a solid romance, with believable women doing believable things as they struggle toward an understanding and future. Second, it has deeper issues than love at its heart, including trust, faith and grief. Last, the "dramatic events" that are hinted at above are well-plotted and carried out. I'll be looking for more Frankie Jones. The fledgingly press, Bella Books, has picked some real winners!

I'm a fan of the explosion in publishing opportunities brought about by the Internet. More voices being heard than ever is a good thing. The only drawback is amateurish or just plain weak books that get no editing. Good writer, good book. Bad or inexperienced writer results in a weak and amateurish book. There's no way to tell with some of these publishers which is which without buying the book.

When it comes to the on-demand publishers I now wait to get a good recommendation before I plunk down my cash. The established publishers, like Bella Books, Alyson, and Naiad, are far less risky; without exception -- whether you like the theme or the writing -- they turn out consistent books.

This book is an example of a professionally written and edited story and I just can't describe how much better it is than some of the on-demand stuff which I often give 1 or 2 stars. The author, editor and publisher all care about the final product meeting a minimum standard.

Room for Love was a thoroughly enjoyable book and a treat to read. I've taken note of the publisher: Bella Books. Since they also published two other fine novels that I've read (Mirrors and Sleight of Hand) I'll be looking for more from Bella Books. Not only do their writers have talent, the press itself seems to know how to produce a consistently good product that is well worth my money and time.

Because of Litterati1's review, I read this novel, and she was absolutely right on. The characters of Beth and Jo are *real*, as though you might know them in your ordinary life. Tracy--and actually, all the secondary characters--comes across as vibrant and colorful. The storyline is interesting, and the writing just sings. ROOM FOR LOVE is well done, along the lines of the best books Kallmaker and M.Martin have written. I think I'm a convert to Jones' style!

Oh, and the cover is superbly done. Excellent artwork.

As is so often the case, the back cover of this book doesn't do the story justice. 'Room for Love' is a complex, well-developed story, and Jones uses this genre's basic winning recipe (i.e., girl sees girl, girl falls for girl, girl rents U-Haul...) to write an enjoyable tale of two women who fall in love while battling past demons.

Rancher Beth Harman has a lover (Janet) and a young daughter (Tracy). Beth truly believes she is in love with Janet and that they have a future together. However, Janet is mostly absent and can't stand Tracy. To appease Janet, Beth decides to have an extra bedroom added to her cabin and hires Jo Merrick to do the work. Beth and Jo both feel an immediate attraction, but Beth can't stop thinking about her relationship with Janet. To make things worse, Jo can't let go of the memory of her late lover Diane. Just as things start to get exciting for the duo, Janet jumps in and rocks the boat. I'm sure you can guess how it ends, but you'll have to read it to find out.

I have enjoyed most of the Frankie Jones books I have read. This one is no exception. Although most of her books have a great many very explicit sex scenes, this is not the case here. 'Room' seems to be toned down significantly from her usual modus operandi. For some writers, this kind of departure would take away from the quality of their story. However, Jones is a solid writer and is able to make this one work without the extra icing.

Jones is a great writer. No collection of lesbian literature is complete without her books. Do yourself a favor -- read this one today and enjoy it again and again for years to come.

This is light years better than Jones' earlier book, Captive Heart. The melodramatics more or less demanded by the genre (storms, misunderstandings, emergencies, heartbreaks) are nicely handled, and one comes away with a strong sense of the Texas setting as the sustaining environment for the interaction between the two strong and...lead characters. Jones has developed an eye for the kinds of descriptive details that make you feel the protagonists' desirability in terms of their body language--how they move inside their skin, as well as how they interpret and respond to one another's physicality.

... this book is better than 'Captive Hearts' which, admittedly, is not saying too much. I have the distinct feeling that Frankie J. Jones has a really good story in her. However, this is not it.

It's too brief, for a start. Much like 'Captive', we are told that protagonist A is in love with protagonist B, without us, the reader, ever being shown that this is true.

The plot is entirely formulaic and cliché ridden, and the story is way too thin to be a novel. I'm not going to bag on the author, because I really do think that she has a great story, just itching to be told, I will instead say that Ms. Jones's editors and publishers have done her a great disservice to allow this half formed story to be published.

And I also have to wonder about the other reviewers who gave this book such good marks. If you are Ms. Jones good friends, good for you, you're being very supportive. And then, bad for you, you need to encourage her to do better.

In short, this is not a particularly good tale, and it's way overpriced. But I think I will stick around and see what more this author has to offer, but another A.B.C. guide to lesbian fiction will see me bailing faster than a highly trained rat.

p.s. buy/steal/read 'Death By The Riverside' By J.M.Redmann instead, and *then* get back to me ....

I had a great time reading this one. It kept me interested from cover to cover. I love reading feel-good romances that involve characters with some depth and this definitely fell into that category.

First novel I've read by Frankie J. Jones, I needed something light and quick for the commute today.

In that regard, the book delivered, unfortunately it didn't do much more.

It's very short, so understandably, the beginning seemed very rushed. They go from zero to love in 5 seconds, or almost. The attraction between the two didn't translate to the pages very well, I had to rely on what the author told me. There were the usual genre roadblocks thrown in that were believable, more believable if everything had been fleshed out more to allow the reader to be a little more involved emotionally.

This book included a few things that generally I don't like, but that's just personal taste, except for the extra typos thrown in, those are annoying anywhere and were really odd and obvious in this one. The writing seemed awkward at times and the story a bit disjointed. The latter may have to do with the length, or the lack thereof, of the book. I think it would have been better a bit more fleshed out, the characters sure had it in them.

So, it was an ok distraction, it doesn't really make me run out and check out another of her books.

This is a truely romantic book! I loved it...
The characters in this book are all charming and wonderful.
Room for Love is an easy, enjoyable read. Not a lot of detail that you need to keep track of to move through the book. I fell in love with little Tracy, Jo is a devoted partner, Beth is a strong/independant woman, and Reva is humorous. If you are looking for a light,pleasure read this book is for you! I think that Frankie J. Jones does a wonderful job showing the different feelings that a person goes through when coming out to the people you love...whether it be your parents or your children. The worries that everyone hopes will be for nothing.

This book moved me in how one women was willing to go back for the women she loved. I also like both women realized they were in love with each other.