Customer Reviews

Shameless

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Jasmyn - bold, high-strung, brassy, wreckless, witty, shady, charming and foolishly careless.

Kyle - Christian minded, weak-minded, gentleman, star student from a good socio-economic home and an all-around nice fellow.

The two meet on the college campus of Marshall in Pennsylvania. Jasmyn spies Kyle on campus and radars on making him her man. Put the two together and the combination is downright disgraceful. Kyle, not too stable in being able to stick to his first mind impression, succumbs to Jasmyn's lusts and the rest is "shameless".

When did Jasmyn's over zealous need for men begin... at the sudden tragic death of her father? Or girlfriend was just happy to be care-free in college knowing she had backup - cousins that would break a few arms and legs if she needed it done??? Maybe it was the thought of others knowing her mother was a mental basket case and big brother is on lock-down...whatever the case Jasmyn went "buck" wild when it came to men...girlfriend was off the meter!

Why was Kyle such a "patsy"...was it daddy's image at home? An over baring moms? Just a bookworm and no common sense? Why didn't he just pursue Tianna instead of punking for the most part?

The story is written in 1st person in the voices of Jasmyn and Kyle, with Jasmyn telling her side of the story first. It begins with Jasmyn in a confidential session with an HIV/AIDS victim. We have 2 yr. old, Jayda, also the mercy of this disease. Jayda's mom, Tianna is the childhood love of Kyle, engaged to be married. Tianna and Jasmyn are committed together in a manner you wouldn't suspect.

The reader never finds out the culprit behind the sad demise of Jasmyn. Religion and Christian principles are tapped on, revealing the need for a stronger commitment to ones' self and God.

The novel is well written and suggested for an eye opener to the beast of HIV/AIDS. This is one book that has a "believable" story to share.

Meet Jasmyn Simmons and Kyle Clayton in Shameless by Vonetta G. Pierce. Jasmyn is a sexy college student who will stop at nothing to get her man. Reckless sex with multiple partners is common to Jasmyn until she finds her world spinning out of control. Although Kyle is no virgin, he still has an ounce of morality left in him despite the promiscuity of college life. When he hooks up with Jasmyn, they kick it until Kyle finds out just how scandalous she can be. After college, when Kyle finally hooks up with his true love, his past comes back to hunt his promising future when he receives a call that shakes up his world.

I found this book to be an excellent read. Pierce developed her characters and kept the novel interesting throughout. Most remarkable was Piece's ability, as a woman, to get into the head of a man. She danced around Kyle's thoughts and convinced her audience that he, not she, was doing the talking.

Hip and fresh--this is a must read for African American males and females engaging in unprotected sex throughout America.

T. RHYTHM KNIGHT
APOOO BookClub

Vonetta C. Pierce tells an all too realistic tale about the choices made in life that seem so harmless at the time until the consequence of the action comes knocking. It is story that every teenager about to embark on the beginning of their lives as young adults should read. I was absolutely drawn in by the characters who reflect the attitudes and behavior of a seemingly invincible generation ignoring the warnings of society & spiritual teaching. "Shameless" is a must have for this year's list.

Written in the voices of the two main characters Jasmyn and Kyle, the story follows them through their years at Marshall State University.
Jasmyn is the resident ho who uses her body to create drama with every man she meets.
Kyle is smart and sexy trying to better himself by achieving his goal in college, but when he feasts his eyes upon sexy Jasmyn all logical thinking goes out the door. As they say opposites attract and there's plenty of drama when these two hook up and Kyle is drawn into Jasmyn's sexual web.
Upon leaving college the two go their separate ways, but still crave for each other.
Jasmyn's promiscuous ways catches up with her in the form of HIV. Shocked and faced with the daunting task of naming all her sexual partners within the last ten years, Jasmyn has to come to terms with the fact that her "Shameless" actions may lead to her demise.
Just as Kyle's life is coming together he gets a call telling him his name is on the list and that he should get tested.
Not a bad shot for Vonetta G. Pierce's first round in the literary arena. "Shamless" is an excellent title for this eye opening novel.

Locksie
ARC Book Club Inc.
Star Rating ****4.0

This book wasn't exactly a page turner, but I did enjoy the read. Jasmyn wasn't exactly my favorite character, but by the end of the book I felt bad for her and was happy for her transition and new look on life. This is definitely a book for a younger generation, since they are all running rampant like there's no tomorrow. I can honestly say that this story was a good example of "what you put out there you get back ten fold."

Jasmyn & Kyle are juniors in college who hook up. Kyle is reeling from the discovery that his childhood crush has become pregnant by another man while Jasmyn is just looking for love in all the wrong places. Jasmyn falls for Kyle but her risqué past around campus catches up with her and the two decide that they would make better friends then lovers.

But the flesh is definitely weak and hormones are raging and with no parental supervision Kyle and Jasmyn continue to make foolish choices. Less than one year after graduation Jasmyn finds out that she contracted HIV. Jasmyn is left to re-hash her past conquests along with Kyle who gets contacted by the clinic. Kyle is now engaged to his childhood sweetheart and is frantic trying to figure out who could he have came in contact with that is HIV+.

Shameless deals with the very real crisis of HIV by providing very genuine characters who are essentially good people making foolish choices. Choices so many of our youth are making. Ms. Pierce's gripping novel is a must read for young people thinking that HIV could never touch them personally. Kudos to Ms. Pierce for not only delivering an excellent novel but for also including a very powerful message!

This book is a page turner from the start. It starts off with Jasymn at the clinic getting her HIV results. The results were positive and she is only 22. The story begins to tell about her and her many conquests...Kyle is a main character in the story. The story is based at Marshall college. It tells how he met Jasymn and the story basically begins going back and forth between the two of them. Kyle is a christian struggling with the desires of the flesh. Jasymn is a very attractive woman on campus who indulges in the company of men. A Lot! This story is a real eye opener for anyone who thinks it can't happen to them. It is quite sad and very real.

Good! I relate this to First Semester by Cecil Ross...
I have this book and read it again the other week. Still good as ever and real believable. This is how it goes down at college and unfortunately the outcomes are the same as well.

I love this book because it gives insight first, on how teenagers think and how in this case HIV effect more than just one person. I think this book is great for teenagers and high school students. Shameless provides real life situations that people could relate to.

In this book, I found myself just reading and not really being into the story. To me, the book was lack luster. Maybe if we would have found out that she had HIV at the end of the book instead of the beginning it may have been better. But since we already knew she had HIV, I thought the blast from the past was useless since we never found out who gave her the virus. Jasmyn was reckless and it took her a long time to find the love she needed, but by then it was too late. The ending was okay, but overall the story had no real spark.