Customer Reviews

Somebody's Knocking at My Door: A Novel

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Title: This Guy's In Love

In Francis Ray's latest novel, Somebody's Knocking at My Door, the reader is treated to three blossoming romances in one book. Set in picturesque New Orleans, each romance has its own unique story and in the end it all combines for another successful reading experience provided by Ms Ray.

Art historian Kristen Mayfield finds herself pining away for elusive carpenter, Rafe Crawford. Rafe finds himself wanting to return the feeling, but he is fighting demons of his past with an abusive father. Kristen does not give up, and sets out to make Rafe see that he is capable of giving and receiving love.

Angelique is Kristen's next door neighbor and best friend. She is as beautiful as she is smart. When Damien Broussard walks into his father's art gallery and sees Angelique, he is ready to put aside his playa card and get to know this lady, that is until he finds out she is associated with the Inferno, a gentlemen's club. Going on assumption about Angelique instead of finding out the truth, he almost destroys a fulfilling relationship.

The very wealthy insurance mogul Claudette Thibodeaux Laurent is married to the unscrupulous Maurice Laurent. He only sees dollar signs and Claudette appears to be blind to his behavior and only interested in "keeping the family honor." Everyone sees that Claudette is hurting and Maurice only cares about her money. A friend ,Jacques Broussard, is just waiting on the sidelines to step in and show Claudette what real love is.

In all of Ms Ray's writings she possess a skill that draws the reader into the lives of each character. She tells this story with modest sexual interactions, romance, and laugh out loud humor and compassion. At times Rafe's brooding and dark outlook on life became a little cumbersome, but I will still highly recommend this book. For the readers who read Turning Point, they will be happy to have the updates on Adam and Lily as they make a return appearance in this book.

Jeanette
APOOO BookClub

What a delight it was to receive a copy of Francis Ray's latest book, SOMEBODY'S KNOCKING AT MY DOOR. It was even more rewarding once the final page of the book was read and I sat and reflected on this story which is full of memorable characters and a plot centered on family and love.

Kristen Wakefield is an art historian working at an illustrious and well-known museum in New Orleans. While working to put together the first known collection of nineteenth century African-American art, things take a turn for the worse. When someone threatens her well-being and her career, she reaches out for help from Rafe Crawford, a skilled carpenter and distant in-law. Though proficient in his craft, Rafe is battling with his own demons and his inability to trust others and allow them into his life.

Kristin's best friend Angelique is working hard to get her doctorate in psychology and has ruled out men in her life. In a pinky swear of sorts, the two friends vow off men and set out on a course that takes some unexpected detours and leaves both of them on one way streets to love.

These characters along with a cast of well-developed antagonists add depth to SOMEBODY'S KNOCKING AT MY DOOR and demonstrate Ray's ability to continuously bring out the well rounded aspects of being in relationships with family and friends and the ups and downs we incur as a result. Her characters are real, compelling, and heart-warming and the story is one I'd recommend without a doubt. Her books never fail to engage the reader laving them looking at their own familial ties.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal

This book is excellent. This is the first book that I have read by Francis Ray. I am now in search of her other works. I loved the way she weaves Black Love together. I am a hopeful romantic and I have read so many books by Black authors that put shame to Black Love. This book was so beautiful. I highly recommend it.

Francis Ray brings us "Somebody's Knocking at My Door" (the follow-up to "The Turning Point"), a novel that revolves around the lives of three unforgettable women and teaches about forgiveness, love, friendship, and the healing of past pains.

Art historian Kristen Mayfield is out of a job, thanks to Claudette Thibodeaux Laurent's gold-digging, conniving husband, but the elusive Rafe Crawford--who feels responsible for Kristen losing her job--helps her find another, and their rare connection sparks a yearning in Kristen. Though Rafe also shares this yearning, he refuses to make a move on Kristen; instead, he spends his life fighting to forget his abusive childhood and the hate he has for his father. Kristen sets out on a journey to help Rafe overcome his past and perhaps start a new future with her.

Kristen's best friend and next door neighbor, Angelique Fleming, has struggled her whole life to get ahead. Through living in several foster homes and working at a "gentlemen's" club to help pay for college, Angelique is a dissertation away from getting her doctorate in psychology. On a hiatus from men, Angelique finds herself tempted by Damien Broussard, a devastatingly handsome lawyer who finds an instant attraction to Angelique. If he can overcome his jealousy of Angelique having worked at The Inferno and if she can accept love, the two could be a perfect match.

Claudette Thibodeaux Laurent is a wealthy businesswoman who is married to Maurice Laurent, a man with no scruples and no love for Claudette, except for her money. Despite the obvious signs of Maurice's infidelities, Claudette keeps her family's honor and overlooks her husband's indiscretions; that is until they smack her directly between the eyes. As Claudette tries to maintain her hardworking persona while juggling a failing marriage, Jacques Broussard, a friend of Claudette's, anxiously awaits for his chance to express his love for her.

In "Somebody's Knocking at My Door," Ray offers her readers vivid descriptions of New Orleans and her characters. The supporting characters added substantial depth to the story. Ray tackles the subject of childhood abuse in a tender way, and I was very drawn to the character Rafe, who was in so much pain because of the abuse he suffered at the hands of his father.

I did, however, have two main issues with the story. One is that the story felt too long. Some of the information that pertains to "The Turning Point" storyline dragged my reading and I found myself wanting the resolution of the story to arrive faster. My second issue is that the ending/resolution seemed too quick. The reader spends over 300 pages feeling characters' constraints and wants and desires, particularly Rafe's, and the resolution to his story seemed to end quickly, in spite of the lengthy journey to get to the ending.

Despite these two concerns, overall, I enjoyed "Somebody's Knocking at My Door." High marks go to Ray for character development, creating a strong sense of setting, and of letting the reader feel the characters' pains and revel in their joys. Ray's fans will not be disappointed with this novel, and I would urge newcomers to check it out and pick up "The Turning Point" as well.

Shon Bacon

It is one thing for a woman to walk in someone's home and get fever from the woman's husband, but then to throw yourself on others and get the person's job taken from under them, well that is a bit much here. I really dispised Maurice from the get go, but loved Rafe's character. I only wish he existed. I found the book a good read and was glad to see what ended up happening to Maurice. Claudette married him at a vulnerable time, and was glad to see her regroup. Kristen,the heroine was likeable,but her buddy was something else, but you couldn't help but love her as well. Great reading.

SOMEBODY'S KNOCKING AT MY DOOR is more than a romance. It is a story that examines the complexities of relationships between men and women, children and parents, brothers and sisters and friends. The storytelling of the author, Francis Ray is superb as she has the ability to snare the reader before completing the first page. I was so enthralled with the characters that I had to find out what was going to happen next. Some of the story was predictable and that's fine too. I knew what was going to happen mostly because these are things that we've all experienced on the road to maturity and it was interesting to see how others handled situations similar to mine. You learn a lot from the realistic characters and the masterful craft of telling a story.

Set in mysterious New Orleans, Louisiana you will find Ms. Kristen Wakefield and her best friend and next-door neighbor Angelique Fleming. Both ladies are strong, independent women, who are searching for fulfillment in life and in love. Kristen hails from an upwardly mobile family and she's decided to take wings and gain her independence from family by moving to New Orleans. She has a job in an art museum and is busy soliciting art patrons private collections for a permanent display of nineteenth century African American Art. It is this solicitous activity that finds Kristen in the home of New Orleans premier art patron, Claudette Marie Estelle Thibodeaux Laurent and her much younger, much poorer husband (read gold digger) Maurice. Amid a scandal for which Kristen was totally unprepared she finds herself in the position of having to resign from her museum job to keep scandal from permeating her career further.

Angelique is busy working on her dissertation for her doctorate in Psychology and working as a counselor in a local rehabilitation facility. Her dissertation can best be described as an expose' in the life of a formal exotic dancer and the socially acceptable behavior of a man's presence in such a place versus the preconceived notion that women who work there must be addicted to the wrong type of life. Angelique worked in a club as a dancer her last two years in undergraduate school and takes it personal when she is judged on that alone. At first it seems unlikely that these two women, from different walks of life, and different frames of mind could be friends at all. As the story progresses, their friendship is endearing and everlasting. It's nice to see that friends really don't judge each other on outside merits but rather solely on trust and mutual understanding.

Kristen is frustrated clearly with the turn her life has taken in the Big Easy. She is fortunate enough to have a friend, Rafe' Crawford, who gallantly came to her rescue against the malicious Maurice. And rescue, as a knight in shining armor he did. Their friendship blossomed and Rafe found Kristen a job at a local art store working with Jacques. Rafe himself was a fine crafter of fine wood reproductions. A sweet and tender romance is blossoming between the two but Rafe is purposely holding back his feelings. Angelique comes to visit Kristen at her place of employ and is introduced to Jacques son, Damien. Damien is immediately smitten with the vixen Angelique but they don't hit it off well when Angelique doesn't bother to dispel Damien's thoughts about her method of financing undergraduate school. Two budding relationships teeter on the bar of honesty and implied deceit. Jacques is secretly in love with Claudette and that scoundrel of a husband Maurice is out for love from any young thing and Claudette's fortune.

I thought I could give this novel "5 stars" but I can't. This novel was a tad bit too long, and how many times do we have to read about how Rafe was abused as a child. I hope that doesn't sound too insensitive, but come on now, let's move on. I got more into "Damien and Angelique", "Maurice,Claudette and Jacques", and their storylines. Sometimes the supporting characters are more interesting than the main characters. Ms. Ray is still an exceptional writer, none the less.

'Somebody's Knocking at My Door' is the sequel to 'The Turning Point.' The story, set in New Orleans, focuses on Kristen Wakefield, Angelique Fleming, Claudette Thibodeaux, and their relationships.

Kristen is on a mission to get a nineteenth century African-American art exhibit at the museum she works at, but is forced to resign after not giving in to the sexual advances of Maurice, the husband of one of the most respected women in the art and business world. She calls Rafe to come save her and he ends up feeling that he is responsible for Kristen losing her job. As Rafe tries to help Kristen they end up with electrifying chemistry, but Rafe cannot allow himself to get close to anyone. Rafe was severely abused physically and emotionally by his father and now believes he must forever be alone in life.

Angelique, Kristen's best friend, was abandoned by her parents and lived in foster homes her entire life. She is working on her dissertation for her doctorate in Psychology. She worked her way through school as a dancer at The Inferno. She meets Damien, a super handsome lawyer who is the son of Kristen's new boss. He thinks she is simply gorgeous until he finds out about The Inferno and automatically labels her in a not so positive way, but the strong attraction he feels towards her is driving him crazy.

Then there is Claudette who is married to Maurice. Claudette is the owner of a large company and is very rich. Everyone knows that Maurice is just a gold digger and has no love for Claudette, except Claudette. She has her blinders on.

This book was simply wonderful! I cried throughout the book feeling all the pain the characters felt. I argued with the characters when they did wrong things and I laughed when they were happy. This book brought out many emotions and pulls you in alongside the characters. Put this on your must read list.

Tina
R.E.A.L. Reviewers

At first this book started off kind of dry, and then it became an instant page turner. Looks at different families and how they all affect each other's life.

Francis Ray outdid herself in this sequel to THE TURNING POINT. I loved this book! Once I started reading I could not put it down and had to finish in one sitting. This book was an emotional as well as a romantic read.

The storyline revolves around three women and the men in their lives.

First, there is Kristen. When she is sexually harrassed by her employer(Maurice), she calls Rafe who comes to her rescue. Rafe is dealing with demons of his own, having grown up with an abusive father he feels unworthy to be loved. Kristen, after finding a new job, shows Rafe with unconditional love and understanding that he is not the man that his father was.

Then, there is Angelique, Kristen's best friend who thinks all men are dogs until she meets Damien, a corporate attorney, (and the son of Kristen's new employer) that gets under her skin and in her bed. He then shows her that not all men leave.

Last, there is the wealthy Claudette, who throughout most of the book walk around with blinders on concerning her cheating, younger husbad, Maurice and not seeing that longtime friend, Jacques (Damien's father) is in love with her.

This book will make you laugh (especially when Maurice gets his due) cry and believe in love. Like the last line in the book reads, "To new beginnings and love knocking at someone's door." Thank you Ms. Ray for a wonderful book that is a definite keeper.

Other great reads by this author include I KNOW WHO HOLDS TOMORROW, UNTIL THERE WAS YOU, and THE TURNINIG POINT