Customer Reviews

What a Womans Gotta Do: A Novel of Suspense

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I have to give hats off to Evelyn Coleman. I honstly can't say I've ever read a book quite like this one. She gives the readers all the elements they could ask for: a classic Whodunnit, a history lesson, and a love lesson so deep it brought tears to my eyes. Give this one a try.

I would not recommend this book to any serious reader of thrillers/mysteries, or fiction. First, the subplot is much more interesting than the main plot. Further, the main character, Patricia Conley, is the least interesting and most unsympathetic (and pathetic) character in the story. In fact, this character is annoying. Throughout the book, she refers to her fiancee by both his first and last name. Who does that? In addition, the character makes sweeping statements that are unfounded and untrue. For example, Patricia Conley analogizes what she states to be black folks' universal disavowal of slavery with the guilt felt by rape victims! Ugh! Needless to say, the book was painful to read; but I stuck with it, only to be further disappointed with the book's final plot twist. The book would have been much better if the final plot twist had been left out. It was only until I read the final pages that I thought reading the book may have been a total waste of time.

Since I have a rule of finishing every book that I start, I could not wait to finish reading this book because it was BORING and I desperately wanted to start reading something else. Besides the book being completely unrealistic, the main character Patricia Conley was unlikeable because she did one idiotic thing after another. I would only suggest this book to an insomniac; maybe it would help them get some sleep.

Just by reading the title of this book you would think that is just another relationship novel... NOT! WOW, every twist and turn you can think of is between these pages. Ms. Coleman (a well known children's writer) is definitely a welcomed participant in the literary adult fiction arena.

Evelyn Coleman has outdone almost every other author out there! WHAT A WOMAN'S GOTTA DO has so many secrets, crooks, twists and turns that it's almost unreal that all of this can come from one person's imagination!

First of all, I would like to say that I'm not even a fan of anything that has ANY element of science fiction in it and I hardly ever read mysteries because there just aren't that many good ones out there, but WHAT A WOMAN'S GOTTA DO had science fiction elements, mystery, conspiracy theories, government plots and action and all these elements came together in the most spectacular way! Every little thing had a meaning...for goodness sakes, even the cover of the book has a few secrets in it.

The main character, Patricia Conley, accidentally gets involved in a government scandal. She fights against police, scientists and government officials who think that she knows things that could alter the balance of long-term, top secret governement operated projects.

Words can't do justice to just how fantastic this novel is. If there ever were a book that could not be put down, it is WHAT A WOMAN'S GOTTA DO by Evelyn Coleman.

I thought that this book was an exciting, brilliantly written thriller! I truly enjoyed reading this. I literally could not put the book down for hours until I completed it. I was impressed with the way the author combined African history with genetic engineering and race issues. It was truly a well thought out and intelligent story! The characters were clear and believable, the storyline was not farfetched when compared to the society that we live in. It was a story of greed, lies and racial superiority; all of which we encounter in the news and in our lives daily. Evelyn Coleman shines with her first adult thriller! What everybody's gotta do is read this book!

Evelyn Coleman has written a compelling page-turner. An ingenious plot, filled with mystery and suspense, is skillfully blended with a passionate and engaging exploration of love, friendship, race relations, loyalty and what it means to be "family." I loved the dialog in this book and I admire the author for the gutsy yet low-keyed way she tackles racial and sexual stereotyping - by both women and men, black and white.

I cheered Patricia Conley, the book's smart and spunky protagonist, every step of the way - she's stood up at the altar, gets kicked out of her karate dojo for beating up another student who insults and tries to bully her (and also because she's not spiritual enough!), she stubbornly searches for her fiancée's identity and the reason for his murder, and encounters (in dream-time) a Dogon shaman who challenges her assumptions about the nature of reality itself. All with enough action, thrills, and unexpected plot twists to leave the reader breathless! I couldn't put this book down once I started it!

This book was not what I expected. The heroine seemed very contrived. This book left a lot to be desired.

While the story was interesting, the characters were not. The main character hardly appeared capable of functioning in the real (or unreal) world. I found it unbeleivable that she could solve a mystery much less figure that something was wrong.

Her love prevailed for Kenneth Lawson, even though a part of him remained a mystery to her. On her wedding day she stumbles upon the dreaded scene ... her man intertwined with another woman and then he's found in an alley dead, or is he really dead? What would you do? Her love for him provides the energy she needed as she investigates the mystery of Kenneth Lawson, as a person and the mystery of what happened in the alley.

Just when you think you've figured out what was happening, another character arrives on the scene forming your imagination to walk with Patricia Conley in her electrifying investigation.

From reading about the Dogons, scientific research and the primordial seed, the book was a thought provoker for me and it was refreshing to read something different that incorporated mysteries, science-fiction, love and African history.

Superb job in writing "What A Woman's Gotta Do"! If Patricia Conley had to do what she had to do, and survived, then the world is mine and I can do what I gotta do as well. Much success, Evelyn! Waiting for the next novel!

Cheryl Cephas

Having spent my money on this book I forced myself to complete reading it. The heroine is an unlikeable person. The author fails to show why such a damaged woman could attract two such great men. The pace is too slow. The white characters are charicatures. The plot is a mess and the message is delivered in a heavy handed fashion.