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The Color of Love
Asia Bentley is a beautiful black single mother and a poet. After working one morning shift with Gene Ryan at Breezeway Airlines, Asia realizes that her feelings for him may be deeper than she originally thought they were. She shares her feelings with her closest friends Fallon Parks and Olivia Newton. When she reveals his race, and they don’t take her seriously, she decides that their opinions are not important to her. She is approached by another coworker Craig Banton, who is also a young black poet and stands out as a more suitable match for her, but she is convinced that Gene is the better choice for her. Mario Mitchell the father of her four year old son, and her stepmother Claire speak out against her relationship with Gene, but her attraction to him is something she is not willing to ignore.
Asia’s inability to let go of her past and her big mouth cause turmoil in her relationship with Gene and it becomes clear that the insecurities that her friends tried to warn her about are about to doom her relationship. Pride won’t allow her to turn to Craig, and her fear of losing Gene causes her to realize that she doesn’t want to be alone. By the time she realizes how much she wants Gene in her life it may be too late…
Asia’s inability to let go of her past and her big mouth cause turmoil in her relationship with Gene and it becomes clear that the insecurities that her friends tried to warn her about are about to doom her relationship. Pride won’t allow her to turn to Craig, and her fear of losing Gene causes her to realize that she doesn’t want to be alone. By the time she realizes how much she wants Gene in her life it may be too late…
157 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 15, 2012
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15 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 28, 2014
A Rollercoaster For Sure...
There is an inept beauty in trying new things, to walk the pathways to new possibilities, the excitement of learning, being invested, and possibly entertained. It’s how I approach reading new authors; I give them the benefit of a doubt. Sometimes, you find rare jewels while others you may wish that you’d just kept going when shopping. The Color of Love had that potential, especially in the beginning. Early on, it was engaging and had an easy flow.
Unfortunately, it did not last.
While I commend Ms. Cabey for her attempts to showcase the realism that exists in the life of a single, hard working woman with all the pitfalls of life behind her, I found myself unable to invest in Asia Bentley and her trials and tribulations. And it’s a shame too because early on, Asia presented as a self-assured woman, working to provide for her child all while attempting to forget the mistakes of the past. That was her first mistake, however; she allowed the past relationship with her ex to color how she saw all men and coupled with her insecurities, as well as her often caustic friendship with Fallon and Olivia was just a disaster waiting to happen. Add in the inappropriate boss, the scheming co-worker, and two other potential love interests and suddenly, the story becomes this massive bout of convoluted drama. And if that wasn’t enough, the addition of the abusive stepmother and the cheating father rounds out the misery of Asia’s life. The one character that I liked (and liked is a very strong word) was Gene but even he was too passive aggressive for me. All around, the realism got in the way and I was left bereft. Instead of enjoying the journey, I was ready to get off of the train.
This is the crux of the problem in The Color of Love; the author wants to exhibit the harshness of life and how to rise above the turmoil. That would’ve been a great theme had the author not lost her voice as the story progressed. The story moved at a clipped pace, never really defining any depth and leaving the reader with characters that presented as a meager shell of themselves with no development. Sure, in the end, Asia found the motivation to finally let go and grow up but it was too little too late.
This is not to say that Ms. Cabey isn’t a fine writer; while there were some obvious issues with the balance between conflict and development, she did capture the characters in their raw form. With every book, there is room for improvement. It is my hope that she has strengthened her skills.
There is an inept beauty in trying new things, to walk the pathways to new possibilities, the excitement of learning, being invested, and possibly entertained. It’s how I approach reading new authors; I give them the benefit of a doubt. Sometimes, you find rare jewels while others you may wish that you’d just kept going when shopping. The Color of Love had that potential, especially in the beginning. Early on, it was engaging and had an easy flow.
Unfortunately, it did not last.
While I commend Ms. Cabey for her attempts to showcase the realism that exists in the life of a single, hard working woman with all the pitfalls of life behind her, I found myself unable to invest in Asia Bentley and her trials and tribulations. And it’s a shame too because early on, Asia presented as a self-assured woman, working to provide for her child all while attempting to forget the mistakes of the past. That was her first mistake, however; she allowed the past relationship with her ex to color how she saw all men and coupled with her insecurities, as well as her often caustic friendship with Fallon and Olivia was just a disaster waiting to happen. Add in the inappropriate boss, the scheming co-worker, and two other potential love interests and suddenly, the story becomes this massive bout of convoluted drama. And if that wasn’t enough, the addition of the abusive stepmother and the cheating father rounds out the misery of Asia’s life. The one character that I liked (and liked is a very strong word) was Gene but even he was too passive aggressive for me. All around, the realism got in the way and I was left bereft. Instead of enjoying the journey, I was ready to get off of the train.
This is the crux of the problem in The Color of Love; the author wants to exhibit the harshness of life and how to rise above the turmoil. That would’ve been a great theme had the author not lost her voice as the story progressed. The story moved at a clipped pace, never really defining any depth and leaving the reader with characters that presented as a meager shell of themselves with no development. Sure, in the end, Asia found the motivation to finally let go and grow up but it was too little too late.
This is not to say that Ms. Cabey isn’t a fine writer; while there were some obvious issues with the balance between conflict and development, she did capture the characters in their raw form. With every book, there is room for improvement. It is my hope that she has strengthened her skills.
December 28, 2012
If you are looking for a quick easy to follow story, you have to read this book. Well worth the time.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews