The Savvy Sistahs

TEST

Brenda Jackson’s newest book, The Savvy Sistahs, is a terrific read about finding friendship when you most need it, and finding love when your heart is ready. It’s a “keeper” in the truest sense.

The book’s savvy sistahs are Amber Stuart, Branda Bennett, and Carla Osborne. The three met when they formed a support group for African American businesswomen; networking became friendship and they’ve supported each other ever since. Monthly meetings include dinner, prayer, and much discussion, and in-between they call, email, and do what friends do.

Each woman comes from different background. Amber Stuart left an abusive marriage and now runs her own small bookstore. After the betrayal of her first husband, she wants nothing to do with the male species and becomes celibate. Brandy Bennett, whose marriage ended at the reception, owns a hotel she received in the divorce settlement. She poured her heart and soul into getting the hotel to turn a profit and has no time for a relationship. Work is her major concern until someone starts stalking her. The third of the trio is Carla Osborne, a single mom who runs her own computer company. Carla conceived her son during a weekend fling with a man she later found out lied to her. At that time she decided not to let the father play a part in her or her son’s life.

These women are each beset by unique problems: Amber has turned her back on love from a good man, Brandy is being stalked, and Carla’s company is threatened by a corporate raider. Enter the men who will help each of these women. Cord Jeffries, an accountant who is a self-proclaimed workaholic, works hard to get himself out of the debt his ex-wife ran up before she left him for another man. When he meets Amber, he’s unsure – can he pass this woman by? Can he handle a relationship with his busy schedule?

Grey Master is a private detective and ex-FBI agent who came to Atlanta to help a family friend. When he meets Brandy, the attraction is intense. They both fight it; he feels like he is there to do a job, not start a romance, and knows she has no time for a man in her life right now. Both Brandy and Grey have been burned by people who professed their love and ending up hurting them instead.

Jesse Devereau is a very successful corporate raider who once shared an unbelievable weekend of passion with Carla Osborne. When he left her bed he never looked back, leaving a child he never knew he had. Carla must cope not only with the return of her child’s father but with the reality that he wants her business.

The Savvy Sistahs features a very detailed setting, many characters, and strong romantic sub-plots. Each couple must come to terms with decisions they made throughout the course of their lives before they can find and accept their HEA’s. And through it all, the friendship and support of their group of women keeps them grounded.

Jackson’s writing style is what earns this book DIK status. Each character has a unique voice and all voices are heard. This is a far more “big book” than a traditional romance and to me reads like Women’s Fiction in that the author tells three distinct stories that are intertwined into one larger story. This is not an easy feat to accomplish without overwhelming the reader and Jackson pulls it off with great style. Contrast this with other African American novels wherein main characters are drowned out by too many other voices and plot lines.

I have to admit I was disappointed when I first picked up this book. I thought it would be a romance novel (from the way the back cover reads) and was sadly disappointed when I realized about fifty pages in that it was Women’s Fiction. I can truly say at that point I hated the book; I did not care for the women or their stories and was sick of the going back in forth between the characters. At that point, I put the book down and did not pick it up for a week. When I picked it up next considering it not as a Romance but as Women’s Fiction, my perception changed entirely and I began to like all of the characters. The more I read, the more the women, the men, and the book grew on me. In the end I’d done a complete turnaround and thought it was brilliant. I’m incredibly thankful I was able to move past my original thoughts so I could accept the novel for what it was and not what I’d expected it to be.

Even though The Savvy Sistahs and I had a rocky start, this is an exceptional book. The women in this story are believable and courageous. Jackson has done it again, writing in a way that pulls the reader into the story gradually and taking the reader on an emotional ride all the way to the last page.

 

Reviewed by TaKiesha Smith

Grade: A-

Book Type: Women's Fiction

Sensuality: Hot

Review Date: 21/11/03

Publication Date: 2003

Recent Comments …

  1. excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.

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