Fire and Brimstone

Rating:
Summary: A great read
Review: Chris and Gayle's tumultuous relationship is full of flashes of love for each other and of the pains each experienced in previous relationships and in childhood. Chris is a single mother who doesn't value Gayle's involvement in the church, and Gayle uses this sometimes to drive a wedge between them. Weaving the past with the present, the story gives a full portrait of these two African American women who are both struggling to overcome their pasts and find a way to live in the present. While sometimes the story gets a bit overly dramatic and the flashbacks seem to meander at times, "Fire and Brimstone" is a compelling read as the reader follows Gayle and Chris through their trials to see if they can make it together. This is a provocative first novel that gives the reader much to consider.

Rating:
Summary: don't let the cover fool you
Review: Don't let the cover fool you, this is not a trashy book, nor is it exploitative. The story of Gayle, Chris and God is rich, interesting and well written. The author talks about a side of life that many of us don't really think about. This is a fine first novel.

Rating:
Summary: OOOH MY GOD! - THE REVISION IS DA BOMB!!
Review: I had heard so much about this book so naturally I was anxiously looking forward to reading it. Fire & Brimstone was a quick, fast-paced, easy to read story. The story started off well and quickly grabbed my attention. Brown really had a lot of controversial topics that made for a dramatic read to include lesbianism, same-sex domestic violence, religion, sexual abuse and single parenthood. Unfortunately about one-third of the way through, I really became annoyed by this book. The drama just took over the plot and character development and as such both of these went lacking. The story quickly became too much drama just for the sake of it. With a few improvements Fire & Brimstone could have been a really good read. Some of the annoying aspects of the books included all the fighting between the two young ladies, the reasons given for why they were lesbians, lack of strong character development( often one would be reading and then it appeared that the roles of the characters would be reversed), finally there were numerous grammatical and typographical errors throughout the book. If one can overlook some of the glaring concerns listed above then Fire & Brimstone was an okay read. On the other hand, if you're the type of person who likes a lot of drama & action in the storylines that you read than Fire & Brimstone actually is a good read.

Rating:
Summary: Set Me on Fire!
Review: I was recommended this book from a friend, who said it was "full of drama." Girl, she wasn't lying. Laurinda D. Brown has written a book that could be written from the life of a lot of lesbians. The writing and the plot were realistic and engaging. I followed the twists and turns of the Chris and Gayle, who each had her own story to tell and crosses to bear. I didn't really believe the ending was realistic, though; I guess I was expecting it to end differently. (Don't worry, I'm not going to give it away!) The moral of "Fire and Brimstone" is we are all flawed, sin and fall short. That's what makes us human. We have to figure out what's truly in our heart and learn to live with it. At the same time, we should also acknowledge there is a higher power that keeps us every day. I'm highly looking forward to her next novel, "Undercover," and hope she keeps up the excellent work.

Rating:
Summary: Set Me on Fire!
Review: I was recommended this book from a friend, who said it was "full of drama." Girl, she wasn't lying. Laurinda D. Brown has written a book that could be written from the life of a lot of lesbians. The writing and the plot were realistic and engaging. I followed the twists and turns of the Chris and Gayle, who each had her own story to tell and crosses to bear. I didn't really believe the ending was realistic, though; I guess I was expecting it to end differently. (Don't worry, I'm not going to give it away!) The moral of "Fire and Brimstone" is we are all flawed, sin and fall short. That's what makes us human. We have to figure out what's truly in our heart and learn to live with it. At the same time, we should also acknowledge there is a higher power that keeps us every day. I'm highly looking forward to her next novel, "Undercover," and hope she keeps up the excellent work.

Rating:
Summary: WONDERFUL...WONDERFUL...A MUST READ
Review: Once u pick up Fire and Brimstone its hard to put it down...This is a story about life that keeps u glued to the pages from the beginnin to the end...I found myself wondering what next can possibly happen...i applaude the author on this first effort...it has brought to light a subject rarely written about but much need to be discussed...can't wait to see what she is cookin up next...Laurinda D Brown is a name to remember...she sits in the company of E Lynne Harris...Alice Walker...Toni Morrison...what a wonderful story teller u are Ms Brown...I salute u...

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: Shopping around for books I came across this one. Being a bi-sexual African American woman myself reading the description on the back of the book captured my attention. The book did have some very interesting things in it that kept me reading but her flow was sometimes hard to comprehend. The author was jumping here and jumping there with the story line. The relationship between Chris and Gayle is a very realistic one but it is a bit misleading for people who know nothing about the lesbian lifestyle or may be biased against it. It was a bit too "churchy" for me. Was the author trying to tell us that homosexuality is wrong, that it is an abomination of GOD? It certainly seemed that way. I was very disappointed with the ending it cleared up so much but yet not enough. It will leave some readers saying "huh"? After reading this book I actually threw it in the garbage. This book would have been more interesting to me if I had read it when I was 14 years old. The author has some great ideas but needs to really study the art of storytelling. To some it up this book has good qualities and some bad. Even though I did not really care for this work of fiction I would recommend this book for readers who would like to challenge what the author was writing about, those readers who believe that not all lesbian relationships have so much drama.

Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!
Review: The author of this book Laurinda Brown and I both appeared at a speaking engagement together. Fire & Brimstone is so many things. The main character, Chris, is faced with so many dynamics in this story. A Howard University grad, Chris has a rocky relationship with her "babies daddy" Trey and after the demise of their relationship she lets her true feelings come out and starts living "the life" expressing her true feelings and accepting her sexuality and living as a lesbian. This book is so much more than a book about sexuality. Like many college grads, Chris often feels like even though she has these wonderful high priced degrees she is not earning or living the lifestyle she feels she deserves. I really hoped that the relationship between her and Trey improved toward the end. The book also deals with the characters interpersonal turmoils with sexuality and religion. It is a good first book. Towards the end I was a bit lost at times, but it might have been because my eyes were so heavy from staying up late to read the book. Good Job! I hope to read more from her.

Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!
Review: The author of this book Laurinda Brown and I both appeared at a speaking engagement together. Fire & Brimstone is so many things. The main character, Chris, is faced with so many dynamics in this story. A Howard University grad, Chris has a rocky relationship with her "babies daddy" Trey and after the demise of their relationship she lets her true feelings come out and starts living "the life" expressing her true feelings and accepting her sexuality and living as a lesbian. This book is so much more than a book about sexuality. Like many college grads, Chris often feels like even though she has these wonderful high priced degrees she is not earning or living the lifestyle she feels she deserves. I really hoped that the relationship between her and Trey improved toward the end. The book also deals with the characters interpersonal turmoils with sexuality and religion. It is a good first book. Towards the end I was a bit lost at times, but it might have been because my eyes were so heavy from staying up late to read the book. Good Job! I hope to read more from her.

Rating:
Summary: OOOH MY GOD! - THE REVISION IS DA BOMB!!
Review: There is no way that anybody could tell me that this girl can't write! I read the first edition of Fire and Brimstone, and, as I will admit that it was good, it can't touch the second edition. The characters come to life! The last book had few, if any, character descriptions, but the author has made some serious adjustments. The story flows so much better, and I couldn't help but feel like this was the best book I've read in a long time.