Rating: 
Summary: A Chicken Bone, a Red Bone
Review: You will laugh, you will cry, (...), you will run out and buy everything written by Preston L. Allen.The book opens up with a scene in a restaurant in Miami, where the Sanders family is having Sunday dinner. The protagonist, Cindique, watches in horror as suddenly her little sister begins to choke on a chicken bone but then is rescued by the Haitian busboy, who applies the Heimlich maneuver. This opening scene has a curious ending, one which I shall not give away to you, but one that I have been pondering since I finished reading "Bounce." The sister never shows up in the book again, nor does the Haitian man, nor, in fact, does anyone else who was in the restaurant that near-tragic day in Miami, except for Cindique, the first-person narrator, who describes herself as half Dominican, half African-American, and fleshy, but fine. Sassy is what she is, let's call her that and then fast forward to the present, where we find Cindique has aged 8 years (she is 20 now); and she is about to choke on her own chicken bone, or "red bone", as she refers to Roderick "Red" Redd, her long-legged co-worker with the face like Adonis and the voice like a televangelist. "Take my sins away, brother," Allen writes in a free flowing, poetic, sometimes whimsical style and the race is on in this marvelous book, whose plot is as lean and clever as its sex scenes are steamy. No doubt, Allen is a brilliant writer. You will be sucked into Cindique and Red's romance. Allen's strength as a writer is his warm sense of humor and his ability to make the reader care about his characters, even the disgusting ones, like Tyrone, the ex, with the pretty, pretty shoes, who shows up in a violent but beautiful scene early on in the book that has to be read to really be appreciated for its force, power, and style. So now Red and Cindique must flee Miami in order to be together. She needs to escape her crazy Tyrone; and her conflicted loverboy Red needs to put some space between himself and his ex, Tawana, as well as his boss, Joan. So many women love this little loverboy Red, and you will soon see why; he has a good heart (...). But Red is keeping secrets from Cindique, and she is keeping secrets from him, despite their promise to be "true." That is the heart of the book. If they would only be honest with each other, their love would be perfect. If they COULD only be honest with each other, tell a truth for a truth as they play their little games, she would find the boy trappped inside the strapping man; and Red would find the beautiful woman who has blossomed inside the frightened little girl, still watching helplessly as her little sister chokes to death on that chicken bone and praying frantically that she will bounce back. Finally, in this book, there is a story within a story, and it is called "Summer Rose." The writer plants the seed for this pretty flower early and often in the book, but nevertheless so subtley that when it finally blooms you will be both surprised and satisfied. I will never look at a rose the same way again.
Rating:
Summary: Love Hurts
Review: You will love this book. This book will have you hooked in just a few short pages. Cindique is the main focus but after you put the book down Red and Joan's relationship will stay on your mind for a long time. Cindique is beautiful and tragic, but when you get right down to it she is the "other" woman, even though we may not like to face the facts. What she is offering Red is a chance to save himself and her. What Red wants is kind of confusing. He seems to love Cindique, but he is torn between her and the love he already has. What goes on between these few pages is very engaging. This is a great book. I highly recommend it. I am now in the process of ordering Hoochie Mama? Anyone out there read that one?
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