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IF I WERE YOU WOMAN Robin Allen BET/Arabesque October 2002 (2) Katika Floyd |
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PLOT SYNOPSIS: |
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| Suddenly single and living in a new city, Satin Holiday gears up for the challenges of her new job at an Atlanta high-tech company. But is she ready for Drake Swanson, the irresistibly attractive advertising executive who clashes with her at every opportunity? Determined to protect his heart, Drake vows to keep Satin at a distance. But can he? | |
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REVIEW: |
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IF I WERE YOUR WOMAN is the story of Satin Holiday and Drake Swanson. After a proposal from her boyfriend and a promotion and layoff in short succession Satin decides it time to make a change in her life. So she drops her man and goes off to start a new life in a new city. A she starts in a new phase of her life she is not ready for her instant attraction to handsome Drake Swanson. But Drake’s not taking no for an answer.
A main theme in this novel is love at first sight and chance encounters. She uses this theme deftly to bring the main characters into each others lives and face their feelings about the relationships in their lives. Added to this theme is the tie into the novel’s title with the Gladys Night song “If I Were Your Woman”. The other more important theme is making your dream reality or going after what you want.
Satin and Drake are two likable characters. But we really don’t get a true sense of who they are as individuals or as a couple. A lot of the story focuses on disjointed meetings and encounters entwined around a rapidly developing plot and several different subplots. This lack of character development is a reason I did not enjoy IF I WERE YOUR WOMAN.
Settings also play a big part in the novel. In a wonderful style Ms Allen uses her settings to support her plots and subplots and give a feeling of realism to the story. Setting is also a key to many of the subplots.
Ms Allen, as in previous novels, uses subplots to add a hint of suspense to this novel. Here there are several subplots. The most valuable of the subplots are not the ones that directly tie in to the plot but to her underlying themes. As with the novel’s main plot the subplots unfold rapidly.
IF I WERE YOUR WOMAN explores love at first sight and capturing your dreams. If you like a story heavy on plot with light character development this is the story for you. |
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katika@romanceincolor.net (27th October 2002) |
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