Official Review: Seasons of Love to Deep South Love

[Chelsey Coles]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Seasons of Love to Deep South Love" by Tamara Barnett.]

---

3 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Seasons of Love to Deep South Love by Tamara Barnett is a novelette collection of six short stories. The period is the 1980s and 90s. In the first story, Shonda and her boyfriend of six years, RJ, struggle to agree on the next steps towards their future together. The second and third stories follow Vernon and Amber, who have already planned their wedding and future, but Amber struggles with the feeling that her older betrothed just wants to control her. The next story is a continuation of this plot but I can’t reveal the secret, so you’ll have to check it out!

The fourth tale is a tricky double love triangle, with LaTrish and Spencer as the main couple and two love interests on the side. In the penultimate story, Cristel misses her bus on the way to visit family, bumping into Lance. It’s a wild coincidence because he happens to be going to the same place, but Cristel is wary of strangers and refuses his help the more he offers it. In the final story, Millian is a single woman who has been pining for Larry, a luring man she went to high school with years ago. He has a mean girlfriend, so Milly takes a step back, but not too far. She decides to stick around and see what happens…

My rating for this book is 3 out of 4 stars. I subtracted one star because I found numerous mistakes which are mostly syntax and grammar hiccups. I doubt this book was professionally edited, which is disappointing because it has a shining degree of potential without them! I will confidently report that this book still deserves the other three stars because, despite the errors, I enjoyed immersing myself in the characters’ complicated lives. Each story was easy to follow. This book is riveting from beginning to end!

Barnett is a master with orating perspective and internal monologue. For example, the first story is my favorite because Chanequa, Shonda’s friend, struggles with what appears to be Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). She has a full, voluptuous figure that draws quite a bit of attention, most unwanted, from men all over town. Chanequa feels that her body hinders her from finding real love because men do not respect her; they are too busy gawking at her body! She falls into deep despair. She spends her time watching music videos at home in bed, alone, of girls who look like her. Layered with this setting, this book demonstrates the multiplex sociology of southern African-American communities.

Seasons of Love to Deep South Love should only be read by adults. There are heavily lustful explicit scenes as well as severe profanity. I do not recommend this for readers who are sensitive to infidelity, violence, mental instability, weapons, and criminal activity. If all of these hurdles do not deter you, then you will have a good time reading this collection. The many seasons of love add romance with a zesty slice of life that is dramatically delightful!

******
Seasons of Love to Deep South Love
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Bambo Elsie]

This book brings both negative and positive aspects of love lifes.one can expect to read about how love life can sometimes become complicated but at the end when both people sit down and talk good decisions surfaces then life goes on.

[Jennifer Aldo]

It's nice to see romance here not painted as only sunshine and flowers. Giving readers a realistic view is what I like most about this book. The author did a really great job. Thanks for the review.

[sharon titus]

The stories in this book is relatable to real life love experiences, I really liked the first and forth story of this book. Thank you for your hardwork.

[Petruschka1]

These six romantic short stories reflect real life very well. Many women are stuck in relationships which are seemingly going no-where. While others have overbearing partners or end up in love triangles.

[Vivian Jabeya]

The stories in the book are intriguing. It's a pity that the book wasn't professionally edited.

[MsH2k]

This sounds like an engaging and intense collection of stories. Thank you for a wonderful review.