Comments for 7elements Bookclub

Comment on The Last Street Novel by Shay

Shay — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:17:21 +0000

1. The book ended up being pretty good. It was a very slow read for me. It didn’t keep me interested until I got to the last half of the book, but I didn’t give up reading it.
2. There were a few characters in the book that reminded me of people I know. Shareef reminds me of a guy I once dated who was so determined that it didn’t matter to him who got stepped on, as long as he was getting ahead in life. He was a very selfish thinker, but very goal oriented and craved attention and power.
3. I don’t think that Shareef was that happy with how his life was turning out. It seemed that he longed to be with his family and was dealing with the consequences of his choices. Even though he had a valid argument from his point of view, he failed to try to understand his wife’s point of view and shut her out of his emotional life. He tried to fill his life with other women to satisfy his physical needs but they didn’t do anything for his emotional needs.
4. I think Jurrell Garland was a typical career hustler. It doesn’t matter what line of business he gets in, he will always find a way to exploit it and people around him. I try to stay away from people like that. Once you get involved with these people, you somehow get wrapped up in all of their foolishness and it takes every ounce of energy to get rid of their negative influence in your life. He may have been trying to become a legitimate business man, but he was still strong arming everyone to make it to the top.
5. I think Baby G served his purpose in the book. He was a good example of how living that fast life can come to an end quickly. He had alot of potential to be a very strong and positive young black man, but he chose to live that fast street life…and it ended early.
6. Overall, I would recommend this book to someone. I would have to advise them to be prepared to be patient with the story line but it will eventually keep their interest.

Comment on Waking with Enemies by mshay75

mshay75 — Sat, 10 May 2008 23:49:21 +0000

1. I have to admit that I liked “Sleeping with Strangers” better than “Waking with Enemies”. Although I did like the sequel, I felt like it had too much sex in it. All of the explicit sexual scenes seemed like a filler, as if he just wanted to make the book long enough.
2. I thought the relationship between Gideon and Arizona was exactly what it needed to be. He was loyal to her and she was the woman of his dreams and if she would have given him the chance to become her man, she probably would never want for anything else; emotionally, financially, and physically. Her heart was hardened based on her own life experiences that she was not open to that type of lifestyle, which I find sad.
3. I would choose Gideon over Bruno any day. Yes, Bruno was a family man who although was going through a divorce, he loved his children deeply. He even still had feelings for his ex-wife even though she left him for another man. Bruno was a very dirty scoundrel in my opinion. He was willing to hurt anyone to seem tough or avoid problems. He misled Tebby and killed her. She was an innocent bystander and instead of letting her go, he killed her; knowing she had children to support. Gideon at least tried to protect the people who were not involved in his lifestyle.
4. I truly thought Gideon was going to kill Thelma. After he dealt with the information she told him about who she was, his heart seemed to open up for her and her son. I was surprised when he offered his home in Georgia to her and her son. I was glad he did so she could get out of the business she was in.
5. My heart went out to Tebby the most. She was an innocent bystander who didn’t know what she was getting herself in. She fell in love with the wrong guy. She was misled to believe a fairy tale and it cost her her life.

Comment on Sleeping with Strangers by Sharon

Sharon — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 03:13:45 +0000

1. Yes. I actually really enjoyed reading this book. I loved the fact that it was ultimately about a contract killer dealing with his own personal demons.
2. It did seem realistic to me. There is a lot of corruption in this world. A lot of things happen behind the scenes that seem to be a world away, but are all around us on a daily basis. It is scary but true. WOW!
3. I feel connected to a few characters in the book. Each character seems to be trying to disconnect themselves, to a certain extent, from the person inside who they really want to be. They feel that due to their past and current lives, there is no way that they would be able to live just a simple lifestyle. At times, I feel that my past and current situation will prevent me from becoming the person that I really want to be.
4. At this moment, I sympathize the most with Gideon. He seemed to be wrestling with some major issues. He had issues with being abused as a child, moral issues with the profession he chose, as well as issues with the woman he loved. Other than his success as being a successful contract killer, he really didn’t have anything else to hold on to.
5. I wouldn’t have changed a thing about this novel. I think it was put together nicely. It also ended with me wanting to know more and excited about reading the sequel. Great piece of work.